tuesday january 7, 2013
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Tuesday January 7, 2013. OBJ: SWBAT discuss and decide why the framers chose to organize the Legislative Branch in the manner they did. Drill: Why are there two houses in Congress? What is this called and what created it? - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Tuesday January 7, 2013• OBJ: SWBAT discuss and decide why the
framers chose to organize the Legislative Branch in the manner they did.
• Drill: Why are there two houses in Congress? What is this called and what created it?
• Homework: Answer the 6 questions in Wilson for Chapter 13 DUE FRIDAY HOLD ON TO THE QUESTIONS I GAVE YOU YESTERDAY, WE WILL USE THEM LATER.
The Roots of the Legislative Branch• Colonial Assemblies
– Bicameral legislative bodies• One popularly elected house• One Crown-appointed council
– Served as Advisory Council• To the King-appointed governors
– Power• Limited• Increasingly over taxation & spending• Legislation on religious matters• Regulate production of goods in colonies
The Roots of the Legislative Branch• 1st Continental Congress (1774)
– 1st National Legislature– To respond to the Coercive Acts– Advised building of colonial militia – Organized colonial boycott of British goods
• 2nd Continental Congress (1775)– Prepared the colonies for war with Britain– Raised a colonial army– Adopted Declaration of Independence– Directed the war & run a national government
The Roots of the Legislative Branch• Congress Under the Articles of Confederation
– Unicameral legislature– Each state represented by 2 to 7 delegates– Each state had one vote (“ equal representation”)– Congress = National government
• No President & National Court created– Members of Congress sent by state legislatures– Limited Powers
• Maintaining an army and navy• Supervising trade with Indians• Coining money
The Roots of the Legislative Branch• Limitations of Congress under the Articles
– Weak national government vs states• Missing link btwn people & nat’l government
– Low standing in international affairs• Foreign relations conducted by states• Foreign trade regulated by states individually
– Financially incapacitated• No taxation power• Reliance on state for financial resources
Congress & Constitution (1789)• Constitutional convention of 1787
– Structure of Congress• Unicameral or Bicameral
– New Jersey Plan» “equal representation”One state, one vote
– Virginia Plan» “proportionate representation” # of seats proportional to population
Congress & Constitution (1789)• Constitutional convention of 1787
– Unicameral or Bicameral• Great Compromise
– Bicameral Congress» Proportional representation (House)» Equal representation (Senate)
Congress & Constitution (1789)• Sources of Power: How Should
Congress Be Elected?– Lower house: popularly elected– Upper house: sent by state legislatures
• Powers of Congress– Does Congress elect President?
• No, Electoral College does• Yes, when no candidate receives a majority
votes in the College
Congress & Constitution (1789)• Powers of Congress
– “Power of the Purse”• Appropriation of money• Authorization of borrowing• taxation
– Regulatory Power• Regulation of currency• Punishment of counterfeiting• Regulation of inter-state & int’l trade
Congress & Constitution (1789)• Powers of Congress
– Law-making Power• Establishing rules of naturalization• Making patent & copy-right laws• Making bankruptcy laws• Making amendments to Constitution
– War-making & Military Power• War declaration• Raising & supporting armed forces• Providing for militia
Congress & Constitution (1789)• Powers of Congress
– Power of Personnel Appointment• Confirmation of executive appointments
– Secretary of State– US ambassador to the UN
• Confirmation of federal judge nomination– Federal court judges– US Supreme Court justices
– Power of Impeachment• Bringing impeachment charges (House)• Trying impeachments (Senate)
Congress & Constitution (1789)• Powers of Congress
– Other Powers• Establishing post office & post roads• Fixing weights and measures• Providing for the government of D.C.• Admitting new states• Establishing lower federal courts
Read Federalist 57 and 62• In order to figure out why and how Congress has the
powers they do, you will read #57 and #62 of the Federalist Papers.
• Answer the following questions.• How does Publius describe the legislative role of
Congress?• In what ways does Publius see the Senate as differing
from the House?• What gives it the different character?• Does democracy need a less democratic legislative
chamber?• Is the Constitution sufficiently democratic?• Why did the framers choose to organize the legislative
branch of the United States government in the manner that they did?
