Chapter+12+Notes

=Congress=


 * Overall characteristics of the United States Congress: **
 * Has enumerated powers listed in Article I Section 8 of the Constitution
 * Ex: Declare war, Collect taxes, Provide and maintain a Navy, etc.
 * Has implied powers derived from the right of Congress to make all laws "necessary and proper" to carry out its enumerated powers
 * Punishments for Representatives and Senators
 * Reprimand- was once considered synonymous with censure, but in 1976 the House defined a reprimand as a less severe punishment. Members who are reprimanded are not required to stand in the well of the house and have the resolution read to them.
 * Censure- the House may vote to express formal disapproval of a member's conduct. Only a simple majority vote is required. Members who are censured must stand in the well of the House chamber to receive a reading of the censure resolution.
 * Expulsion-The U.S. Constitution (Article 1, Section 5) gives the House of Representatives the power to expel any member by a two-thirds vote.
 * Legislative Immunity
 * Prevents legislators from being sued for actions performed and decisions made in the course of serving in government
 * Article I, Section 6, Clause 1, of the Constitution states in part, "...for any Speech or Debate in either House, [senators and representatives] shall not be questioned in any place"
 * Eminent Domain
 * The concept in which the state can use the power of common law to seize a citizen's private property
 * Organization
 * A bicameral legislature - A legislature divided into two houses.
 * Contains committees and subcommittees that allow for more specialization in Congress
 * Types of committees (See "4 Types of Committees" for descriptions of each)
 * Standing Committees
 * Joint Committees
 * Conference Committees
 * Select Committees
 * Informal organization
 * Seen in the growing number of caucuses in Congress
 * Caucus (congressional) - A group of members of Congress sharing some interest or characteristic. Most are composed of members from both parties and from both houses.

(Kimberly Varadi - January 10, 2012) (Revised by Chelsea Frasier)

House of Representatives (typical members, executive powers, unique characteristics)
I. Typical Members House || U.S. Senate || Indian || 1 || 0 || (Source for the above statistics: [] )
 * Members must meet the following requirements:
 * Be at least 25 years old
 * Be an American citizen for at least seven years
 * Must be a resident of the state from which he/she is elected
 * 2 year Term
 * As Elite theorists are quick to point out, members come largely from occupations with high status and usually have substantial incomes.
 * Business and law are the dominant prior occupations.
 * In terms of gender:
 * Men and Women in the 112th Congress
 * In the House, there are currently //**362 men**// and //**76 women**//.
 * In the Senate, there are //**83 men**// and //**17 women**//.
 * In terms of race:
 * Races || U.S.
 * White || 361 || 96 ||
 * Black || 44 || 0 ||
 * Asian || 7 || 2 ||
 * American
 * Hispanic || 25 || 2 ||

II. Executive powers
 * All revenue bills must originate within the House.
 * The ability of impeachment.

III. Unique characteristics
 * More institutionalized/hierarchical than the Senate.
 * Party loyalty to leadership and party-line voting are more common in the House than in the Senate.

[Mike Spires: January 8th, 2012]

(Edited by: Kimberly Varadi - January 8, 2012) Revised By Chelsea January 10, 2012

Senate (typical members, executive powers, unique characteristics)
I. Typical Members II. Executive powers
 * Members must meet the following requirements:
 * Be at least 30 years old
 * Be an American citizen for at least nine years
 * Must be a resident of the state from which he/she is elected
 * In terms of gender and race: (see statistics above)
 * 6 year term
 * Approves president's treaties and appointments
 * Removal powers and ability to try officials who have been impeached

III. Unique characteristics
 * Less disciplined and less centralized than the House.
 * Senators more nearly equal in power than representatives.
 * For example:
 * Even incoming senators sometimes get top committee assignments; they may even become chairs of key subcommittees.
 * Senators have the ability to filibuster
 * What is a filibuster?
 * Where opponents of a piece of legislation try to talk it to death, based on tradition of unlimited debate

