The Framers adopted the bicameral, or two-chamber, legislature used in most colonies.
Great Compromise: The Framers apportioned seats equally in the Senate and according to population in the House.
The Framers created several differences between the two houses.
- House members elected directly by the people
- State legislators elected senators until Seventeenth Amendment (1913) provided for direct election
- Two-year terms of office in House, six-year terms in Senate
The Framers enumerated the powers explicitly granted to Congress.
- Elastic clause gives Congress power to make laws "necessary and proper" to carry out its duties
- Elastic clause gives Congress the ability to adapt to changing circumstances
The Constitution also explicitly denies Congress certain powers.
- Examples: granting of titles of nobility, imposing certain taxes, suspending certain individual rights
- Actions of other branches also limit congressional power
CIVIC LIFE AND CONGRESSIONAL CHANGE
The elimination of property qualifications for voting led to the rise of political parties in Congress.
- Control of Congress became a political contest.
- Andrew Jackson used his popularity with voters to assert authority over Congress.
- Debates over slavery divided Congress and led eventually to the Civil War.
Following the Civil War, powerful party leaders wielded great influence.
- Americans considered the Senate a "millionaire's club" that represented only the rich and powerful.
The Progressive Era brought significant changes to Congress.
- A progressive coalition took control of the House in 1910.
- The Seventeenth Amendment (1913) gave voters the power to elect senators directly.
- Rule changes curtailed the power of party leaders.
- Congress members became more professional.
Congress lost power to the executive branch in the early 1900s; by 1932 President Franklin Roosevelt dominated national politics.
- Roosevelt pushed New Deal programs though the Democratic-led Congress.
- The New Deal caused conservative Southern Democrats in the House to ally with Republicans.
- Democratic defections allowed periods of Republican control of Congress after World War II.
The civil rights movement of the 1960s led to changes in Congress.
- Membership of Congress became more diverse.
- Congress opened committee meetings to the public and exercised greater control over party leaders.
- The seniority system was weakened by the mid-1970s.
- Congress adopted new procedures for legislative oversight of the budget.
GETTING ELECTED
Getting elected to Congress requires considerable resources of time and money.
- This means wealthy individuals are much more likely to run for office.
- Candidates are probably more aware of the needs of wealthy donors than those of average voters.
Incumbents are extremely difficult to unseat.
- Incumbents enjoy fundraising advantages over challengers.
- Incumbents have greater visibility and name recognition.
- Incumbents enjoy free mailing, or franking, privileges.
- Incumbents can get free media exposure by sponsoring legislation.
- Incumbents can offer specific help, or casework, to constituents.
The electoral environment is somewhat different in midterm elections.
- Midterm elections draw fewer voters than presidential elections do.
- Only the most committed partisans are likely to vote in midterm races.
- The president's party usually loses seats in Congress during midterm elections.
The electoral boundaries of districts House members represent may be redrawn to allow for changes in population, a process called redistricting.
The Constitution prescribes reapportionment, or reallocation, of seats in Congress every 10 years on the basis of the latest census.
- The population within each district must be relatively equal.
- The number of congressional seats is fixed, so some states gain seats while others lose them.
When districts are redrawn to create a partisan advantage, the process is called gerrymandering.
- Citizens can sue to prevent redistricting that gives one group an unfair advantage.
- Minority-majority districts are made by fitting together pockets of minority populations to enhance the chances of electing minority candidates.
- The Supreme Court ruled that race cannot be the sole factor used in redrawing district boundaries.
DOING THE JOB: RESPONSIBILITIES AND BENEFITS
How should members of Congress interpret their roles as representatives?
- The delegate attempts to champion the views of constituents.
- The trustee exercises his or her own judgment on behalf of those he or she serves.
- The politico goes back and forth between delegate and trustee roles; most members take this role.
Members of Congress are older, much better educated, wealthier, and much less ethnically and racially diverse than the U.S. population at large.
A Congress member's annual salary is $169,300, and all members receive retirement and health benefits.
Members keep in close touch with constituents through town meetings, local press interviews, and correspondence with voters.
- Few Americans approve of the performance of Congress as a whole, but most are pleased with their own representative.
Members of Congress interact frequently with lobbyists.
- Lobbyists supply campaign contributions and mobilize voters.
- Lobbyists provide members with information about the impact of legislation on interest groups.
Members of Congress receive an allowance to hire paid staff.
- Staffers handle administrative tasks such as scheduling and correspondence.
- Citizens typically meet with staffers, rather than members, to resolve issues.
Members also must work with staff connected to committees.
- Lawmakers become dependent on committee staff for research and information.
