Organization Of Congress Lecture CHP 11

Powers and Organization of Congress Lecture (Chp 11)

A. Framers Intent i. Designed to be most powerful ii. Oppose concentration of power in a single institution iii. Balance large/small states (bicameralism) iv. Authority over national defense, money v. DOMESTIC a. lay and collect taxes b. impose duties c. borrow/coin money d. regulate interstate commerce e. control/acquire federal lands vi. FOREIGN POLICY a. provide for common defense b. regulate militia c. Declare war d. raise/regulate armed forces e. regulate foreign commerce f. approve treaties, ambassadors (SENATE) vii. Informal Powers a. Leadership – Televised Speeches, public opinion viii. Effectiveness vs. Representation (Decentralization vs. Centralization) a. Critics want to be more effective/representative a. often exclusive b. 1995 – cut subcommittees, centralized power, more effective c. make less representative and vice versa II. Representation Theories – all rely on CONSTITUENCY – primary responsibility A. Politicians have many groups to please, campaign contributors, constituents, PACs, etc. i. Also have own agenda – policy goals of personal nature (private/public good) ii. Legislators do not vote for outcomes directly, but rather for INSTRUMENTS whose effects produce outcomes B. Delegate i. Believe elected to do bidding of electorate, votes according to their preferences C. Trustee i. Elected to do what legislator believes is “right”, votes “conscience” D. Agency Representation i. Principle that reps are held accountable to their constituents if they fail to represent properly. Constituents have the ability to “hire” and “fire” ii. Reps expected to at minimum seek to discover the interests of constituents and will speak for those interests in Congress III. Evolution of Congress A. Phase one: The powerful House i. Congressional leadership supplied by the president in first three administrations ii. Preeminence of House of Representatives; originated legislation and nominated presidential candidates iii. Party caucus shaped policy questions, selected party candidate for the presidency B. Phase two: A divided House (1820s) i. Assertiveness of Andrew Jackson who vetoed bills if he opposed policy ii. Caucus system disappears, replaced with national nominating conventions iii. Issue of slavery and Civil War shatter party unity, limiting Speaker's power iv. Radical Republicans impose harsh measures on post-Civil War South C. Phase three: Rise of a powerful speaker i. Thomas B. Reed (R-ME), Speaker, 1889-1899, produced party unity ii. Joseph G. Cannon (R-IL), Speaker, 1899-1910, more conservative than many House Republicans D. Phase four: The revolt against the speaker E. Phase five: The empowerment of individual members i. Defining issue was civil rights during 1960s and 1970s ii. Powerful Southern committee chairs blocked legislation until 1965 iii. Members changed rules to limit chairs' power iv. Committee chairs become elective, not just based on seniority v. Subcommittees strengthened vi. Chairs could not refuse to convene committee meetings, most meetings were to be public vii. Member staff increased F. Phase six: The return of leadership i. Efforts began to restore Speaker's power because the individualistic system was not efficient ii. Speaker appointed a majority of the Rules Committee members iii. Speaker given multiple referral authority iv. Sweeping changes with 1994 Republican majority v. Committee chairs hold positions for only 6 years vi. Reduced the number of committees, subcommittees vii. Speaker dominated the selection of committee chairs viii. Speaker set agenda (Contract with America) and sustained high Republican discipline ix. Speaker/Leadership control PACs – ACCESS to $$ IV. Who Gets Elected? Role of: A. Sex and Race i. House – Less Male, Less White (not true in Senate) ii. Running often determined by individual ambition a. Must be able to finance (raise money) for campaign B. The Incumbency Advantage i. 90% in Senate, 95% in House “Sophomore surge” ii. Congress developed into “professional legislature” (turnover chart p. 166) – became a career (by 1960s) iii. FRANKING – mailing privileges ($100,000 free postage) iv. CONSTITUENCY SERVICE v. “casework” – solving constituent problems vi. PATRONAGE a. pork-barrel legislation b. send federal projects/funds to home districts c. “Earmark” – members insert pork into other bills d. Members can visibly and credibly claim personal responsibility Are Pork Barrel Projects beneficial to the country? vii. MONEY a. easier to raise money b. until recently, why few women candidates (EMILYs List, PACs) c. Scares off potentially strong challengers a. When do face, are beaten (Al D’Amato – 1998) viii. 1992, 1994 Brought many new members a. Redistricting after 1990 census b. Anti-incumbency (budget deficit, poor economy, etc.) c. “Republican Revolution” of 1994 How do these factors contribute to the “Upper Class Bias” in Congress? C. Congressional Districts i. Way districts drawn matters – reapportionment every ten years ii. Districts are drawn to create an advantage for majority party a. GERRYMANDERING –redrawing districts to give an unfair advantage to one party b. Malapportionment – deliberately creating disparity in number of people in each district c. 1964 – Supreme Court decision requires districts to be drawn “One person, one vote” (Wesberry v. Sanders) d. Majority-minority districts (Shaw v. Reno stated race can be factor, w/compelling state interest – not fully defined) a. Districts redrawn to make it easy to elect minority cand. b. “descriptive” vs. “substantive” representation D. Party i. Democrats were beneficiaries of incumbency advantage(1933-1992) ii. “Electoral Convulsions” a. Voters oppose incumbents due to budget deficits, policies, branch bickering, scandal (1994) iii. Primary process – limits party authority a. Run personalized campaigns – independence from party b. Legislators closely tied to local concerns, not party V. THE ORGANIZATION OF CONGRESS A. The Senate a. more deliberative (smaller, easier to negotiate, debate) b. “Upper House” – represent elites - 30yrs, 6 yr term, local/national constituency c. 1913 – Direct Election (17th Amendment) d. Party Organization a. President Pro Tempore presides, member w/most seniority b. Controlled by majority/minority leaders & Whips c. Each party has policy committee – schedule Senate business, prioritize bills d. Less party centered/less leader oriented e. Committee Assignments a. Emphasizes ideological and regional balance i. Favors, popularity, effectiveness on TV, party loyalty f. Filibuster – Rule 22 (1917) amended to require “Cloture”

