Role and Structure of Congress in the US Government
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Congress
If progress is the advancement of
society, what is congress?
Congress
US CAPITOL BUILDING
Legislative Branch – “makes laws”
Founders’ Intentions
1.
Strongest branch
2.
Separation of lawmaking power from
executive
3.
Bicameralism balances large/small states
•
House – more connected to people (2 yr term)
•
Senate – allows for independent thinking (6 yr term)
Important Differences
House
•
435 members
•
2 year term
•
7 year citizen
•
Initiate impeachment
•
Revenue bills
•
Strict debate rules
Senate
•
100 members
•
6 year term
•
9 year citizen
•
Tries impeachment
•
Approve presidential
appointments
•
Approve treaties’
•
Loose debate rules
The Representatives
and Senators
•
The Job
–
Salary of $145,100 with retirement benefits
–
Office space in D.C. and at home and staff to
fill it.
–
Travel allowances and franking privileges.
–
But, there’s often 10 to 14 hour days, lots of
time away from the family, and lots of
pressure from different people to “do the right
thing.”
Constitutional Powers
Article I, Section 8
•
To lay and collect taxes, duties, imports
•
To borrow money
•
To regulate commerce (states and foreign)
•
To establish rules for naturalization
•
To coin money
•
To create courts (except Supreme Court)
•
To declare war
•
To raise and support an army and navy
Evolution of Powers
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•
Oversight of budget – can restrict the fed.
budget prepared by executive branch
•
Appropriations – set amount of money made
available for various activity in a fiscal year
•
Investigation – Congress can launch
investigations (Watergate, Clinton-Lewinski
hearings, Steroids in baseball)
House Leadership
SPEAKER
OF THE
HOUSE
MINORITY
LEADER
MINORITY
WHIP
MAJORITY
LEADER
MAJORITY
WHIP
Senate Leadership
PRES. PRO
TEMPORE
MINORITY
LEADER
MINORITY
WHIP
MAJORITY LEADER
(MOST POWERFUL)
MAJORITY
WHIP
PRESIDENT of the
SENATE
(VICE PRESIDENT)
Leadership
•
Majority party controls the most significant
leadership positions
•
House - Speaker of the House
•
Allows people to speak on floor
•
Assigns bills to committees
•
Influences which bills are brought to a vote
•
Appoints members of special and select committees
•
Senate – Majority Leader
•
Schedules Senate business
•
Prioritizes bills
Who’s in Congress?
110
th
Congress (2007-2008)
•
85% male
•
85% White
•
40% Lawyers
109
th
Congress (2005-2006)
•
29 accused of spousal abuse
•
7 have been arrested for fraud
•
19 arrested for writing bad checks
•
117 have bankrupted at least 2 businesses
•
8 have been arrested for shoplifting
•
In 1998 alone, 84 were stopped for drunk driving
Elections
•
House members directly elected
•
S
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7
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A
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•
House Incumbent advantage – Why?
–
Name recognition
–
Proven track record
–
Franking privileges
– free mailing
Texas Districts
Representation
•
Malapportionment
– unequal population in
districts
–
Wesberry v. Sanders (1963)
– found unequal
district pop. unconstitutional – 14
th
amend
•
Gerrymandering
– district boundaries are
redrawn in strange ways to make it easy
for candidate of one party to win
–
Easley v. Cromartie (2001)
– redistricting for
political ideology was constitutional, led to
increase in minority reps
12
th
District
How A Bill Becomes a
Law
•
Create legislation, make laws
•
Founders believed in a SLOW process
•
Founders believed efficiency was a trait of
an oppressive government
Step 1 – Introduce Bill
•
Introduced in Senate or House (except tax)
•
Single or multiple reps can introduce bill
Step 2 - Committee
1.
Bill is assigned to a particular committee
in its category (Ex. Tax bill – Ways and
Means Committee, Farm bill – Agriculture
Committee)
2.
Bill is then placed in sub-committee
3.
Bills are debated and “marked up”
4.
Most bills die in committee, committee
can vote to “report out” a bill
Step 3–Rules Committee
•
Before bill can go to floor in House, it must
first set time limits and amendment
regulations.