[Mike Spires: January 8th, 2012]

(Edited by: Kimberly Varadi - January 8, 2012) (Revised by chelsea frasier jan 10 2012)

Substantive v. descriptive representation
NOTE: As seen from the above statistics, it is obvious that members of Congress cannot claim //descriptive// representation. They may, however, engage in // substantive // representation.
 * ** Substantive representation **
 * representing the interests of groups
 * Often, advocacy is in contrast to members' background
 * For example:
 * Members of Congress with a background of wealth and privilege, such as Senator Edward Kennedy, can be champions for the interests of the poor
 * ** Descriptive representation **
 * representing constituents by mirroring their personal, politically relevant characteristics
 * For example: African Americans are more active than white members in serving the needs of blacks and women are more active than men in pursuing the interests of women. Females and African Americans in Congress are acheiving important positions on committees, increasing the chances of descriptive representation becoming effective.

(Kimberly Varadi - January 8, 2012) (Edited by Chelsea Frasier Jan. 10, 2012)

Powers of Congress (enumerated)
Note: If you would like to see these enumerated powers, this website lists them - []
 * What are enumerated powers?
 * They are a list of items found in Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution which identifies in 17 paragraphs many important powers of Congress. (See below)
 * Enumerated Powers:
 * Congress is given 27 specific powers under Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution.
 * They cover such areas as the rights to...
 * Collect taxes, regulate foreign and domestic commerce, coin money, declare war, support an army and navy, and establish lower federal courts

(Kimberly Varadi - January 8, 2012)

Powers of Congress (implied)

 * What are implied powers?
 * They are not stated directly in the Constitution and derive from the right of Congress to make all laws "necessary and proper" to carry out its enumerated powers. This sentence, located at the end of Article I, Section 8, is often called the elastic clause because it stretches Congress's authority.
 * What did the Supreme Court think of the implied powers?
 * It upheld the concept of implied powers in the landmark case, McCulloch v. Maryland (1819), ruling that the federal government had the right to establish a national bank under the power delegated to Congress to borrow money and control commerce.

(Kimberly Varadi - January 8, 2012)

1. First and foremost is the ability to override a veto with a two-thirds vote.

 * A president can either sign(enact the bill into a law) or veto the a bill. Vetoing means to deny it, but giving one man so much power could cause an absolute stalemate in the development of politics
 * Therefore the Congress can override the said veto with a two-thirds majority vote, enacting it into a law despite the president's objection

2. Next, they have the power to Impeach, or rather remove the current president from office

 * Congress can impeach executive officials, which includes the Potus
 * President Andrew Johnson and President Bill Clinton both were impeached during their respective terms, and president Richard Nixon was saved from impeachment by his resignation in 1974.

3. They also have the ability fund any executive actions.

 * Congress controls the budget. The President must submit a request to gain access to this money.

4. Last few things are the need for Senate to approve treaties and that Senate has to approve presidential appointments.

 * This denies the President an exclusive power over Supreme Court appointments.
 * In 1937, Congress denied President Franklin Delano Roosevelt his "Court-Packing Plan" which would have added more Judges to the Court. In this case, Congress halted a Presidential attempt to gain power.

[Alex Shchetkov. January 7th, 2010]