B. House a. “People’s House” - Local constituency – more attuned to legislative needs of local interest groups (small constituency, frequent election) b. More organized (better equipped to handle “routine role” in governmental process c. More intense partisanship, ideological division than Senate (more homogenous constituency, less reason to compromise) d. Party Organization i. Speaker is leader, most powerful member of House 1. decides who speaks on floor 2. rules on “germaneness of motions” 3. influences which bills are brought to floor, what committees they are assigned to 4. has patronage power 5. appoints some members to select/special committees ii. Majority/Minority leaders (floor leaders)/Whips iii. Measure of party structure strength is ability to determine rules/organization iv. 104th Congress (Rep. Rev) – Gingrich had party support for reforms & controversial committee assignments e. Committee Assignments i. Set by each party ii. Reflect makeup of house (maj/minority) C. Party Unity a. Cohesion more evident in 1990s b. Splits reflect deep ideological differences between parties or party leaders c. Why party voting, if party not electorally important? i. Ideological differences of parties important ii. Cues given/taken by fellow party members iii. Rewards from party leaders (committees, pork) d. CAUCUSES i. Rivals to parties ii. Intra-party, personal interest, regional, industry D. The Committee Structure a. Most important organizational feature of Congress – whole body lacks time, expertise to consider all proposals i. Consider bills, proposals 1. Most bills never heard from again (die in committee), 6% reported out ii. Gatekeeping Authority 1. the right to decide if a change in policy will be considered 2. Proposal Power a. Capacity to bring a proposal to the full legislature iii. After-the-fact Authority 1. authority to follow-up on proposal after it has been approved iv. Oversight 1. maintain oversight of executive agencies/conduct investigations b. Types of Committees i. Standing – permanent bodies w/specified legislative resp. ii. Select – appointed for a limited purpose/duration iii. Joint – both reps and senators serve 1. Conference Committee – hammer out differences between House/Senate version of bill c. Subcommittees i. More specialized ii. Same powers as committees d. Committee Practices i. 1995 – significant cuts, overall # varied ii. Majority party = majority of seats iii. Each member usually serves on two standing committees 1. House members serve on one exclusive committee 2. Senators receive two major and one minor assignment iv. Chairs are elected, but most senior member is usually elected by maj. – weakened in 1995 (seniority rule) 1. Subcommittee B.o.Rights changed practices in the 1970s 2. Chairs elected by secret ballot 3. Opened more meetings to public (“Sunshine”) a. Members don’t like, deliberation difficult b. “grandstanding” e. Committee Styles i. “Distributive Tendency” in Congress 1. in order to pass a policy, necessary to authorize, and appropriate funds 2. Congress tends to spread the benefits of a policy over a wide range of members districts to help approval ii. Decentralization has increased influence of individual members 1. less control by chairs 2. more amendments proposed/adopted 3. Democratic leaders began to use restrictive rules, proxy votes a. Provoked 1995 Republican reform iii. Certain committees attract particular types of legislators 1. Policy-oriented members a. Arlen Specter – Judiciary b. Richard Lugar/Joe Biden – Foreign Relations 2. Constituency oriented a. Rob Simmons - Armed Services E. Staff and Specialized Offices a. Staff Members i. Constituency service – major task ii. Legislative functions – devising proposals, negotiating agreements, organizing hearings, meeting w/lobbyists iii. Advocates of their employers b. Growth of Staff i. Larger staff = more legislative work, members of Congress cannot keep up on own ii. More individualistic Congress – less collegial c. Staff Agencies i. Congressional Research Service (CRS) 1. part of LoC, responds to requests for information 2. does not recommend policy, but looks up facts and indicates arguments for/against proposed policy. Track bills ii. General Accountability Office (GAO) 1. Audits money spent by executive departments, investigates agencies and policies, makes recommendations iii. Congressional Budget Office 1. advises Congress on likely economic effects of spending programs, costs of programs

How can Congress block the President’s Program? (filibuster, seniority system, committee system, chair authority, rider, appropriation power, overriding vetoes)

What are the merits/drawbacks of a bicameral legislature?

Is the general public qualified or able to effectively judge Congress?

Should a legislator be a “trustee” or a “delegate”?