Congress

Congress

Chapter 6

Congress is the chief lawmaking body in the land.

Congress is sometimes called the “first branch.”

-Because it is the branch of government
established in Article I of the Constitution

Congress is also called the “people’s branch”

-

-Because its members are the most
immediately responsive to changes in the
public’s moods and opinions

-Congress is also the branch of the national government in which
the political ideas of Americans are most visibly represented.

-Few legislative bodies possess greater authority over the lives,
property, and happiness of a nation.

Congress

Bicameral
-2 chambers

-Senate

-House of Representatives

Term of Congress

-2 years

-begins Jan 3rd of odd numbered years

Session of Congress

-1 year

We are in the 118th Congress.

-Jan 3, 2023

The Constitution enumerates certain powers to
Congress and implies others through the necessary
and proper clause. These are powers given to
Congress in Article 1 section 8 of the Constitution.

-Enumerate means to write down or list. So these are the powers that are written into the Constitution.

-Implied powers are given to Congress through the necessary and proper clause
(Art 1 sec 8).

In McCulloch v. Maryland, Chief Justice Marshall, speaking for the Supreme Court,
found ample power in this clause for Congress to use all appropriate means to
achieve its enumerated goals.

Constraints

The Constitution does, however, impose some constraints.

First:
The enumeration of specific powers limits what Congress can do to those powers and others implied from them.

Second:
Article I, Section 9, contains eight specific limitations,
including a ban on bills of attainder (legislative acts that
declare an individual guilty and mete out punishment
without a trial) and ex post facto laws (laws that make an act a crime after it was committed or increase the punishment for a crime already committed).

Sharing Power

• Congress shares powers with the other two

branches through a system of checks and balances (covered in Chapter 1).

• Congress shares powers within itself, between

the House of Representatives and the Senate.

– The House was designed to be more representative

and thus impulsive.

– The Senate was indirectly elected (by House) until the

17th Amendment. They were designed to be more deliberative.

Differences between the

House and Senate

Look at Table 6.2 on page 155 of your book.

House Members:

25 yrs old

US citizen 7 yrs

Resident of the state they represent

Senate Members:
30 yrs old
US citizen 9 yrs
Resident of the state they represent

Who are They?

How do they see their roles?

• Trustee role

– much as a trustee of a trust account. They do what they is in the interest of the nation and not simply the views of their constituents.

• Delegate role

- simply voting the desires of the congress
person’s constituents –regardless of the one’s own personal views.

The imperative of getting re-elected motivates most members of Congress; therefore they must cultivate the support and the trust of their constituents by:

1.Allocating time and resources to their district
2.Their personal style
3.Their explanations of their Washington activities

An increasingly effective method for achieving this is the
use of the franking privilege.

Franking privilege – a congressional benefit that permits
members to send out official mail using their signature
rather than postage.

In 1990 the cost of the congressional frank exceeded
$100 million. However, in 2018 the cost to taxpayers
was only $19.8 million.

We have seen more and more Congress people using e-
mail. It is cheaper and quicker to deliver to their
constituents.

Pork Barrel Politics

Congress people also use pork barrel politics to gain
recognition and build support at home.

Pork Barrel Politics is the process of gaining federal
funds for the legislator’s home district. Sometimes in
the form of costly government spending that is not
advantageous to the country as a whole.

Examples: sewage plant, housing units, and dams.

Congressional Casework (Casework)

Each member of Congress is also supposed to serve as
a liaison or go between who intervenes with the
federal bureaucracy on behalf of the individual
constituents.

The Structure of Congress

A. Party Leadership: The House

1. The Speaker of the House is its presiding officer. This position was established
in Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution.

2, The Speaker is third in line to succeed the President according to the Presidential Succession Act of 19447.

3. The Speaker is nominated by the majority party.

4. The majority leader is the Speaker’s chief deputy and the second most powerful figure in the majority party.

5. The leader and chief spokesperson of the minority party is the minority
leader. When the minority party becomes the majority party then the minority
leader usually always becomes the Speaker of the House.

6. The party whip acts as an assistant majority or minority leader and is the
heart of the party communication system.

B. Party Leadership: The Senate

1. The president of the Senate and the chief presiding officer is the Vice-President of
the United States. However it is mostly ceremonial and involves presiding over Senate
sessions, which rarely occur, and voting only to break a tie.

2. The Constitution provides for a president pro tempore. This person presides over the Senate in absence of the Vice-President. The president pro tempore is usually the senator with the most seniority. This position is primarily ceremonial.

3. The majority leader is the dominant (powerful) figure in the Senate.

4. The majority leader controls debate on the floor and influences committee assignments.

5. Senator leaders are media personalities and spokespersons for their party.

6. Senate whips basically serve floor leaders as vote counters.

The Committee System

1. Standing (permanent) Committees approve legislation for House and Senate

floor debate. There are 20 in the House and 16 in the Senate. These
committees have budgets and staff.

2. Joint Committees are permanent committees made up of members from both

houses.

3. Special or Select Committees are created periodically to study particular

problems or new areas of legislation. These committees are not permanent
and are broken up after they complete their specific assignment.

4. Conference Committees are formed to reconcile differences between the House

and Senate versions of a bill.

5. Congressional seniority and committee seniority are based on the length of service and

affect privileges granted to members.

6. Committee assignments are made by party leaders and caucuses.

a. Members concerned with re-election seek committees made up of members from
both houses.

b. Members interested in influencing policy seek committees concerned with broad public issues.

c. Members who want to expand their influence seek committees that deal with
matters important to all members.

Subcommittees

1. Standing committees are usually divided into subcommittees.

2. Subcommittees have gained legislative independence in the House but they have

not in the Senate.

3. The rise of subcommittee government has made coalition-building and

compromise more difficult.

How a
Bill
Becomes
a Law

Congress and the Political System

A. The Lobbies

1. Lobbyists foster dialogue between the people and Congress.

2. Lobbyists are most effective in affecting distributive policies and
least effect with redistributive policies.

3. Lobbyists often utilize public opinion to affect law.

B. The Bureaucracy

1. Bureaucratic agencies often develop informal partnerships
called iron triangles.

Multiple Choice

The power to originate tax bills was Constitutionally given solely to

• the President.

• the House of Representatives.

• the Senate.

• none of the above.

Multiple Choice

The 17th Amendment provides for the direct election of

• U.S. Representatives.

• federal judges.

• of the President.

• of U.S. Senators.

Multiple Choice

"Delegate" representatives

• use their own judgement when voting on issues.

• vote their constituent's desires.

• only vote on issues involving their constituents.

• abstain from voting on controversial issues.

Multiple Choice

Getting national government spending in a member's district is the concept of

• pork barrel politics.

• franking privileges.

• domestic politics.

• none of the above.

Multiple Choice

The congressional franking privilege

• provides money for congresspersons to travel to their home states.

• is the right to eat free meals at any Washington, D.C., restaurant.

• is unlimited use of a governmental automobile.

• is free postage for offical business.

Multiple Choice

When members of Congress exchange votes to help each other it is known as

• legislative work.

• personal courtesy.

• logrolling.

• none of the above.

Multiple Choice

The office of the Speaker of the House is

• voted on by both the House and the Senate.

• established by the members of Congress.

• established by the President.

• established by the Constitution.

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is NOT a type of committee in Congress?

• joint

• floor

• standing

• select

Multiple Choice

A three-fifths majority vote in the Senate to end debate is called

• a cloture.

• a filiabuster.

• a stop rule.

• a closed rule.

Multiple Choice

The purpose of the conference committee is to ___________ the House and Senate versions of a bill.

• accept

• mark up

• reconcile

• all of the above.