–
Closed rule – sets time limits, restricts
amendments
–
Open rule – permits amendments
–
Restrictive rule – permits some amendments
Step 4 – Floor Debate
Senate Debate
•
Less formal, no speaking limit
•
Filibuster – practice of stalling a bill w/
debate
•
Cloture – 3/5 of the Senate vote to stop
debate
House Debate
•
More formal, no filibuster, strict rules
Step 5 - Voting
•
Majority passes
•
If the bill passes, it must go through the
same process in the opposite chamber
with a sponsor
•
If the bill passes one house and fails the
other, it must start over
•
If the Senate and House cannot come to
agreement over two versions, it goes to
Conference Committee
to fix it and
resubmit the bill
Presidential Action
•
Sign – bill becomes law
•
Veto – bill returns to origin
•
Override – 2/3 vote in both houses can
override veto
•
Pocket Veto – President has 10 days to
act on a piece of legislation. If he receives
the bill within 10 days of the end of the
Congressional session, and doesn’t sign, it
dies
Override
Committees and
Subcommittees
•
Most real work happens here
•
Bills are passed, changed, ignored, or
killed
Types of Committees
•
Standing committee
– handle bills in different policy areas
–
(ex. Appropriations, Agriculture, Armed
Services, Science, etc.)
– most important and have been “standing”
(existing) for a long time
•
Select committee
– formed for specific purposes and usually
temporary – run investigations (ex. Aging,
Intelligence)
Types of Committees
•
Joint committee
– consist of both House and Senate members
–
similar in purpose to Select committee
–
Meant to draw attention to issues
•
Conference committee
– consist of both House reps and Senators
–
formed to hammer out differences between
House and Senate versions of similar bills
•
Congressional Committees and
Subcommittees
Committee Membership
•
Controlled by majority party, committee
membership divided proportionally
•
Committee Chairman
–
Senior member of committee
–
Controls membership and debate
Work of Committees
•
11,000 bills introduced yearly, most die
•
Committees can…
–
Report out favorably/unfavorably
–
Pigeonholed
/table (do not discuss)
–
Amend /
“mark up”
(change or rewrite)
Congressional Caucuses
•
Groupings of members pushing for similar
interests
•
Ex. – Sunbelt, Northeast-Midwest,
Congressional Black, Women’s,
Democratic Study Group, Boll Weevils,
Steel
Criticisms of Congress
•
“Pork”
– aka “pork-barrel legislation” – bills to
benefit constituents in hope of gaining their
votes
•
Logrolling
– Congress members exchange
votes, bills might pass for frivolous reasons
•
Christmas-tree bill
–bill with many riders (pork)
–
in Senate, no limit exists on amendments, so
Senators try to attach riders that will benefit their
home state
Term-limits Debate
•
No current limit on how many terms
members of Congress can serve
1.
Some argue this has weakened popular
control of Congress, reps might be
unresponsive to their constituents
2.
Some argue most experienced reps have
the expertise to bring home more
benefits (pork, riders, etc.)
FRQ
•
Is Congress effective in exercising legislative
oversight of the federal bureaucracy?
•
Support your answer by doing one of the
following:
–
Explain two specific methods Congress uses to
exercise effective oversight of the federal
bureaucracy –OR-
–
Give two specific explanations for the failure of
Congress to exercise effective oversight of the
federal bureaucracy
Congress, as the legislative branch of the US government, plays a vital role in advancing society by making laws and representing the interests of the American people. Founded with intentions to balance powers and represent states of different sizes, Congress is divided into the House of Representatives and the Senate, each with distinct responsibilities and powers. Members of Congress face challenges and pressures in fulfilling their duties, which include overseeing the budget, conducting investigations, and upholding constitutional powers granted to them. The leadership structures in both the House and Senate play crucial roles in guiding legislative processes and decision-making.
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Presentation Transcript
Congress If progress is the advancement of society, what is congress?
Congress US CAPITOL BUILDING Legislative Branch makes laws
Founders Intentions 1. Strongest branch 2. Separation of lawmaking power from executive 3. Bicameralism balances large/small states House more connected to people (2 yr term) Senate allows for independent thinking (6 yr term)
Important Differences House 435 members 2 year term 7 year citizen Senate 100 members 6 year term 9 year citizen Initiate impeachment Revenue bills Tries impeachment Approve presidential appointments Approve treaties Loose debate rules Strict debate rules
The Representatives and Senators The Job Salary of $145,100 with retirement benefits Office space in D.C. and at home and staff to fill it. Travel allowances and franking privileges. But, there s often 10 to 14 hour days, lots of time away from the family, and lots of pressure from different people to do the right thing.
