chapter 13 congress - augusta county public schools committee activity. • decentralization ......

Chapter 13

Congress

Congress: Chapter Themes

Centralization vs. decentralization of power within Congress.

Leadership vs. individual members.

Service to party vs. service to constituents.

Copyright © 2011 Cengage

Congress versus Parliament

Congress

• Independent representatives of their districts or states

• Principle work is representation and action

Parliament

• Loyal to national party leadership

• Principle work is debate


Figure 13.1 Percentage of

Incumbents Reelected to Congress


Source: Harold W. Stanley and Richard G. Niemi, Vital Statistics on American Politics, 1999–2000 (Washington, D.C.: Congressional Quarterly Press, 2000), table 1-18; 2004 update by Marc Siegal.

Percentage of Incumbents Reelected

to Congress


Incumbency Advantage

SAFE DISTRICT

A House district in which the incumbent wins by margins of 55% or more.

MARGINAL DISTRICT

A House district in which the incumbent typically wins by margins of less than 55%.

Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich) has served in the House since 1955. He represents a district in the western suburbs of Detroit. 2010: 57% 2006: 88% 2008: 71% 2004: 71%

Do Members Represent Their

Voters?

Representational view–members vote to please their constituents

Organizational View–members vote to please fellow members of Congress

Attitudinal View–members vote on the basis of their own beliefs


Keith Ellison (D., MN), the first Muslim elected to Congress. p. 325

Craig Lassig/EPA/Corbis

The Organization of Congress:

Parties, Caucuses, Committees

Party Organization of the Senate & House

Caucuses

Committees

Congressional Staff


Nancy Pelosi, the first woman to serve as House Speaker.

Zach Seckler/Corbis

CONGRESS IS AN ORGANIZATION OF ORGANIZATIONS.


Centralized or Decentralized?

• Should the U.S. Congress be a centralized organization with a strong leadership structure, or should it be decentralized with an emphasis on the independence of its members? • What would be the advantages and disadvantages of each system?

Centralized or Decentralized?

• Centralization • Allows Congress to act quickly and decisively. • Requires strong central leadership, strict rules, limited committee activity.

• Decentralization • Allows for the protection of individual members and their constituencies. • Requires weak leadership, rules allowing for delay, and much committee activity.

• General trend has been toward – esp. since mid-20th Century – has been toward decentralization. • Members of Congress view themselves as independent representatives of their districts/states rather as cogs in an organizational wheel.

The Organization of Congress: Parties

Party organization of the Senate • President pro tempore presides

o member with most seniority in majority party o largely ceremonial office; no real powers

• Leaders are the majority leader and the minority leader, elected by their respective party members. • Majority leader schedules Senate business, usually in consultation with minority leader. • Majority leader: skilled at political bargaining, may have substantial influence over the substance of Senate business as well.



Party organization of the Senate • Party whips: keep leaders informed, round up votes, count noses • Each party has a policy committee

o sets priorities for bills (majority party sets the agenda) o schedules Senate business

• Each party has a group that makes committee assignments

o Very important for new senators o Republicans – “Committee on Committees” o Democrats – “Steering Committee”


Party organization of the House • The Speaker of the House is the most important leader in Congress. Sometimes called “the second most powerful person in Washington.”

POWERS OF THE SPEAKER

• Directs all floor business

• Decides who to recognize to speak

on the floor • Assigns bills to committees, subject to some rules • Influences which bills are brought up for a vote • Appoints majority party’s legislative leaders • Appoints members of special and select committees



Party organization of the House • House rules give leadership more power compared to Senate. • Majority leader and minority leader: leaders on the floor. • Party whip: takes “head count” before votes and “rounds up” votes. • Committee assignments and legislative schedule are set by each party.


Evaluating the power of parties • In European legislatures, party leaders can require members to follow their lead. • Members of U.S. Congress have a large degree of independence from party leadership. • Members do not depend on party leaders to get reelected. • Power of leaders can vary. Some strong, some not. • More powerful today due to increasing ideological unity.


Evaluating the power of parties: party unity • Party polarization: a vote in which a majority of Democrats oppose a majority of Republicans (also called a “party line vote.”) • Party polarization has increased since 1990s. It is the norm today. • Since the American electorate is moderate/centrist, why is Congress ideologically polarized? • No simple answer...

