PS 201 Chapter 6

Question 1

Structure of Congress
a. Bicameral

Answer 1

two-chamber legislature

Question 2

Structure of congress
b. senate

Answer 2

senators elected from states (originally chosen by state legislatures), 2 senators per state, term of office six years.

Question 3

structure of congress
c. house

Answer 3

representatives elected directly by the people

Question 4

Powers of Congress
a. Enumerated powers

Answer 4

Article I, Section 8 (taxing power, spending power etc.)

Question 5

House Districts

Answer 5

Originally, the number of House districts grew with the increase in national population. The size of the House was set at 435 members in 1929. Seats are reapportioned among the states after every decennial census. Seven states have only one U.S. Representative. States are responsible for determining how their congressional districts will be drawn.

Question 5

Electoral System for Congress

Answer 5

Separate selection processes for the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the Presidency. Members of the House (and now, senators) are elected by plurality vote. The overwhelming majority of party nominees are now chosen by primary elections.
Congress is directly elected by the people of their state
The electors almost always vote with the popular vote of their state.

Question 5

Redistricting

Answer 5

State legislatures (every southern state except VA)
Independent commissions (e.g. AZ, CO, ID, MI, etc.)
Political commission (NJ).
Responsibility for drawing new district lines (redistricting):
Southern governors can veto new redistricting plans
Except in NC

Question 5

Power of congress
b. implied powers

Answer 5

Necessary and proper clause
Also in Article 1, Section 8 (final clause)

Question 6

Redistricting: solutions to gerrymandering

Answer 6

Establishing unbiased independent redistricting commissions (IRC) to draw new district lines rather than self-interested politicians
-Challenging gerrymandering in the courts
-Advocating for federal legislation to ban gerrymandering on the national level

Question 7

Representation in the Senate

Answer 7

States have equal representation; constituents, thus, do not receive equal representation.
Senators represent constituencies that vary greatly in population. (Population-wise, Wake County is about twice the size of Wyoming.)
California’s Senators represent a state with nearly 40 million inhabitants. The average House member represents more people (750,000) than live in Wyoming.
Over half of the population of the U.S. lives in just 9 states.

Question 8

Goals of the members of congress: Policy

Answer 8

Members want to make good public policy.

Question 9

Goals of the members of congress: Power

Answer 9

Members want to gain power within the institution. The most ambitious seek to gain a following for a presidential run.

Question 10

Goals of the members of congress: reelection

Answer 10

Members want to win reelection

Question 11

Party centered vs. Candidate centered eras

Answer 11

In periods where party ties are very strong—much of the 19th and early 20th century and current era—electoral outcomes revolved around partisan dynamics. In periods where party ties were relatively weak—post WWII to the 1990s—electoral outcomes were driven by the qualities (seniority, name recognition, etc.) of individual candidates.

Question 12

Types of Representation

Answer 12

-Look like or be like you? (Descriptive representation)
-Act like you or make decisions like you would? (Delegate representation)
-Act in your interest? (Trustee representation)
These types of representation are obviously not mutually exclusive; but there are times when they will be in conflict.

Question 13

Congress has to overcome some obstacles (you should be able to describe them and
provide ideas for how congress deals with them)
a. Limited information

Answer 13

Limited information: Solving complex policy problems requires quality information and substantial expertise.

Question 14

Congress has to overcome some obstacles (you should be able to describe them and
provide ideas for how congress deals with them)
b. coordination issues

Answer 14

Coordination issues: As the size of the institution and the scope and complexity of the problems which it must address grow, coordination becomes increasingly difficult. In Congress, coordination problems are often addressed through the delegation of responsibility to some smaller group (a committee or subcommittee) or individual (party leader)

Question 15

Congress has to overcome some obstacles (you should be able to describe them and
provide ideas for how congress deals with them)
c. conflicts

Answer 15

Conflicts: Successful law making requires the resolution of conflict and, often, compromise. Congressional customs, rules, and procedures have developed in ways that tend to mitigate or deflect conflict.

Question 16

Congress has to overcome some obstacles (you should be able to describe them and
provide ideas for how congress deals with them)
d. free-riding and collective action problems

Answer 16

Free- Riding and collective action problems: Worried about their own reelections, members often have incentives to pursue individual goals at the expense of broader public goals (i.e. making good public policy). Parties can punish members who free ride, but often they don’t.

Question 17

Congress has to overcome some obstacles (you should be able to describe them and
provide ideas for how congress deals with them)
e. transaction costs

Answer 17

Transaction costs: Large and complex institutions (like Congress) require a wide array of frequent transactions. Over time, legislative rules and traditions have developed which mitigate transaction costs.

Question 18

Congress has to overcome some obstacles (you should be able to describe them and
provide ideas for how congress deals with them)
f. time pressures

Answer 18

Time pressures: Members of Congress are extremely busy. They have an extraordinary number of official responsibilities, and most are constantly running for reelection.

Question 19

Partisan Organization

Answer 19

To solve varied legislative problems, partisan and substantive organizational schemes have developed over time in Congress

Question 20

Substantive organization

Answer 20

To solve varied legislative problems, partisan and substantive organizational schemes have developed over time in Congress

Question 21

Party organization in the House

Answer 21

The majority party in the House is led by the Speaker. The Speaker’s primary assistants are the majority leader and the majority whip. The minority party in the House is structured similarly, though there is no Speaker. The minority party leader is the head of the party. Party whips facilitate the solution of coordination problems.

Question 22

Party organization in the Senate

Answer 22

Senators do not select their presiding officer. According to the Constitution, the Vice President is the presiding officer of the Senate. Party leadership in the Senate has tended to be less formal and more collegial than party leadership in the House. The minority party plays a more significant role in policymaking in the Senate than in the House.

Question 23

Caucuses

Answer 23

Congress also joins caucuses. Caucuses form to support a variety of different member and constituent interests. Some caucuses have strong ideological identities; others do not. In an environment where coalition-building is a key component of legislative success, the alliances cultivated through caucus activities are invaluable.

Question 24

Committees (types and purposes)

Answer 24

Standing committees: The backbone of the congressional committee system. Permanent committees with consistent jurisdictions and stable memberships. Select/Special committees; Normally created to address a specific problem or issue in a timely fashion. While we would normally think of special and select committees as temporary, some have lasted for many years. Joint committees: Oversee executive agencies. Not responsible for reporting out legislation. Joint committees are those which have members from the House and the Senate.

Question 25

Congressional Staff

Answer 25

Staff responsibilities range from drafting legislation to local constituency service. Legislators have staff. Members’ staff are allocated among the Washington and district/state offices. Committees and subcommittees also have staff to support their activities.

Question 26

Process of how a bill becomes a law