2.2.3 Oversight function

Question 1

8

List the factors that affect the relationship between Congress and President

Answer 1

• Party control
• Policy area
• Presidential poll ratings
• Electoral mandate
• Partisanship
• Election cycle
• National events

Determines the institutional effectiveness of Congress

Question 2

2

What does institutional effectiveness mean?

Answer 2

• Refers to success of Congress in carrying out 3 main functions: representation, legislation and oversight
• All Congrresses excercise same constitutional powers more or lesss

Question 3

3

Describe how party control affects congressional oversight of the President

Answer 3

• United government sees limited oversight of President-promoted legislation
• Divided government leads to more presidential vetoes
• e.g. Biden vetoed 0 bill in 117th Congress, 12 in 118th Congress

Question 4

3

Describe how policy area affects congressional oversight of the President

Answer 4

• Congress has more oversight in domestic affairs
• Domestic - Trump struggled to gain funding for wall
• Foriegn - Paris Climate Agreement 2015 never went before Senate

Question 5

2

Describe how presidential poll ratings affect congressional oversight of the President

Answer 5

• Congress able to exert more influence when Presidents approval ratings are low, implying a weakened mandate
• e.g. Trump’s attempts to repeal Obamacare failed as approval rating at low 40% in 2017

Question 6

3

Describe how the electoral mandate affect congressional oversight of the President

Answer 6

• informally refers to extent of victory in Presidential election
• ‘coat-tails’ effect - landslide for President likely to attract success for their party in Congress
• increases chance of unified and loyal government

Question 7

2

Describe how partisanship affects congressional oversight of the President

Answer 7

• Makes compromise between President and Congress more difficult to achieve
• e.g. Obama failure to enact immigration reform through Congress

Question 8

2

Describe how election cycles affect congressional oversight of the President

Answer 8

• Members more likely to be concerned with appeasing constituents than President near mid-terms
• especially true if President is unpopular

Question 9

3

Describe how national events affect congressional oversight of the President

Answer 9

• Congress acts with deference towards president in national emergencies
• Allows President to excercise considerable power in short-term
• e.g. Patriot Act 2001- allowed indefinite detention

Question 10

3 - (4) (3) (3)

Describe the view that Congressional oversight of the President is effective

Answer 10

• Constitution grants considerable checks
  
  • Willingness to use veto override (e.g. Trump - National Defence Authorisation Act 2021)
  • Impeachment used more frequently
  • where Presidents have tried to circumvent checks, have been defeated in SC e.g. Biden vaccine mandate
  • reduces power of president at time of expanding executive office
• Extensive scrutiny in divided government
  
  • opposition party likely controls legislative agenda
  • gridlock prevents President’s from acting alone
  • especially true at end of President’s term e.g. Obama - Merrick Garland
• Great control over domestic policy
  
  • Congress retains right to amend or shape presidential agenda with little chance of veto
  • e.g. Biden infrastructure bill downsized from $4trn to $1trn
  • power of purse and appropriation bills give Congress sole power over budget

Question 11

4 - (3) (3) (3) (4)

Describe the view that Congressional oversight of the President is not effective

Answer 11

• Limited constitutional checks - reactive
  
  • Congress reacts with enumerated powers, which require President to act first
  • thus congressional oversight not proactive
  • impeachment fails to succeed and is often partisan
• Limited constitutional checks - President holds balance of power
  
  • Presidential veto unlikely to be overturned due to hyperpartisanship
  • therefore congressional power limited even if its mandate is more recent
  • used executive orders, recess appointments to bypass Congress
• Limited scrutiny in unified government
  
  • members likely to tie voting behaviour to wishes of popular and dominant President
  • likely to accept Presidential mandate
  • act with deference, especially in national crises
• President controls FP
  
  • increasingly using imperial/implied powers of executive agreements to bypass Congressional enumerated power of declaration of war
  • modern weaponry and diplomacy has negated congress functions
  • control allocation of funding within department budgets e.g. Trump wall
  • enabled by vagueness of Article II

Can mash the top 2 points together - separated for simplicity of card

Question 12

2

Describe recent events with Merrick Garland

Answer 12

• House voted 216-207 (party lines) to hold Garland in contempt of Congress
• refused to turn over Biden audio interview in classified documents case