Congressional checks on the Judicial Branch
1. Congress can __Impeach__ a Supreme Court or lower Court judge for "treason, bribery, and other high crimes and misdemeanors." The House impeaches the judges, while the Senate will conduct the trial. 2. Upon appointment by the President of the United States, a prospective judge has to be __approved__ by Congress to hold office. 3. Congress controls the "purse." It decides __the Court's funding.__ This provides Congress with another way to Check the Judicial Branch. 4. Congress may abridge - or "Strip" - Jurisdiction from the Judiciary branch so that no cases regarding a particular subject can be heard by the Courts. This extends only to cases where the Supreme Court does not have the explicit right to deal with it - " __Original Jurisdiction__ ." Usually, this means cases involving States, foreign Consuls/Ambassadors, etc. Congress can, as stated in Article III sc 2 clause 2 (otherwise known as the **"Exception Clause"**), control the Judiciary's __ appellate Jurisdiction .__ **NOTE:** Congress can only limit Jurisdiction in the lower courts. 5. Power to undo supreme court decisions(initiate constitutional amendments). The power of the Supreme Court can be checked through Constitutional Amendment. While the Court can rule that a law is unconstitutional, it cannot rule that the Constitution itself is unconstitutional. If the Congress and 3/4 of the state legislatures approve a constitutional amendment, it becomes the supreme law of the land, and the Supreme Court cannot overrule the Constitution. 6. Power to set courts inferior to the Supreme Court. 7. Power to alter the size of the Supreme Court.

[Diego Farias. January 6th, 2012] (Edited by Bogdan Bordieanu: January 9th, 2012)

Congressional Elections

 * ===**Characteristics** ===
 * Demanding, expensive, and usually forgone conclusions
 * Always on the mind of members of Congress
 * ===**Who's the winner?** ===
 * Incumbents usually win.
 * Incumbents -- individuals who already hold office
 * Why incumbents?
 * They have an advantage over their opponents because they can engage in 3 primary activities.
 * 1) Advertising
 * Members of Congress work hard to get themselves known in their constituencies, and they usually succeed. They make many trips home and use the franking privilege to mail newsletters to every household in their constituency.
 * **THEIR GOAL -- STAY VISIBLE **
 * 1) Credit Claiming
 * This involves members of Congress enhancing their standing with constituents through service to individuals and the district.
 * TypesPork barrel - the mighty list of federal projects, grants, and contracts available to cities, businesses, colleges, and institutions available in a congressional district
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Casework - activities of members of Congress that help constituents as individuals; cutting through bureaucratic red tape to get people what they think they have a right to get
 * **<span style="background-color: #ffff00; color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">THEIR GOAL -- SERVICE THE CONSTITUENCY **
 * 1) <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Position-Taking
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Members of Congress engage in position-taking on issues when they vote and when they respond to constituents' questions.
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">**<span style="background-color: #ffff00; color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">THEIR GOAL -- EMPHASIZE THEIR PERSONAL QUALITIES ** (ex: their experience, work ethic, and trustworthiness)
 * <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">**<span style="background-color: #ffff00; color: #800080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">THEIR GOAL -- EMPHASIZE THEIR PERSONAL QUALITIES ** (ex: their experience, work ethic, and trustworthiness)

(Kimberly Varadi - January 9, 2012)

Differences between House and Senate Debates
A. House of Representatives
 * The Rules committee gives most bills a "rule", which schedules the bill on the calendar, allots time for debate, and sometimes specifies what kind of amendments may be offered.
 * The debate on a bill is limited in time.
 * Debates have to stay on topic.
 * "One-minute Mondays"
 * Opportunity to stand and talk about anything
 * Doesn't happen in debate.

B. Senate
 * Senators do not have a time limit for debate. They can filibuster on a bill where they continuously talk on the floor in order to prevent a vote on the bill. Today, the threat of a filibuster can often cause a bill not to be debated at all.
 * A filibuster can be stopped by cloture. Currently, 60 senators must vote for cloture in order for a filibuster to end.
 * The ability to cloture was created by the progressives.

[Mike Spires: January 8th, 2012]

4 Types of Committees:
A. **Standing Committee**: permanent committee in charge of handling bills in a specific policy area, and where all members come from the same Chamber of Congress. At any point, each Congressman is a member in an average of 2-3 committees and 4-7 subcommittees. There are 20 standing Committees in the Senate, and 23 Standing Committees in the House. Examples: Budget and Foreign Relations Committees in the Senate. Agriculture and Veteran's Affairs Committees in the House. __IMPORTANT:__ The House has a special Committee - the **House Rules Committee** - which is in charge of reviewing most if not all bills before they are available for Congressmen to vote on. Upon receiving a bill from another Committee, the House Rules Committee will: (1) schedule the bill on the calendar, (2) allot time for debate, (3) decide on other rules, such as required proportion of "yay's" required to pass the bill. The Rules Committee, however, does not review bills related to (1) revenue, (2) budget, (3) appropriations.

