Unit 4 Institutions: Legislative, Executive, Bureaucracy, and Judicial Flashcards
Adjournment
End of a term; date must be agreed upon by both houses
HoR: Terms of office
Two years (entire body up for reelection every two years)
=>more “responsive” and potentially radical body
More formal than senate bc more members
Term limits ruled unconstitutional
HoR: Qualifications
25 years of age
7 years citizenship
Residency in state
Senate: Size
100 members
=>More informal
Senate: Terms
6 years (1/3 up for reelection every 2 years) =>Not as "responsive" compared to the house
Senate: Qualifications
- 30 years of age
- Citizenship for 9 years
- State residency
27th amendment
Members of congress set own salaries
27 prevents salary raises taking effect until the following term
Perks of congressmen (8)
- Setting your own salary (2014 salaries: $174,000)
- Staff
- Travel allowance
- Office space
- Franking privilege
- Insurance
- Legislative immunity
- Cannot be arrested or detained while going to or from a session of congress
Franking privilege
Allows members of congress to transmit mail under their signature w/out postage
What group is over-represented in congress
White, male, Protestant, upper middle class lawyers in 50s
Powers of congress (3)
- Expressed
- Institutional
- Implied
Powers denied to congress (3)
- Passing ex post facto laws
- Passing bills of attainder
- Suspending writ of habeas corpus (except in case of rebellions or invasions)
Expressed powers (13)
Article 1: Section 8
- Levy taxes
- Borrow money
- Regulate foreign, interstate, Indian commerce
- Naturalization and bankruptcy laws
- Coin money
- Establish weights and measures
- Punish counterfeiters
- Establish post offices
- Grant copyrights and patents
- Create courts inferior to Supreme Court
- Define and punish piracy
- Declare war
- Raise and support an army and navy
Institutional powers (6)
Those that relate to system of checks and balances
- Senate ratifies treaties with 2/3 vote
- Senate approves presidential appointments with a majority vote
- House votes for impeachment (needs majority) senate tries impeachment cases (needs 2/3)
- House elects president if no electoral majority. Senate elects V.P.
- Constitutional amendment if 2/3 vote both houses
- Both can seat, unseat, and punish own members
Implied powers
Based upon elastic clause (necessary and proper clause)
Ex post facto laws
Law that retroactively changes the legal consequences of actions that were committed
Bill of attainder
Declares a person or group guilty without trial
Speaker of the house (7)
- Presides over house
- Appoints select and conference committees.
- Appoints rules committee members and its chairman
- Assigns bill to committees
- Second in line for presidency after V.P.
- Informal powers (using the media)
- Speaker is picked by entire house
Majority leader/minority leader (2)
- Partisans positions chosen by party members
2. Floor leaders and legislative strategists
Majority whip/minority whip (4)
- Assistant floor leaders
- Inform party leaders on “mood” of house
- Keep nose count on important votes
- Persuade party members to vote with party
Vice President of the U.S. (4)
- President of senate
- Presides over senate
- Votes in case of ties
- Ceremonial job
President pro tempore (3)
- Ceremonial job- most senior member from majority party
- Presides in absence of V.P.
- Third in line of presidency after speaker
Majority leader (senate) (6)
- True leader in Senate
- Recognized first for all debates
- True leader of majority party
- Influences committee assignments of senators
- Influences senate agenda along with minority leader
- Informal powers (using the media)
Term of Congress
2 years
Jan. 2 or 3 of every odd numbered year
Intentions of Founders (for Congress) (5)
- Fear of excessive power in single institution
- Fear of mob rule
- Concern about manner of representation
- All of these concerns were addressed with the bicameral legislature
- The founders believed Congress would be the dominant branch of government
Centralization (def.) (6)
allows Congress to act quickly and decisively, but at the expense of individual members and the constituents whom they represent
requires
1. strong central leadership with authority over rank and file membership
2. Restrictions on debate
3. Few opportunities for stalling tactics
4. Minimal committee interference
5. A streamlined legislative process
6. Opportunity to conduct business with minimal public scrutiny
Decentralization (def.) (6)
protects and enhances the interests of interests of individual members and their constituents, but prevents Congress from acting quickly and decisively. It requires
- Weak central leadership
- Few restrictions on debate
- Numerous opportunities for stalling tactics
- Powerful committee influence
- Complicated legislative process
- Close public scrutiny
Advantages of incumbency (7)
- Franking privilege
- Staffers
- Patronage
- Name Recognition
- Casework
- Money, esp. from PACs
- Redistricting
Malapportionment
districts within a state have unequal sizes
Redistricting requirements (3)
- Districts must be as near equal in population as possible
- District lines must be contiguous (sharing a common border)
- Racial gerrymandering is prohibited
Simple Resolution
passed by either the House or the Senate
established the rules of operation
no presidential signature
Concurrent Resolution
settle housekeeping and procedural matters that affect both houses
Joint Resolution
essentially a bill requiring the president’s signature unless it is a Constitutional amendment
Committee actions (5)
Bill spends most of its time in committee
- Pass (reported out)
- Kill
- Amend (“markup session”) or to revise the bill
- Pigeonhole: most frequent fate of bill (ignored)
- Sent to subcommittee
Pigeonhole
most frequent fate of bill (ignored)
Discharge petition
requires 218 signatures and a house vote
minority party can use a discharge petition when a bill is bottled up in committee.
rarely successful
Rules Committee: “Traffic cop” function
sets legislative calendar
Rules Committee
Once out of committee the bill is placed on the calendar and then sent this Committee
Committee of the Whole
used by House to act more informally, more quickly , and with less of a quorum (only 100)
purpose: to amend and debate. Once the bill is approved by the Committee it goes back to the house
Bureaucracy
the agencies, departments, commissions, etc. within the executive branch
Executive Office of the President (4)
White House Office, OMB, CEA, NSC
- the immediate staff of the current President of the United States and multiple levels of support staff reporting to the President.
- The size of the White House staff has increased dramatically since 1939, and has grown to include an array of policy experts in various fields.
Independent Agencies
organized much like Cabinet departments, but lack Cabinet
ex. NASA, CIA, FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) and SBA (Small Business Administration)
Independent regulatory commissions
- created by Congress to regulate important aspects of the nation’s economy
- decisions of these are beyond presidential control, though commissioners are appointed by the president with senate consent.
Independent regulatory commissioners
- serve long terms (5-14 years)
- terms are staggered
- can be fired by the President only for causes that Congress has specified
- quasi-legislative power: can make rules and regulations that have the force of law
- quasi-judicial power: can settle disputes in their fields
Government corporations
created by Congress to carry out various business operations
Pendleton Act (1881)
created a civil service in which an exam based merit system would be used to fill government jobs
Civil service system
- a system of hiring and promotion based on the merit principle and the desire to create a nonpartisan government service
- > 90% of federal employees are civil service workers
- the rest are filled by presidential appointment. Known as political appointments
Discretionary authority
-agencies have the power to choose various courses of action when Congress writes broadly worded laws that allow for bureaucratic interpretation
Reasons for growth of the bureaucracy (5)
- National growth; need for agencies to cope with additional population
- Need for agencies to manage new technologies
- International crises increase power for the defense department