Sen. Jim Bunning (R-KY) Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE)


Evaluating the power of parties: party unity

WHY IS CONGRESS MORE PARTISAN?

• Congressional districts: most are safe. Members don’t need to be concerned about voters in their districts with opposing views. • Voters have become more partisan (theory): The people take their cues from members and adopt their positions. People who aren’t highly partisan vote less often. • Seniority system no longer used for committee chairs: Committee chairpersons now more likely to be strong supporter of party views.

The Organization of Congress: Caucuses Caucus (def): An association of Congress members created to advance a political ideology or specific interest.

“To provide Congressional leadership in

complementing the efforts of the

millions of cyclists actively working for

safer roads, more bikeways, convenient

bike parking and increased recognition

of the importance of cycling for

transportation and recreation.”

SOME CONGRESSIONAL CAUCUSES

• Caucus on Sudan • Biomedical Research • Climate • Travel & tourism • Hunger • Public broadcasting • Oil & national security • Arts • Diabetes • Soccer • Tea party

The Organization of Congress: Caucuses

• Each party has its own party caucus. • Caucuses gained influence in the 1970s when congressional power became more decentralized • There were 290 caucuses in 2006 • Some caucuses have combined membership (Senators and Representatives). • Membership in a caucus has benefits:

o Gaining specialized information o Being identified as a leader o Symbolic support of an issue important to constituents

• Influence of caucuses is debatable.

The Organization of Congress: Caucuses

By founding and then getting elected as House Tea Party Caucus chairperson, Michele Bachmann (R-Minn) can brand herself as a “leader” in Congress.

The Organization of Congress: Committees

Legislative committees are the most important organizational feature of Congress.

Senate budget committee

• The real work of Congress is done by committees. • Committees are the centers of power in Congress. • Committee chairpersons are important, powerful leaders.


WHAT COMMITTEES DO

• Consider bills or legislative proposals • Maintain oversight of executive agencies • Conduct investigations

Over 11,000 bills are introduced in Congress each session. The only way to deal with this workload is to use the committee system.


Types of committees

• Standing committees: permanent bodies with specified legislative responsibilities.

• Most important type of committee because they “report out” legislation.

• Select committees: groups appointed for a limited purpose and limited duration • Joint committees: those on which both representatives and senators serve • Conference committee: a joint committee appointed to resolve differences in Senate and House versions of the same piece of legislation before final passage


Committee Membership

• Membership is controlled by parties. Committee assignments are made by special committees. • Assignments are made based on specific qualities, needs of member’s region, or electoral needs. • Getting on the “right committee” is important to members:

o serve constituents o gain power, publicity, etc.(AMBITION!)

Harold Rogers (R-KY),

Chairman

House Appropriations

Committee


Committee Membership

• The chairperson of every committee is a member of the majority party. • The majority party holds a majority of members on each committee. • Minority party is represented in proportion to its membership in the entire house.

Patrick Leahy (D-VT),

Chairman

Senate Judiciary Committee


Rep. Pete Sessions

(R-Texas)

Chairman, House Rules Committee

• Has strong influence over

success/failure of legislation.

• Regulates time of floor debate.

• Sets limitations on floor

amendments.

• Can delay consideration of a

bill.



Committee action determines the fate of a bill. If a committee is hostile to a bill, it will never live to be debated by the full House or Senate.


Staff and Specialized Offices

Each member of Congress has a large staff and several offices.

103rd Congress had over 10,000 staffers.

Each committee has its own staff, so add more than 3,000.


Staffers are hired by members and are entirely advocates for them.



Main job: serving constituent requests: Answer mail, handle problems, provide information, meet with voters.

Another important job: researching and writing legislation.

Staffers sometimes shape policy through negotiating with each other, reducing personal contact among members of Congress. This has made Congress more individualistic.

Staffers can become “policy entrepreneurs” by creating a policy and encouraging their member to “sell it.”



Tasks of Staff Members

Staff Agencies

• Congressional Research Service (CRS)

• General Accounting Office (GAO)

• Office of Technology Assessment (OTA)

• Congressional Budget Office (CBO)


How a Bill Becomes a Law

• The legislative process is an obstacle course. • The Framers included provisions in the Constitution whose primary purpose are to create obstacles to passing laws.

• They believed that efficiency is a characteristic of a tyrannical government. • They wanted to be sure that laws were thoroughly considered, debated and approved of by many parties.

