Chapter 12

Congress

Qualifications• HOUSE 25 years old; citizen for 7 years;

live in the state you represent

• SENATE 30 years old; citizen for 9 years; live in the state you represent

• The House– 435 members, 2-year

terms of office

– Initiates all revenue bills, more influential on budget

– House Rules Committee

– Limited debates

• The Senate– 100 members, 6-year

terms of office

– Gives “advice & consent,” more influential on foreign affairs

– Unlimited debates (filibuster)

American Bicameralism

Bicameral Legislature• Two house Congress• House of Reps. = 435

members • 5 non-voting members =

Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Guam, Washington D.C., American Samoa

• Senate = 100 membersConnecticut Compromise @

the Constitutional Convention

Congressmen from ArizonaRepresentative Jeff Flake

http://www.house.gov/flake/

Senator Jon Kyl http://kyl.senate.gov/

Senator John McCainhttp://mccain.senate.gov/

                               

The Representatives and Senators

• The Job– Salary of $168,500 with retirement benefits– Office space in D.C. and at home with staff– Travel allowances and franking privileges– Requires long hours, a lot of time away from

family, and pressure from others to support their policies

Incumbency in Congress

Individuals who already hold office usually win 90% of elections

Congressional Elections

• The Advantages of Incumbents– Advertising:

• The goal is to be visible to your constituents• Frequent trips home, use of newsletter, and

technology

– Credit Claiming:• Service to constituents through:

– Casework: specifically helping constituents get what they think they have a right to

– Pork Barrel: federal projects, grants, etc. made available in a congressional district or state

Congressional Elections

• The Advantages of Incumbents– Position Taking:

• Portray themselves as hard working, dedicated individuals

• Occasionally take a partisan stand on an issue

– Weak Opponents:• Inexperienced in politics, unorganized, and underfunded

– Campaign Spending:• Challengers need to raise large sums to defeat an incumbent

• PACs give most of their money to incumbents

• Does PAC money “buy” votes in Congress?

Servicing the Constituency

• Constituents: citizens that the Congressperson represents

• Casework: helping constituency as individuals (cutting through red tape to give people what they think they have a right to get

• Pork Barrel: List of federal projects, grants and contracts available to cities, businesses, colleges and institutions

Money in electing Congressmen• Most of the turnover in the

membership in Congress results from vacated seats, particularly in the House

• It costs a great deal more money to elect a congressperson than to elect a president

• 2000, all presidential candidates spent a total of $200 million

• 2000, general election Senate races alone cost $350 million

Comparing the Senate and the House of Representatives

House of Representatives

• More centralized, hierarchical, less anarchic

• Party loyalty to leadership and party-line voting more prevalent

• Leaders do more leading• Speaker appoints

committee members• Five calendars based on

kind of bill• House can impeach

officials (16 so far)

House Rules Committee

• Most important committee in the House

• Reviews most bills coming from a house committee before they go to the full House (traffic cop)

• Gives each bill a “rule”, which schedules the bill on the calendar, allots time for debate, and can even specify what kind of amendments to bill can be offered

• Initiates all revenue bills in House

Senate

• Less disciplined, less centralized

• Ratifies treaties

• Confirms important presidential nominations

• Tries impeached officials

• Party leaders schedule bills

• Pro Tempore seniority rule

Congressional Leadership

How Congress is Organized to Make Policy

• The House– Led by Speaker of the

House—elected by House members

– Presides over House

– Major role in committee assignments and legislation

– Assisted by majority leader and whips

• The Senate– Formally lead by Vice

President

– Really lead by Majority Leader—chosen by party members

– Assisted by whips

– Must work with Minority leader

Congressional Leadership

Speaker of the House

• Most important person in Congress– Presides over House– Makes committee

assignments– Appoints party’s

legislative leaders– Exercises substantial

control over which bills get assigned to which committees

Other Congressional Leaders• Majority Leader in each

house• Minority Leaders in each

house• Whips: A member of a

legislative body, charged by his or her party with enforcing party discipline and ensuring attendance

» Daniel Inouye

(D)

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D)

Minority Leader: Mitch McConnell (R)

Whips…in the Senate

• Richard Durbin (D) Majority whip

• Jon Kyl (R) Minority whip

Whips...in the House

• Kevin McCarthy (R) majority whip

• Steny Hoyer (D) minority whip

Legislative Oversight

• Congress’s monitoring of the bureaucracy and its administration of policy (hearings)

Committees in Congress

Committees in Congress

• Standing committees: Permanent committee in a legislative body to which bills in a specified subject matter area are referred

• Joint committees: Legislative committee composed of members of both houses (usually permanent also)

• Conference committees: Temporary joint committee created to reconcile any differences between the two houses’ versions of a bill

• Select committees: Legislative committee created for a limited time and for some specific purpose; also known as a special committee

House STANDING Committees

• There are 19 standing committees in the House of Representatives.

• Representatives are normally assigned to one or two standing committees.

• The most important committees in the House are: Rules, Ways and Means, Appropriations, Armed Services, Judiciary, International Relations, and Agriculture

Senate STANDING Committees

• There are 17 standing committees in the Senate.

• Senators are normally assigned to three or four committees.

• The most important committees in the Senate are: Foreign Relations, Appropriations, Finance, Judiciary, Armed Services, and Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.

Important Facts about Committees

Committees are where most bills receive thorough consideration.

The fate of most bills is decided in the various standing committees.

Most bills DIE in the committees (action) to which they are referred!!!

Congressional Caucus

• Informal organization of Congresspersons who share some interest on characteristics

• Promote the interests around which they are formed

• Interest group within Congress

Congressional process

The Congressional Process