Constitutional Powers Article I, Section 8 To lay and collect taxes, duties, imports To borrow money To regulate commerce (states and foreign) To establish rules for naturalization To coin money To create courts (except Supreme Court) To declare war To raise and support an army and navy
Evolution of Powers Elastic clause has extended Congress powers Oversight of budget can restrict the fed. budget prepared by executive branch Appropriations set amount of money made available for various activity in a fiscal year Investigation Congress can launch investigations (Watergate, Clinton-Lewinski hearings, Steroids in baseball)
House Leadership SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE MINORITY LEADER MAJORITY LEADER MINORITY WHIP MAJORITY WHIP
Senate Leadership PRESIDENT of the SENATE (VICE PRESIDENT) PRES. PRO TEMPORE MAJORITY LEADER MINORITY LEADER (MOST POWERFUL) MAJORITY WHIP MINORITY WHIP
Leadership Majority party controls the most significant leadership positions House - Speaker of the House Allows people to speak on floor Assigns bills to committees Influences which bills are brought to a vote Appoints members of special and select committees Senate Majority Leader Schedules Senate business Prioritizes bills
Whos in Congress? 110th Congress (2007-2008) 85% male 85% White 40% Lawyers 109th Congress (2005-2006) 29 accused of spousal abuse 7 have been arrested for fraud 19 arrested for writing bad checks 117 have bankrupted at least 2 businesses 8 have been arrested for shoplifting In 1998 alone, 84 were stopped for drunk driving
Elections House members directly elected Senators directly elected after 17th Amend House Incumbent advantage Why? Name recognition Proven track record Franking privileges free mailing
Representation Malapportionment unequal population in districts Wesberry v. Sanders (1963) found unequal district pop. unconstitutional 14th amend Gerrymandering district boundaries are redrawn in strange ways to make it easy for candidate of one party to win Easley v. Cromartie (2001) redistricting for political ideology was constitutional, led to increase in minority reps
How A Bill Becomes a Law Create legislation, make laws Founders believed in a SLOW process Founders believed efficiency was a trait of an oppressive government
Step 1 Introduce Bill Introduced in Senate or House (except tax) Single or multiple reps can introduce bill
Step 2 - Committee 1. Bill is assigned to a particular committee in its category (Ex. Tax bill Ways and Means Committee, Farm bill Agriculture Committee) 2. Bill is then placed in sub-committee 3. Bills are debated and marked up 4. Most bills die in committee, committee can vote to report out a bill
Step 3Rules Committee Before bill can go to floor in House, it must first set time limits and amendment regulations. Closed rule sets time limits, restricts amendments Open rule permits amendments Restrictive rule permits some amendments
Step 4 Floor Debate Senate Debate Less formal, no speaking limit Filibuster practice of stalling a bill w/ debate Cloture 3/5 of the Senate vote to stop debate House Debate More formal, no filibuster, strict rules
Step 5 - Voting Majority passes If the bill passes, it must go through the same process in the opposite chamber with a sponsor If the bill passes one house and fails the other, it must start over If the Senate and House cannot come to agreement over two versions, it goes to Conference Committee to fix it and resubmit the bill
Presidential Action Sign bill becomes law Veto bill returns to origin Override 2/3 vote in both houses can override veto Pocket Veto President has 10 days to act on a piece of legislation. If he receives the bill within 10 days of the end of the Congressional session, and doesn t sign, it dies
Committees and Subcommittees Most real work happens here Bills are passed, changed, ignored, or killed
Types of Committees Standing committee handle bills in different policy areas (ex. Appropriations, Agriculture, Armed Services, Science, etc.) most important and have been standing (existing) for a long time Select committee formed for specific purposes and usually temporary run investigations (ex. Aging, Intelligence)
Types of Committees Joint committee consist of both House and Senate members similar in purpose to Select committee Meant to draw attention to issues Conference committee consist of both House reps and Senators formed to hammer out differences between House and Senate versions of similar bills Congressional Committees and Subcommittees
Committee Membership Controlled by majority party, committee membership divided proportionally Committee Chairman Senior member of committee Controls membership and debate
Work of Committees 11,000 bills introduced yearly, most die Committees can Report out favorably/unfavorably Pigeonholed/table (do not discuss) Amend / mark up (change or rewrite)
Congressional Caucuses Groupings of members pushing for similar interests Ex. Sunbelt, Northeast-Midwest, Congressional Black, Women s, Democratic Study Group, Boll Weevils, Steel
Criticisms of Congress Pork aka pork-barrel legislation bills to benefit constituents in hope of gaining their votes Logrolling Congress members exchange votes, bills might pass for frivolous reasons Christmas-tree bill bill with many riders (pork) in Senate, no limit exists on amendments, so Senators try to attach riders that will benefit their home state
Term-limits Debate No current limit on how many terms members of Congress can serve 1. Some argue this has weakened popular control of Congress, reps might be unresponsive to their constituents 2. Some argue most experienced reps have the expertise to bring home more benefits (pork, riders, etc.)
FRQ Is Congress effective in exercising legislative oversight of the federal bureaucracy? Support your answer by doing one of the following: Explain two specific methods Congress uses to exercise effective oversight of the federal bureaucracy OR- Give two specific explanations for the failure of Congress to exercise effective oversight of the federal bureaucracy
