Congress Questions



Lots of frequent flier miles!!!
Very busy schedules!
Balancing work for constituents
(pork/earmarks, casework) with work to
support their party’s national agenda.
(textbook, page 249)


Casework is favors or assistance given to
individual constituents or small groups – such as
cutting through red tape or securing federal aid.
One Representative has around 700,000
constituents!!!
Constituents who are given such personal
assistance will likely become allies during reelection campaigns.
Textbook page 251 (table 7.5)

Being in office helps a person stay in office
because of a variety of benefits that go with the
position, such as:
Name recognition
 Credit for bringing money/benefits to a district
 Free mail
 Access to news media
 Easy fundraising – especially from lobbyists
 Knowledge/experience with issues
Textbook pages 250-251

1.
2.
Standing Committee: continues from one
Congress to the next, organized by topic (i.e.
Agriculture, Defense, Intelligence, Education),
bills are referred to these committees for
consideration.
Joint Committee: include members of both the
House and Senate, to conduct special studies or
expedite business between both houses. Can be a
standing committee – such as the Joint Committee
on the Library – or a select committee – such as
the current Joint Select Committee on Defecit
Reduction.


Conference Committee: A type of Joint
Committee, reconciles differences in bills
passed by the House and Senate. Made up of
members of the House and Senates committees
that first considered the bill.
Select (special) Committee: Temporary
committees crated for specific purposes – often
investigation - such as the current Select
Committee on Energy Independence and
Global Warming.
Textbook page 246

House of Representatives:



Initiates are revenue bills
Initiates impeachments
Senate
Confirms presidential appointments
 Approves treaties
 Conducts impeachment trials

From Chapter 10 packet



House: Party determines all leadership. Speaker of
the House is the leader of the majority party.
Majority party determines all committee
chairmanships, including the Rules Committee,
giving the majority party control over the House
agenda.
Senate: Party is slightly less important. The true
leader of the Senate is the senior member of the
majority party, however each individual Senator is
extremely powerful.
In both houses, members vote along party lines ¾
of the time, and there are party positions (such as
the whips) that enforce party unity.



Trustees: A representative who listens to the
opinions of constituents, then uses their own
best judgment to make final decisions.
Delegates: Vote the way their constituents
would want them to, willing to vote against
their own personal beliefs.
Politicos: Act as both trustees and/or delegates,
depending on the issue.
Textbook, page 252


Legislation: creates bills and passes laws.
Textbook page 256
Checks and Balances:
Confirms Presidential Appointments, including
Supreme Court Judges
 Oversight over administrative functions
 Can impeach the President, or Judges
 Creates federal courts

Textbook page 265

The “textbook” version
Starts in either House of Senate
 Referred to Committee
 Referred to Subcommittee
 Reported back to full Committee
 (House only) Rules Committee
 Full House/Senate debate and vote
 (if necessary) Conference Committee
 House/Senate Approval
 President – Sign, Wait 10 Days, Vetoes, Pocket Veto


Other ways to “kill” a bill:


Senate: “holds” any one Senator can ask to be
“informed” about a bill – stopping the bill from
being debated on the floor until the hold is removed.
Senate: “filibuster” allows unlimited debate – a
senator holds the floor as long as he/she keeps
talking. No limits on time or subject of speech. Does
the same thing as a hold, but in a much more public
way. Filibusters can only be interrupted by a motion
for cloture – which takes 60 Senators.

How a Bill REALLY becomes a law:


While each bill charts a slightly different course, the
basic “textbook” version is true.
HOWEVER: the “textbook” leaves out very
important actors in the process from outside of
Congress. These include:
 The President
 Lobbyists and Special Interest Groups
 “Horsetrading” – adding pork/earmarks, granting
political favors

Identify your representatives:

3 people represent YOU in Congress…
Answer the following questions about each of them,
and turn them in at the start of class on Monday:
1.
Who are they (names)
2.
What party to they belong to?
3.
Where do they represent you (House or Senate)
4.
What standing committees do they belong to?
5.
Do they hold any leadership positions (either in
the whole house or in a
committee/subcommittee)?
Due Friday for full credit!!!