Chapter 11 Notes Summary PDF

Chapter 11 Notes Summary Each term of Congress: 2 years; terms begin during the first week of January in odd numbered years (119th Congress opened on 1-3-25) Constitutional Plan: ​ Bicameral (2-House) legislature – provides checks on power both between branches...

Chapter 11 Notes Summary Each term of Congress: 2 years; terms begin during the first week of January in odd numbered years (119th Congress opened on 1-3-25) Constitutional Plan: ​ Bicameral (2-House) legislature – provides checks on power both between branches and within the legislative branch itself ​ House of Reps. to represent the will of the average citizen - only body directly elected by voters at the time ​ Senate to provide stability and in-depth deliberation – focus on states’ interests (state legislatures voted for U.S. Senators until passage of 17th Amendment in 1913) and more emphasis on international matters Members of Congress ​ collectively, not typical Americans – wealthier, large number of lawyers ​ Senate not proportional by race or gender, more so by religion; House more proportional on race (i.e. African Americans comprise 13% of seats, matches overall population percentage) ​ Descriptive representation – the extent to which Legislators match their constituents’ demographic characteristics (race, religion, etc.) The House of Representatives ​ 435 members (since 1911); reapportioned after census (every 10 years) ​ each member represents one congressional district from their state (# districts based on population) ​ 2 year terms, no term limits ​ entire body up for reelection every two years ​ must be 25 years old, citizen for previous 7 years The Senate ​ Senate less disciplined, less centralized than the House. ​ Senators are more equal in power than Representatives are. ​ The filibuster – a concept unique to the Senate - permits unlimited debate on a bill; traditionally meant that opponents of a bill could try to “talk it to death”. Requirement of literal speaking no longer adhered to, a simple announcement of a filibuster initiates one. ​ 60 members present and voting can halt a filibuster by invoking cloture on debate. Apportionment of the House ​ After each decennial census, House seats reapportioned among 50 states, based on population changes that have occurred over the previous 10 years. ​ 1929 – Permanent Apportionment Act - set 435 seat maximum to limit ever-growing House ​ Since, constituent representation per member has grown from 210,328 (1920 census) to @750,000 (Maryland: 771,926) Redistricting ​ After a census, the process of drawing congressional district lines within a state so that each district has roughly the same number of people in it. ​ done by Governor and state legislatures ​ Sometimes referred to (in a negative way) as “Gerrymandering” Supreme Court’s reaction to Redistricting Issues ​ Baker v. Carr* (1962): Court held (6-2) that they had power to determine the constitutionality of a State's voting district; issue was not a “political question”, it was justiciable issue ​ challenge brought by Baker was of 14th Amendment Equal Protection violation, not legislature’s actions ​ All state government legislatures must represent a similar number of constituents (“one person, one vote”). ​ Wesberry v. Sanders (1964): Court declared (6-3) that number of citizens represented in all U.S. congressional districts must be virtually the same (thus Maryland’s 8 districts have exactly the same number of constituents) ​ “…as nearly as practicable, one man's vote in a congressional election is to be worth as much as another's.” – Hugo Black ​ Shaw v. Reno* (1993) Majority-minority districts are unconstitutional if race is seemingly the only factor (“racial predominance”) used in creating the district Constituency Opinion Versus Member Ideology ​ There are a variety of views concerning how members of Congress should fulfill their function of representation. ​ The concept of legislators as trustees means using their best judgment to make policy in the interests of the people. ​ The concept of representatives as delegates calls for representatives to mirror the preferences of their constituents. ​ Members of Congress are actually politicos, combining the trustee and delegate roles as they attempt to be both representatives and policymakers, using each role when most appropriate ​ On some controversial issues, it is perilous for a legislator to ignore constituent opinion. ​ Representatives and senators have recently been concerned about the many new single-issue groups that will vote exclusively on a candidate’s position on a single issue (such as gun control), and not on the member’s total record. ​ Members of Congress do pay attention to voters, especially on visible issues, but most issues do not interest voters. On less visible issues, other factors (such as lobbyists and the member’s individual ideologies) influence policy decisions. Committees Congress copes with the demands of policymaking through the committee system: ​ more than 11,000 bills introduced per session ​ most do not get past committee level ​ over 90% of legislative process done at committee level Allows members of Congress to: ​ divide up workload ​ specialize in subject areas and become experts ​ work on issues that directly affect their voters ​ hold hearings to investigate problems/possible wrongdoing, and to oversee the executive branch. Types: ​ Standing