Chapter 10: Congress Flashcards
The nation’s Founders envisioned Congress as the
Most powerful branch of the federal government
Article I gives Congress the power to
1) Levy taxes, borrow and spend money
2) Regulate interstate commerce
3) Establish a national money supply
4) Declare war, raise and support
5) Establish a court system, and pass all laws
Senate
Ratifies treaties, confirms president’s judicial and executive nomination
If no presidential candidate receives a majority of electoral college votes, the
House of Representatives selects the president
Congress obstructs presidential policy initiatives rather than
Assume policy leadership itself
No law can be passed, and no money can be spent unless
Both the House and the Senate pass the identical laws
The House, with its two years terms, was designed to be
More responsive to the people
All revenue-raising bills
Originate in the House
The Senate serves
Six-years terms, and is the most prestigious body
Congress’s exclusive constitutional power to
Authorize expenditures by all agencies of the federal government
Presidents initiate
Taxing and spending, but Congress has the last word
Congress exercises its greatest influence over national policy through
Appropriations bills (bills authorizing specific expenditures)
Congress influences military affairs, foreign affairs, and foreign aid through
Appropriations bills
Oversight: Congressional monitoring of the activities of executive branch agencies to determine if the
Laws are being faithfully executed
The House has the authority to
Bring charges of impeachment by a simple majority vote
The Senate conducts a trial and can remove the president by
Obtaining a two-thirds majority vote
Constituencies
The group of people the member of Congress represents
Apportionment: Every ten years, the 435 seats of the House of Representatives are
Distributed among the states based on population changes
Redistricting
A process in which states gain or lose seats or states with population shifts within the states redraw their district boundaries to reflect these population changes
Gerrymandering
The drawing of districting lines for political advantage
Gerrymandering has been used by parties in control of the
State legislature to maximize their seats in Congress and state legislature
The Constitution requires
House members are residents of the state but not the district they represent, a U.S citizens for at least 7 years, and at least 25 years old
Senate members are required to
Be residents of the state they represent; be at least 30 years old and U.S citizens for at least 9 years
From 1954-1994, Democrats enjoyed
A majority in the House and for most of this period in the Senate
In 1994, the Democrats regained
Majorities in the House and the Senate
Party loyalty and incumbent are
More important for congressional candidates than for presidential candidates
The Constitution calls for the members of the House of Representatives to
Select a Speaker of the House and the vice-president of the U.S to preside over the Senate
The Vice President of the Senate casts
A tie-breaking vote when needed
Congressional Leadership (House of Representatives)
1) House of Representative
2) Speaker of the House
3) Majority Leader
4) Minority Leader
5) Majority and Minority Whips
Congressional Leadership (Senate)
1) Vice President is the presiding officer
2) Majority Leader
3) Minority Leader
4) Majority and Minority Whips
Speaker of the House chosen by the
Majority party members and sees that legislation moves through the House
When bills are complex, Bills with more than one subject
The speaker determines which committee it will go to
Determines when the House will
Vote on a bill and who will speak on the floor
Majority leader
Is the real leader in the Senate and duties similar to the Speaker of the House
Standing committees are
Permanent committees that deal with a specialized policy area:
1) The House has 21 committees in total (40-60 members each)
2) The Senate has 20 committees in total (15-25 members each)
Standing committees between 8000-10000 or more bills are
Introduced into Congress each session, and only 400-800 are passed in a session (2 years)
The major function of committees is the
Screening and drafting of legislation
The content of a bill usually
Determine where it will go
In general, the proportion of Democrats and Republicans in the committees reflect
Their proportion in the House and the Senate as a whole
Most legislation introduced in Cong is referred to a
Standing committee and then to a subcommittee
In the subcommittee, a bill may be rewritten in the
Markup stage
The bill is then sent back to the
Standing committee, which may hold hearings and vote on a bill
Committees
1) Most bills die in committees
2) Some are voted down
3) Most are ignored
A discharge petition is required in
The House to force a bill out of a committee that opposes it
Successful discharge petitions require
The Signature of 218 House members
If successful, a vote is then taken
On the House floor
The House Rules Committees: Before a bill goes to the House floor for a vote,
The Rules Committee decides whether to forbid amendments, allow specified amendments, or allow unlimited amendment
In the Senate, there is no
Rules Committee
The Senate relies on
Unanimous consent agreement negotiated by the majority and minority leaders of the Senate specifies when a bill will be taken up on the floor, what amendments will be considered, and when a vote will be taken
The chair community is
The leader and most influential member
The chair is selected by the seniority system
The member with the longest service on the majority side of the committee becomes it chair
Committees help Cong consider
The vast number of bills each year and it will allows its member to become specialized
However, evaluating committees allows
Special interests more influence and fragmentation makes it harder to get things done
Filibuster is
A continuous speech made by one or more members to prevent the Senate from taking action
Cloture Vote is used to
End filibusters and requires three-fifths of the senators (60) to agree to limit the debate 100 more hours
The House and the Senate must
Pass an identical bill before it becomes law
The Conference Committee resolves differences in
The House and the Senate version of the same bill
A majority of each house must approve of
The Committee’s version before it will be forwarded to the President