Article I
• Take a copy of Article I of the Constitution if you do not have your copy with you.
• Using what you read in the Federalist Papers place a 57 or 62 by ideas that appear in Article I that come from each paper.
Senate vs. the House• Size
– 435 members in the House (since 1911)• 106 members in 1791 representing 3.5 million residents
– 100 Senators in the Senate
• Qualifications– House
• 25 years of age• Citizenship for at least 7 years• Residency in district: 1 year• Term of service: 2 years• 1 member per 550,000 people
– How often is Congressional election?– How many Members face election each time?
Senate vs. House• Congress & Constituency
– House of Representatives • Closer to the voters• More reflective of voter preferences• More answerable to constituents
– Senate• More remote to the voters
– Allows for political stability & policy continuity• Less responsive to temporal changes in popular
sentiments– Can act as a dispassionate counter-weight to the more
popular & radical House
Senate vs. House• Qualifications
– Senate• 30 years of age• 9 years of citizenship• Residency requirement in state: 1 year• Term: 6 years• 2 seats per state in Senate
– How often is Senatorial election?– How many Senators face election each time?
Senate vs. House• Legislative role differences
– Senate• More deliberative
– Why?
• Less structured
– House of Representatives• More centralized & organized
– Why?
• More routine & structured
Congress vs. US SocietyDoes Congress mirror the American society?• In religious belief (2001-2003)
– Protestant 341– Catholics 149– Jewish 37– Mormon 16
• Policy implications– Abortion– Same sex marriage
Wrap Up
• Make an assumption on what you know already, why are there different requirements for entry into the House and the Senate?
Congress vs. US Society• Minorities in Congress
– Women
911
1711
2024
59 63 6772
7782
0
20
40
60
80
100
Number of Women in US Congress
Congress vs. US Society• Minorities in Congress
– Race
637 23
371
0
100
200
300
400
Number of Minorities in US Congress (2001)
Congress vs. US Society• Professional background
209183
108
154
31 1628
1756
050
100150200250
Members of Congress by Professional Background (2001)
Congress vs. US SocietyA typical member of Congress• Middle-aged• Male• White• Lawyer• Whose father is of the professional or
managerial class• Native born or from northwestern or
central Europe, Canada
To run for Congress…2000 Senatorial Race of New York
To run for Congress…Three success factors• #1: Who the person to run
– Candidate characteristics have an edge over others
• A record of prior public service• National name recognition
– Hillary Clinton versus Rep. Rick Lazzio
• Fund-raising capability
To run for Congress…• Why members of Congress easily win re-election?
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2002
Success Rate of Congressional Election
Senate
House
To run for Congress…• #2: Incumbency Advantages
– Visibility• Advertise thru contacts with constituents • Stay visible thru trips to home districts
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
Received mail from I
Saw I on TV
Read about I
Heard I on radio
Met I personally
Contact with Members of House(blue=Incumbents; brown=challengers)
To run for Congress…• #2: Incumbency Advantages
– Visibility– Campaign contributions
• Donations go to those in office• Donations to challengers offend incumbents
– Credit claiming thru services to individuals & district• Casework
– Attend to voter concerns, requests and problems– Help cut thru bureaucratic red tape to get what one believes he
has a right to get
• Pork barrel– List of federal projects, grants & contracts– Help obtain or make known such projects to district
To run for Congress…• #2: Incumbency Advantages
– Visibility– Campaign contributions– Credit claiming thru services to individuals & district– Incumbent resources
• Institutional connections and access to channels of communications
• “franking privilege” (free use of the US mails)• Tax-funded travel allowance to stay visible in one’s own
district– Incumbents scaring challengers away
*calls for “term limits” aim to eliminate incumbency advantage
To run for Congress…Congressional DistrictsDistrict 23 (Texas) and District 3 (Florida in ’92 and ’96)
To run for Congress…• #3: Redistricting
– Congressional districts redrawn every 10 years
• To avoid under- or over-representation
– Re-drawing districts is highly political• Can create open seats• Can pit incumbents of the same district against
one another, ensuring one of them to lose• Can create advantage for one Party
– Putting people of the same party in one district– Or separating them into two or more districts.