- As a result, committee staff can exercise undue influence on legislation.
Smaller groups of like-minded members called caucuses meet to discuss common interests and work out internal party disputes.
KEYS TO POLITICAL POWER
Most of the work in Congress occurs in committees.
Standing committees are permanent and continue from session to session.
- The majority party controls most of the seats on each committee and the leadership positions.
- Party committees nominate members for seats on standing committees.
- Experienced members receive committee appointments more often than new members.
- Committees dealing with spending and taxes are considered the most powerful.
- The House Committee on Rules plays a key role in setting terms for debate and amendment of bills.
Select committees form for a limited period to handle matters that do not routinely fit into areas of standing committees.
Joint committees include members from both houses; most monitor and report on activities of government agencies.
Conference committees are called to resolve differences in bills passed by the House and Senate.
Partisanship in Congress has significantly increased in recent years.
- More members vote along party lines
- Fewer members vote for centrist or moderate positions
- More difficult for members to forge bipartisan consensus.
The most powerful leader in the lower chamber is the Speaker of the House.
- The Speaker refers bills to committees and appoints committee members for the majority party.
- The Speaker schedules legislation for consideration and presides over House sessions.
- The Speaker determines the flow of debate.
The majority leader in the House assists the Speaker in setting the agenda for the House.
- Works to generate support for party positions
- Responsible for enforcing party discipline
Party whips build support for a party's agenda and ensure members are present and prepared to vote as the party desires.
The vice president serves as president of the Senate and can vote in case of a tie.
The Senate majority leader is the Senate's most influential member.
- Works with a minority party leader to schedule bills for floor action and set limits on debate
- Senators more independent than representatives; this makes majority leader's job more difficult
Committee chairs enjoy substantial powers to facilitate action on bills and resolutions.
- Generally, the senior member of the majority party serves as committee chair.
- In Senate, members of the majority party select committee chairs by secret ballot.
- Committee chairs have come under pressure by party leaders to toe the party line.
Knowing the rules of procedure is invaluable in advancing legislation.
- House leaders can keep a bill bottled up in committee unless opponents obtain a discharge petition to release it.
- House Committee on Rules determines procedures under which floor debate on a bill will occur.
- Senate rules are more flexible than House rules.
- In a filibuster, senators opposed to a bill can hold the floor for an unlimited time to force supporters to withdraw or amend it.
- Members can end a filibuster through a procedure known as cloture.
- A senator can place a hold on an issue that prevents any action from being taken on it until the senator is consulted.
THE FUNCTIONS OF CONGRESS
The primary function of Congress is lawmaking.
- After its introduction, a bill is assigned to one or more committees.
- The committee chair assigns the bill to a subcommittee for more detailed analysis.
- After investigation, the subcommittee decides whether to send the bill through the rest of the process or kill it.
- In the House, bills approved by committees proceed to the Rules Committee.
- A bill must receive support of the majority of members to pass.
- A bill must pass both houses to be eligible for presidential action.
- If differences exist between House and Senate versions of a bill, a conference committee resolves the differences.
- The president either signs or vetoes the bill; if president does not act within 10 days, the bill passes automatically.
The Constitution reserves to Congress the power to declare war.
- Most wars initiated without a formal declaration
- Proper roles of Congress and president in war making are intensely debated
- War Powers Resolution (1973) puts limits on president's ability to deploy troops
- Congress can control combat operations by granting or withholding funding
Federal officials may be impeached and removed from office for treason, bribery, or "high crimes and misdemeanors."
- House initiates impeachment proceedings; impeached officials tried in Senate
- Two-thirds vote needed to remove an official from office
Congress exercises oversight, or scrutiny, of federal agencies, programs, and the other branches of government.
- Congress investigates policy implementation and the activities of government personnel and office holders.
- Congress also monitors budgets and holds hearings on authorization of executive branch programs.
- The power of congressional review permits Congress to nullify agency regulations with approval of both houses the president.
- Presidents may issue signing statements that explain how the president chooses to interpret legislation.
The president prepares the budget, but Congress decides how the money is spent.
- The Congressional Budget Office reviews all spending proposals and makes detailed estimates of expenditures.
- Each house develops a budget resolution that projects income and sets spending ceilings for various programs.
- Appropriations Committees of both houses send portions of the resolution to subcommittees for approval.
- If the budget is not passed by October 1, Congress must pass continuing resolutions to fund programs at previous year's levels.
The Senate has the power of advice and consent.
- The Senate may advise the president on political appointments or treaty negotiations.
- The Senate has the power to approve treaties negotiated by the president (2/3 vote).
- The Senate has the power to confirm presidential appointments (majority vote).