committees - permanent subject-matter committees, formed to handle bills in different policy areas - each chamber has its own committees and subcommittees. ​ Select committees - temporary committees appointed for a specific purpose (i.e. Senate select committee that looked into Watergate) ​ Joint committees – exist in a few policy areas (economic) - membership drawn from both the Senate and the House. ​ Conference committees - unique to the legislative process - they are formed to work out differences when 2 versions of a bill are passed by the two houses Congress at Work Making Laws ​ Making policy is the toughest of all the legislative roles; a purposefully slow and sometimes tedious process ​ Framers sought to ensure widespread support of all legislation, and sought to avoid policy that was frivolous, short-sighted, produced on a whim, etc. ​ Congress is a collection of generalists trying to make policy on specialized topics ​ The complexity of today’s issues requires more specialization – usually achieved through members who have served multiple terms and who have become experts in the area of their assigned committee’s subject ​ Reciprocity/quid pro quo/“Logrolling” – often necessary to move the process along – members do political favors for one another by voting for one another’s bills (or against others) in exchange for a yes (or no) vote on another bill. ​ differences between the House and Senate can contribute to legislation passing in only one of the two chambers. These factors can include: o​ House is more formal /Senate is less formal or more collegial o​ Greater workload in the Senate slows the flow of legislation  o​ Harder to get a majority in House o​ Senate members are less frequently preoccupied than House members about reelection o​ the Filibuster (Senate) o​ House Rules Committee (House of Representatives) o​ Different constituencies o​ Powers of presiding officers/speakers o​ Greater specialization in the House Legislative Oversight ​ the monitoring of Executive Branch bureaucratic entities (i.e. Regulatory agencies (EPA), Executive departments (State Dept.) ​ Congress maintains control through: o​ budgetary allotments ($$$) o​ Committee hearings to review agency performance o​ Confirmation power over appointees o​ Investigations/subpoenas Congressional Leadership ​ Leadership in Congress is really party leadership ​ real power in the congressional hierarchy held by those whose party put them there. ​ power no longer in hands of a few key members, insulated from the public ​ power is widely dispersed, requiring leaders to appeal broadly for support Leadership in the House ​ Speaker of the House is presiding official - Formal powers include: major role in committee assignments; appoints or plays a key role in appointing the party’s legislative leaders and the party leadership staff; has control over which bills get assigned to which committees. ​ The Speaker’s principal partisan ally is the majority leader. ​ The majority leader is responsible for rounding up votes on party legislation and for scheduling bills in the House. ​ Party whips work with the majority leader to round up votes and to report the views and complaints of the party rank-and-file back to the leadership (minority party has same hierarchy) ​ House Rules committee – unique to the House, acts as “traffic cop” for bills being submitted for full House review; they set the terms of legislative debate, including which bills can be considered, for how long and — crucially — what amendments may be offered and by whom. Leadership in the Senate ​ The Constitution names the VP of the US as President of the Senate; President Pro-Tempore a symbolic leader  ​ Vice presidents typically have little power or influence in the Senate, except in the rare case when their vote can break a tie. ​ The Senate majority leader - aided by the majority whip - is the position of real power and authority in the Senate. ​ They round up votes, schedule the floor action, and influence committee assignments. ​ Party leaders (Majority, Minority Leaders, Whips) do for Senate legislative scheduling what the Rules Committee does in the House. Congressional Leadership in Perspective ​ Congress’ complex structure hinders legislation ​ Bicameral division means that bills have two sets of committee hurdles to clear. ​ Congressional leaders are not in the strong positions they occupied in the past - elected by their fellow party members and must remain responsive to them (just ask Kevin McCarthy :)) Presidents and Congress: Partners and Protagonists ​ Presidents are partners with Congress in legislation, but also adversaries in the struggle to control legislative outcomes. ​ Presidents have their own legislative agenda, based in part on their party’s platform and their electoral coalition. ​ Political scientists sometimes call the president the chief legislator; the president’s task is to persuade Congress that his agenda should also be Congress’ agenda. ​ President may try to influence members directly, but usually through regular meetings with the party’s leaders in the House and Senate. ​ Presidential success rates for influencing congressional votes vary widely among presidents and within a president’s tenure in office. ​ Presidents are usually most successful early in their tenures, when their public approval ratings are usually higher, and when their party has a majority in one or both houses of Congress.