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The Capitol Building and The Palace of Westminster

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Congress versus Parliament

Congress

    • Independent representatives of districts or states
    • Primary system; voters choose among individual candidates
    • Principal work is representation and action

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Parliament

    • Representatives loyal to national party leadership (less independence for members)
    • Voters choose among national parties
    • Principal work is debate

Power less concentrated

Power more concentrated

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Presidential Government v Parliamentary Government

  • Separation of powers between the executive and legislative branches
  • Chief Executive (President) is chosen by The People independently of the legislature
  • President tends to select cabinet outside of Washington (appt. Require Senate approval)
  • Holds office for a fixed term

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  • Presidential system has greater check on government power
  • Prime Minister (chief executive) is a member of the legislative branch (Parliament)
  • PM is leader of the majority party (or like-minded group of parties)
  • With Parliament’s approval the PM selects the cabinet (main advisors) from Parliament
  • PM and Cabinet remain in office for as long as they have support in a majority of Parliament
  • Most democratic governments in the world have a Parliamentary system.

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The republican ideal in the U.S. is manifested in the structure and operation of the legislative branch.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

  • Describe the different structures, powers, and functions of each house of Congress

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  • Explain how the structure, powers, and functions of both houses of Congress affect the policy-making process

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  • Explain how congressional behavior is influenced by election processes, partisanship, and divided government

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Functions of Congress

  • Make Laws
    • Most initiate in the Executive Branch or from Interest Groups
  • Constituent Service (provided by individual members)
    • Expected to act as a brokers between private citizens and the federal government
  • Representation
    • Many competing interests should be represented in Congress
      • Should act slowly and deliberately and balance competing interests
  • Oversight
    • Oversight of bureaucracy (nearly 3 million federal civilian employees + 2.25 million in military)
  • Public Education
    • Holding public hearings, oversight earnings, floor debate
  • Conflict-Resolution
    • institution to resolve conflicts in American Society by passing well-balanced laws

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Structure of Congress

House of Representatives

    • Represent district constituents
    • Represent populations of people
    • Elected every two years

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Senate

    • Represent priorities of the state and its people
        • Enshrines federalism into the system
        • Equality among the states
    • Elected every 6 years
      • Staggered elections

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PA House Districts 2023

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Structures, Powers, and Functions of Congress

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

  • Structures
    • Larger body (435)
    • More Representative with constituents in specific geographic spaces
  • Powers
    • Introduce revenue bills (Origination clause)
      • Article I, section 7 – “All Bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives.”
    • Impeach federal officials
      • To formally charge with a crime
    • Select the President if no candidate wins the Electoral College

SENATE

  • Structures
    • Smaller body (100)
    • More insulated from the people (represent an entire state; serve six years; originally selected by state’s legislature)
  • Powers
    • Remove federal officials from office
      • Hold trials on Articles of Impeachment
    • “Advice and Consent” Article II, section 2
      • Ratify Treaties
        • Requires ⅔ majority
      • Approve Presidential Appointments

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Structures, Powers, and Functions of Congress (cont.)

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

  • Functions
    • Can more closely scrutinize the activities of government
    • Due to larger membership must adhere to more rules and routines to get work done

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SENATE

  • Functions
    • With longer terms of office can be more deliberate in creating policies (less formal)
      • Not feeling pressured all the time to get reelected

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A Few Important Committees in each chamber

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Centralization vs. Decentralization

  • Critics complain: Congress can not plan or act quickly
    • Two competing values are at stake– centralization v decentralization
  • Centralization
    • To act quickly and decisively as a body would need:
      • Strong central leadership, restrictions on debate, few opportunities for stalling tactics, minimal committee interference
  • Decentralization
    • Prioritizes members opinions
    • prioritizes members’ constituents
      • Natural consequence is weak leadership, delays, lots of discussion, more powerful committees

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Fear of tyranny - checks and balances

Framers’ fear of tyranny - “You must enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place, oblige it to control itself”...”Ambition must be made to counteract ambition” - Madison Federalist 51

  • Separation of powers, checks and balances, federalism
  • Republican government - legislative authority predominates so need two houses to keep each other in check - different constituencies, interests, terms force compromise
  • The Senate cools House legislation just as a saucer is used to cool hot tea - Washington

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Powers of Congress

  • To lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises
  • To borrow money [National Debt Clock]
  • To regulate commerce with foreign nations/among states (commerce clause)
  • To issue patents and copyrights to inventors/authors
  • To create courts inferior to the Supreme Court
  • To declare war
  • To raise and support an army and navy
  • To “make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this Constitution in the government of the United States.” (elastic clause)

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Who is in Congress?