Cost of Congressional Race…• Cost to Get Elected
– Congressional elections are getting more costly• Jon Corzine (NJ-D), $63 million own money on
Senate race– $928 million spent on 1999-2000 Congressional
election– Incumbents outspend their opponents
• E.g., $7.5 million spent by Newt Gingrich’s reelection in 1998
– Candidates of major states spend more• $85 million attracted in Hillary-Lassio race, 2000
Cost of Congressional Race…• Cost to Get Elected
– Spending on House race• Winners: $800,000• Losers: at least $300,000
– Spending on Senate race• Winners: $7 million up to $40 million or more
• Rising Cost
Senate 1998 2000
Average winner spent $5,227,761 $7,266,576
Average loser spent $2,839,813 $3,864,638
Most expensive campaign $27,159,681
$63,000,000 (Jon Corzine, D-NJ)
House
Average winner spent $650,428 $840,300
Average loser spent $210,614 $307,121
Most expensive campaign $7,578,716
$6,900,000 (James E. Humphrey, D-WV)
Cost of Congressional Race…• Rising Cost
Rising Congressional Race Cost (in million dollars)
$0
$100$200
$300$400
$500
$600$700
$800$900
$1,000
1975-76 1979-1980 1985-1986 1989-1990 1995-1996 1999-2000
Organization of Congress• Congress not only represents, it also
legislates.• Internal complexity makes it hard to
conduct business without organization.• Congress is organized around:
– Political parties– A committee system– Parliamentary rules of the House & Senate– And others…
Organization of Congress• Political Parties
– House leader election every two years– Majority party leader = House Speaker– Every party has a Committee on
Committees (Democrats call theirs: the Steering & Policy
Committee)• Assign new legislators to committees• Transfer incumbents to new committees on
request
– Majority & minority leaders jointly control Senate calendars (agenda)
Organization of Congress• Party leaders & legislative agenda
– Leaders are enthusiastic for agenda• To create consensus within party
– 1980– 1994-1995
(when Congress not controlled by President’s party)
Organization of Congress
Committee SystemStanding Committees– Important policy-making bodies– Existing from Congress to Congress– Paralleling executive agencies
• Foreign Affairs Committee - State Department• Intelligence Committee – CIA & others
– Having power to report legislation
Organization of Congress
• Select Committee– Temporary committees– No power to report legislation– Set up to handle specific issues that fall
btwn the jurisdiction of existing committees
• A special committee for investigating the Watergate scandal (1973)
Organization of Congress• Joint Committee
– With members from both parties– Permanent– No power to report legislation– Four types of joint committees
• Economic• Taxation• Library• printing
The Committee System• Conference Committee
– Temporary– Members appointed by Speaker & Senate
presiding officer– For reconciling any differences on
legislation once it has been passed by House & Senate
The Staff System
• A number of staff members for every legislator
• Staff members (7,216 in House alone, 1999): – Handle constituency requests– Take care of legislative details– Formulate & draft proposals– Organize hearing, deal with administrative
agencies, reporters and lobbyists…
The caucuses
• What is a caucus?Informal group or committee composed of Senators or Representatives who share opinions, interests or social characteristics.
– Ideological causes• Liberal Democratic Study Group
– Issue-oriented caucuses• Travel & Tourism Caucuses• Congressional Friends of Animals
– Common background caucuses• The Congressional Black Caucus
The caucuses
• What is a caucus?• Objectives of the Caucuses
To advance interests of the groups they represent by promoting legislation, encouraging Congress to hold hearing, and pressing administrative agencies for favorable treatment
How a Bill Becomes Law
Some facts: For a bill to become law, there are
many routine hurdles It is easier for opponents to kill a bill
than to pass it The law-making process is highly
political
How a Bill Becomes Law
The Law-making Steps1. Introducing legislation
Who can introduce legislative proposals? Members of Congress Executive branch Interest groups Constituents
How a Bill Becomes Law
The Law-making Steps2. Assignment to Committee
Given a number in House preceded by “H. R.” and by “S” in Senate
Bill referred to a committee Most bills assigned to the appropriate
committees Complex bills referred to several
committees Controversial bills are sometimes handled
by temporary or ad hoc committees set up for that purpose
How a Bill Becomes Law
The Law-making Steps2. Assignment to Committee
Often, nothing happens to the bills in committee. Neglect leads to death of many bills
Bills to be acted on are often referred to the appropriate sub-committees.