B. **Joint Committee**: unlike a Standing Committee, members come from both Chambers of Congress. Most Joint Committees are standing - meaning permanent - committees, and these are put in charge of matters of mutual interest. There are four Joint Standing Committees:
 * the Joint Committee on the Library: in charge of "the affairs and administration of the Library of Congress."
 * the Joint Committee on Printing: in charge of overseeing the activities of the Government Printing Office.
 * the Joint Economic Committee: in charge of, among other things, giving periodic status reports on the U.S. Economy to Congress.
 * the Joint Committee on Taxation: in charge of investigating the effects of tax administration, and of researching new ways of simplifying the taxing system.

C. **Conference Committee**: a special Committee formed to "iron out the differences" between the versions of a bill passed by the Senate and the House should these two have been amended differently by each Chamber. This committee reports back to the Senate and the House with a compromise bill - a **Conference Report** - which is reconsidered by both Chambers. To add transparency to the system, the Conference Reports are published online - handwritten-notes made by reviewers included - soon after the bill has been reconsidered. These Committee's membership usually includes the more Senior members of the respective Standing Committees that dealt with the bill in the first place. The Committee will meet for a brief period of time and will be dissolved once a Compromise Bill has been made.

D. **Select Committee**: a special Committee appointed to carry out certain functions that regular Standing Committees cannot deal with. These are appointed for a specific purpose and dissolve almost immediately after their function has been carried out. Famous examples include:
 * in 1821, a Select Committee was appointed to debate Missouri's admission as a new state. This Committee crafted the Missouri Compromise.
 * in 1938, the House Committee on Un-American Activities was formed to investigate alleged fascist and Communist activity in the United States.
 * in 1973 a Select Committee was formed to investigate the Watergate Scandal, and in 1987, another Committee was formed to deal with the Iran-Contra affair.
 * the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction was formed in August, 2011, and still stands today.

[Diego Farias: January 6th, 2012]

How does the committee system work (committee assignments, committee chairs, how have reforms changed the committee system)

 * 1) Committees control the congressional agenda and guide legislation from its introduction to its send-off to the president for his signature. Every bill has to go to a committee, who has absolute power to decide its fate. However, if the committee prefers a bill, it will be introduced to the House and Senate.
 * 2) A bill that goes to a committee continues its journey to a subcommittee, which can hold hearings on it. Large committee and subcommittee staffs conduct research, line up witnesses for hearings, and write and rewrite bills. Afterwards, they report on proposed legislation. More importantly, the bill is rewritten and sent to the full House or Senate for debate and voting.
 * 3) After the bill leaves the committee and subcommittee, members of those groups act as "floor managers" of the bill, which consists of convincing party leaders get votes for it. Those members might also advice other members of either the House or Senate, concerning the bill. However, when the Senate and House pass different versions of the same bill, some committee members serve on the conference committee.
 * 4) After a bill is passed, committees and subcommittees stay busy in **legislative oversight**, which is the process of monitoring the bureaucracy and its administration of policy. Oversight, one of the checks Congress can exercise on the executive branch, gives Congress the power to pressure agencies and, in extreme cases, cut their budgets in order to secure compliance with congressional wishes and even congressional whims.
 * One case of congressional oversight was concerned with the Watergate scandal, when the Senate established the Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities to investigate the scandal. In 1974, the House Judiciary Committee's hearings on the impeachment of President Nixon for his attempt to cover up the scandal, took place. Afterwards, the Judiciary Committee recommended three articles of impeachment, which lead to Nixon's resignation.
 * Committee staff members are important to the Congress since they have specialized expertise in the fields and agencies that their committees are concerned with, as well as having formal and informal contacts with the bureaucracy. Staff members keep track of the implementation of public policy.
 * However, legislative oversight is not favorite among congressmen, as it does not help them gain reelection. This has led to much overlook over problems regarding the implementation of policy. In the 1970s and 1980s, Congress was forced to increase its oversight activities in response to the growth of the government and executive branch in the 1960s. In addition, tight budgets has lead congressmen to protect programs they favor from budget cuts and to get more value for the tax dollars spent on them.