  • Gender and Race
    • Becoming less male and less white
    • Senate changed more slowly
    • First woman Speaker–Nancy Pelosi (2007)
    • Majority-Minority Districts - descriptive vs. substantive representation (Shaw v. Reno)
      • Purpose is to have more minority representation in the House

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Who is in Congress?

  • Incumbency
    • Most incumbents win (incumbent advantages)
    • Marginal districts
    • Safe districts (career politicians)
    • Gerrymandering by state legislatures

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    • Slide show: Gerrymandering, redistricting, and majority/minority district

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Reelection Rates for House and Senate Incumbents, 1964–2016

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How do members deal with the conflicting pressure from their party, constituents, committees, leadership, and special interest groups ON TOP of their need to fundraise?

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Power of Incumbency: Time Spent Fundraising.

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The Organization of Congress: Parties

  • Party Leadership and Organization
    • The Senate
      • Vice President
      • President pro tempore (honorific)
      • Presiding Officer
      • Majority leader (power)
      • Minority leader
      • Whips
      • Standing committees

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The Organization of Congress: Parties

  • Party Organizations
    • The House of Representatives
      • Speaker of the House
      • Majority leader (floor leader- coordinate legislative initiatives and serve as the chief spokespersons for their parties on the House floor)
      • Minority leader
      • Whips
      • Committees

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The Organization of Congress: Interests

  • Caucuses
    • Advocates a political ideology or advances a regional, ethnic or economic interest
    • Examples:
      • Democratic Study Group
      • Republican Study Committee
      • Congressional Black Caucus

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Organization of Congress: Congressional Committees

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  • Crash Course: Congressional Committees (1st half)
  • Standing Committees - e.g.:Agriculture, Armed Services, Foreign Relations, Judiciary, etc. - membership (partisan makeup, serve constituency, strength in numbers); jurisdiction; legislation (referral, testimony (not like this), markup, passage); oversight; Role of subcommittees
  • Select Committees- Benghazi, January 6, CCP
  • Joint Committees - especially Conference committees

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Congressional Oversight

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  • The Appropriations Committee and Legislative Committees —$$$$$$$$
      • Executive agency budget authorized and appropriated
      • Determine amount of spending for executive agencies
        • Typically annually for most agencies

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Congressional Oversight

  • The Legislative Veto
    • Authority of Congress to block a presidential action after it has taken place (e.g. arms sales to foreign nations)
      • SCOTUS Ruled unconstitutional (Chadha decision 1983)-- not part of bill to law process in Article I
    • Congress still requires some agencies to report to Congress certain plans of implementation of the general directions

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Congressional Oversight

  • Congressional Investigations
    • Not mentioned in Constitution (inferred); SCOTUS has upheld
    • In tension with “Executive Privilege” of President
    • First one– 1792 investigation into a defeat of the army by Native American Tribe

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Representation and Polarization in Congress - How

(AMSCO Reading) Congressmen Vote

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Delegate: act as agents of the people who elected them and so cast their votes accordingly. (textbook term is “representational”)

Trustee: vote on issues based on merit; this means that they vote by following their own judgment. (textbook term is “attitudinal”)

Partisan: vote according to what their political party wants (textbook term is “organizational”)

Politico: try to combine elements of the other three as well as the political pressures of the time in casting their votes. (AP term not used in text)

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How do members of Congress keep getting reelected?

How do they keep their constituents happy?-- Role of Earmarks

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How does the lawmaking process work (and not work)?

Each year the United States Congress considers about 10,000 bills and resolutions each year, but of those only about 4% will become laws.

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END

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Senate vs. House

House

  • Apportioned based on population (435)
  • 2 year terms (all every 2 years)
  • Impeachment
  • Many rules, more formal
  • Power of the purse - all money bills must begin in House
  • Elect the President if no majority in Electoral College

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Senate

  • Representation based on equality (100)
  • 6 year terms (staggered elections)
  • Impeachment Trials
  • Few rules, less formal (filibuster)
  • Confirm presidential nominees
  • Approve treaties
  • Elect the vice President if no majority in Electoral College
  • More influence in foreign policy– chair of Senate Foreign Relations Committee works with President and Secretary of State to help with creation of foreign policy

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Powers of House v Powers of Senate

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What are Congress’ responsibilities? Are Americans happy with the execution of these responsibilities? Are our expectations too high?

Create laws

Fund the government

Declare war

Oversee the bureaucracy

Check the President’s power

Constituent Needs

Work

Pay, Healthcare, and Pension

Current Approval Rating of Congress

Incumbency Rate