How a Bill Becomes Law
The Law-making Steps3. Hearing
Once the sub-committee or full committee decides to act, hearings are held participated by: Executive agency representatives Academia Interest groups Other interested persons
In a typical two-year Congress Senate: 1200 hearings House: 2300 hearings
How a Bill Becomes Law
The Law-making Steps4. Reporting a Bill
When a sub-committee decides to act on a bill, it drafts it line by line
It reports it to the full committee The full committee accepts, rejects or
amends the bill.
How a Bill Becomes Law
The Law-making Steps5. Schedule Debate
When a committee agrees to submit a bill to the two houses, it is put on the House & Senate calendar, a list bills for action
Each house has different calendars for different bills In House, non-controversial bills are put on
the Consent Calendar or Private Calendar to be passed without debate
How a Bill Becomes Law
The Law-making Steps5. Schedule Debate
Each house has different calendars for different bills Controversial or important bills are placed
on the Union Calendar or house Calendar. Rules & procedures (length of debate) are requested from the Rules Committee.
Define the following:filibuster, cloture, open rule, closed rule.
How a Bill Becomes Law
The Law-making Steps6. Debate & Amendment
Opponents & proponents have equal debate time
Relevant amendments, if allowed, can be added
Floor debate seldom change views of others
In Senate, debate can last long time In Senate, filibuster can be used Senators can propose amendments
irrelevant to the bill.
How a Bill Becomes LawThe Law-making Steps7. The Vote
How do members vote? What impact their voting behavior? Personal views Opinions of the constituents Advice of knowledgeable & trusted
colleaguesOccasionally, President can win over wavering members of their Party to stick with the team or by cutting deals with pivotal members.
It is important for members to cast an explainable vote, one that is defendable in public when challenged.
How a Bill Becomes LawThe Law-making Steps7. The Vote
How do members vote? What impact their voting behavior?
It is important for members to cast an explainable vote, one that is defendable in public when challenged.
Not every vote has to please the constituents. But, too many “bad” votes are costly and show distance with one’s folks at home.
How a Bill Becomes LawThe Law-making Steps8. In Conference Committee Once passed, a bill is sent to the other
chamber for consideration If the 2nd chamber passes the bill, it is then
sent to the White House for action. But, controversial bills need to go to a
Conference Committee to reconcile the differences in the two versions of the bills
After Conference, details of the bill are reported back to each chamber before sending to the President.
How a Bill Becomes LawThe Law-making Steps7. To the President
Approve the bill into law Ignore it, with the result it becomes law in
10 days (not including weekend & when Congress is still in session)
Veto it (& facing override in Congress) Pocket veto it (if Congress adjourns before
the 10 days are up)When President vetoes a bill, he usually explains why he does so.
How a Bill Becomes LawThe Law-making Steps7. Congressional Override of Veto
A two-thirds majority is required in each chamber to override the Presidential veto
Influences on Law-making
There are two major forces impacting Congressional law-making
• External influences– Constituency– Interest groups
• Internal/governmental influences– Party leadership– Congressional colleagues– President/executive branch
Influences on Law-making
Influence from the Constituency• Members of Congress comply with views of
constituents due to re-election need• They voluntarily anticipate or find out constituents’
positions– 1998, 31 House democrats crossed the party line and voted
in favor of an impeachment inquiry (e.g., Congressman Gary Condit)
Influences from Interest Groups
• Mobilize followers in a member’s congressional districts– “Astroturf lobbying”
• Provide information
Influences from Party Org• Party leaders in Congress have influence over members• Party organizations have resources:
– Leadership PACs• PACs (1) raise funds and then (2) distribute to members for running
for election• PACs enhance party power• PACs create bond between leaders & members who receive money
– Committee Assignments– Access to Floor– The whip system
communication network, with info on member intentions in voting
– Logrolling
Influences from the President
• Since 1940s, President submitted yearly legislative proposals to Congress
• Since mid-1950s, Congress has looked to the President for legislative proposals