How a Bill Becomes a Law

• It is easier to defeat a bill than get one passed. The system is set up to favor the opposition.

• Some types of bills pass easily.

o Clear, appealing idea (reduce drug use)

o Do not require large expenditures

• Some move slowly o Spending money, taxation, regulation of business

How a Bill

Becomes a

Law


“This is the sausage factory.”

Kentucky Congressman Hal Rogers

Meaning: You don’t want to see how it’s made, but most people are satisfied with the final product.

How a Bill

Becomes a

Law


House Rules Committee


• Standing committee since 1789. • Wields “vast power” over success/failure of legislation. • Used by the Speaker to control what bills come to the House floor and conditions for debate. • Closed rule: no amendments allowed. Opponents cannot change bill, only vote “yea” or “nay.” • Open rule: amendments allowed. • Since the 1980s, half of all bills and ¾ of most important bills were debated under closed rules. • Usually has a 2:1 ratio of majority members to minority members.

The Filibuster


• Filibuster = “talking a bill to death” • Under Senate rules, a member may speak for as long as he/she likes. Debate is “unlimited.” • It takes 3/5 of the Senators (60) to vote “cloture” (end debate). • If there aren’t sixty votes for cloture, the bill can never come to a vote.

South Carolina Senator Strom

Thurmond tries to prevent

passage of civil rights legislation.

The Filibuster


FOR WHAT PURPOSE?

The filibuster is a weapon used by the minority to prevent passage of a bill.

The Filibuster


• “Talking filibusters” are rare today. Senators often ask for repeated roll calls. • Today’s Senate uses a “procedural filibuster” to block a bill. • Double-tracking: Bill can be “shelved” temporarily so the Senate can proceed with other business.

The Filibuster Procedural filibuster

• 1975 rules changes made the “invisible filibuster” possible. • 41 Senators need to simply state that they support a filibuster and the bill will be set aside. • This has made filibusters more common although they are not actually performed.

• Advantage: Senate can conduct other business; embarrassment of stalled legislation is avoided. • Disadvantages: Can be used more often; public is not aware of why legislation is stalled.

The Legislative Process: Riders • Rider: A non-germane amendment • There are no limits on amendments to bills in the Senate. • Senators add amendments so they can “hitch a ride” on a bill that is likely to pass. • Purposes:

o Get pet projects passed o Prevent passage of a bill by making it unacceptable to the majority. o Force the President to accept a measure to which he objects.

• Use of riders has increased in recent years (“Christmas tree bills”)

The Legislative Process: Riders

• Famous example: Real ID (standardization of driver’s licenses) • Originally passed by House but stalled in the Senate. • Added to a military spending bill before it passed the House • Senate passed 100-0 • States resisted implementation.

The Legislative Process: Earmarks • Earmark: Any part of a spending bill that provides money for a specific project or location. An earmarks is a type of rider.

• Members of Congress attach “earmarks” as riders to spending bills in order to fund projects that benefit their own districts.

• Pork barrel legislation: Bills that include earmarks which benefit districts by providing tangible benefits to voters. • Purpose: To make voters happy and win reelection. • Logrolling: The cooperative support among members of Congress for each other’s pork-barrel projects. • There is a strong ethic of “you-scratch-my-back-and-I’ll-scratch-yours” in Congress

The Legislative Process: Earmarks • Most infamous example of earmark: the “Bridge to Nowhere.” • In 2005, as part of a transportation spending bill, Congress approved $200 million for the construction of a bridge linking an Alaskan city of 9,000 people to an island with 50 inhabitants and a small airport.

• Alaska’s Republican senator and representative were the patrons and it embarrassed the party that wants to be known for fiscal responsibility. • Funding was repealed and the bridge was never built.

The Legislative Process: Earmarks

• Under new ethics rules, the 112th Congress “banned” earmarks through traditional procedures. • There are other ways to funnel federal money to home districts and there is evidence that is happening.

“A U.S. senator from Alabama directed more than $100 million in federal

earmarks to renovate downtown Tuscaloosa near his own commercial office

building. A congressman from Georgia secured $6.3 million in taxpayer

funds to replenish the beach about 900 feet from his island vacation cottage.

A representative from Michigan earmarked $486,000 to add a bike lane to a

bridge within walking distance of her home.”

Washington Post, Feb 6, 2012

chapter 13 congress - augusta county public schools committee activity. • decentralization ......

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