(Bogdan Bordieanu: January 9th, 2012) (Organized and Revised by Chelsea Frasier : Jan. 10, 2012)

How a bill becomes a law
Many times, a bill comes from the White House as part of the presidential agenda, then returns to the president at the end of the process. Meanwhile, the bill goes through two parallel processes in the Senate and House.

** Congress ** ** House **

** Bill Introduction ** Bill is introduced by a member and assigned to a committee, which usually refers it to a subcommittee. ** Subcommittee ** Subcommittee performs studies, holds hearings, and makes revisions. If approved, the bill goes to the full committee. ** Committee ** Full committee may amend or rewrite the bill, before deciding whether to send it to the House floor, to recommend its approval or to kill it. If approved, the bill is reported to the full House and placed on the calendar. ** Rule Committee ** Rules Committee issues a rule governing debate on the House floor and sends the bill to the full House. ** Full House ** Bill is debated by full House, amendments are offered, and a vote is taken. If the bill passes in a different version from that passed in the Senate, it is sent to a conference committee.

** Senate **

** Bill Introduction ** Bill is introduced by a member and assigned to a committee, which usually refers it to a subcommittee. ** Subcommittee ** Subcommittee performs studies, holds hearings, and makes revisions. If approved, the bill goes to the full committee. ** Committee ** Full committee may amend or rewrite the bill, before deciding whether to send it to the Senate floor, to recommend its approval or to kill it. If approved, the bill is reported to the full Senate and placed on the calendar. ** Leadership ** Senate leaders of both parties schedule Senate debate on the bill. ** Full Senate ** Bill is debated by full Senate, amendments are offered, and a vote is taken. If the bill passes in a different version from that passed in the House, it is sent to a conference committee.

** Both House and Senate **

** Conference Committee ** Conference committee composed of members of both House and Senate meet to iron out differences between the bills. The compromise bill is returned to both the House and Senate for vote.

** Full House ** Full House votes on conferences committee version. If it passes, the bill is sent to the president. ** Full Senate ** Full Senate votes on conference committee version. If it passes, the bill is sent to the president.

** President ** President signs or vetoes the bill. Congress may override a veto by a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate.

** Becomes Law **

(Bogdan Bordieanu: January 9th, 2012)

Delegate, trustee, and Politico Models:
1. **Delegate Model**: According to this model, constituents choose representatives who are then bound by the wishes of their constituency. A delegate: 2. **Trustee Model**: According to this model, constituents choose representatives, giving them their "trust." A trustee: 3. **Politico Model**: According to this model, elected representatives will act as a Trustee or as a Delegate, depending on the situation (ie- a "skillful mix" of the two theories above). A politico:
 * Has no autonomy. Delegates cannot act based on their own consciousness.
 * is a mere "mouth-piece" for what the constituency needs. He or she is elected to act for the electors.
 * Has autonomy to act and deliberate in the interest of the greater good and National good.
 * May choose a course of action that damages his or her constituency in the short-run to pursue the greater good. It is up to the Trustee to decide where the line is drawn.
 * is chosen because he has the knowledge required to seek the greater good and to take educated positions on issues.
 * Will do what is most likely to insure re-election.
 * Will be contacted heavily by interest groups.

[Diego Farias - January 8th, 2012]