Congress: America's Commitment to Representative Government and Federalism

1. Unit IVLessons 21 & 22 Congress…the first branch of government!

2. Learning Goal I will explain basic differences between Congress and the British Parliament and how Congress reflects America's commitment to representative government and federalism, identify several constitutional sources of congressional power, & identify some of the challenges that members of Congress face in representing and serving their constituents

3. The British Parliament & Congress • Parliament • Representation • Lords – Inherited seats; titles of nobility; Labor Movement abolished heredity rights; Law, clergy, business, or sciences; 1200 members; Final court of appeal for civil cases • Commons – Elected members; represents a geographic region; Required to attend regularly to the full House and its committees

4. Parliament (continued) • Separation of Powers • Close link between the executive & legislative functions; Citizens vote for the platform of a party; Victorious party claims mandate to govern; chooses the Prime Minister; Members of Parl. Hold other offices; Commons more powerful • Term Limits? • Elections do not occur on a fixed schedule but they must occur every 5 years; Prime Minister can call for earlier elections; can issue votes of no confidence • Federalism • Power is given to the local govts by the federal govt

5. Congress • Representation • Senate – 100 members – 2 from each state • Representatives – 435 Members, reps are set up in congressional districts

6. Congress • Separation of Power • One of three coequal branches of govt; Congress makes laws; plays limited role in president’s cabinet & federal courts; House & Senate are equally powerful • Term Limits? • Specified times for elections in US Constitution; representatives face elections every 2 years; Senators face elections every 6 years on staggered intervals (1/3rd of the Senate up for election at any time) • Federalism • States have considerable legislative control.

7. Congress’ Power • Article I, Section 8 • Limits lawmaking powers • 17 specific powers & a generalized 18th Power (“Necessary & Proper” Clause) • Article I, Section 9 • Congress cannot legislate the following • Taxingimports from any state • Granting titles of nobility • Draw money from the Treasury (Needs an appropriations bill) • Bill of Rights • 1st Amendment – Congress shallmakenolaw establishing a national religion or abridging the freedom of speech or press • 8th Amendment – Congress cannot levy excessivefines or imposecruel or unusual punishment on convicted criminals

8. Far – Reaching Powers • Enumerated – Powers specificallylisted in the Constitution • Article II – Senate must advise & give consent when President makes treaties, appoints ambassadors, publicministers, judges of the Supreme Court, and other publicofficials • Article III – Complete control over the appellatejurisdiction of the Supreme Court and authority to createlowercourts • Article IV – Admit newstates and adopt all rules & regulations respecting USterritories & properties • Article V – Congress can propose constitutional amendments

9. Implied – Powers that are suggested by the Constitution • Tested under McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) • Supreme Court stated that the N&P clause gives Congress the power to coin and borrowmoney which implied the power to create nationalbank; States cannottax the national bank • Most laws are written in generalterms – require administrative agencies to formulate rules that more specifically define the laws. • Congress created hundreds of agencies – InternalRevenueService, the SocialSecurityAdministration • Most agencies created are on the executivebranch • The most important implied power – CongressionalOversight • Monitors & supervises the operations of the agencies, question the heads of budgets & expenditures, and will adjustauthorizinglegislation and appropriation of funds

10. Enforcement • The first amendment to give Congress this power was the 13th Amendment • Expansion of enforcement - 14th, 15th, 19, 23rd, 24th, & 26th Amendments • Further expansion of power came during the 1960s & 1970s to enact civilrights, votingrights, and employmentlaws • Civil Rights Act of 1964 was enforced through the CommerceClause • Heart of Atlanta Motel v. US(1964) Motels cannot discriminate against African Americans because it served mostly interstate travelers • Powers have shifted from states to national government • Inherent • Powers so ingrained that they do not have to be stated • Power to investigate

11. Serving & Communicating with the People & the States • Both the people & the States have a voice in Congress • There are noconstitutionallimits on how many terms a member of Congress may serve • Article I, Section 2 – number of representatives should not exceed one for every 30,000 and the each State should have one representative • At Large representatives: all qualified voters were eligible to vote for all candidates to fill that state’s allotment of representatives • SingleMember Districts: each state with a population large enough to entitle it to more than one representative in the House is divided into as many legislative districts as the state has representatives • States redraw lines after every census; groups who are dissatisfied with the lines can challenge them in court; judges have a say in the districting

12. Delegate theory of Representation – mirror the constituents views • Trustee theory of Representation – gain the trust of the constituents and exercise their own best interest • Congress faces a difficulttask representing their constituents and finding commonground with legislators from other states and regions • Communication and action are essential characteristics for elected officials

13. Three basic strategies for maintaining positive connections with their constituents • Communications • Letters, newsletters, mediaappearances, websites, blogs, town hall meetings, personalappearances • Casework • Every member of Congress employsstaff members in DC & local offices • Help solve problems that the constituents encountered with the national government • Request favors ranging from tours of government offices to setting up meetings with officials • Serving constituents’ interests and concerns • Introduce legislation and sponsor amendments to legislation that serve the constituents’interests

14. Gerrymandering Controversies • No matter where the lines are drawn, some groups and interests are benefited while others are harmed • After WWI, there was a huge population shift from farms to the cities • Wesberry v. Sanders(1964) – the SC ruled “one person, one vote”; Congressional districts must be drawn on the basis of population after every census; population in each district must be mathematically equal to other districts in the state • Gerrymandering remains in the American political life • Article I, Section 3 – every state should have two senators no matter how large its population • 1913 – Congress fixed the size of the House of Representatives at 435 members • Total Congressional members is at 535 – 100 Senators and 435 Representatives • There are five other elected representatives – resident commissioner for PuertoRico and four delegates in DC, American Samoa, Guam, and the VirginIslands

15. Committees in Congress • Constitution sayslittle about the House & Senate and how it should function • FirstCongress (1789 – 1791) set a precedent that is followed to this day • Committees • Both have standingcommittees – these are permanent committees • They have jurisdictions over particular subjects and appoint subcommittees to examineproposals within specific areas • Hearings may be held to receive testimony from individuals or groups • Oversight hearings may be held to testify how laws enacted by Congress are being followed by administrative agencies • Select committees – specific assignments or task for a limited amount of time • JamesMadison’s proposal for a Bill of Rights, Senate Foreign Relations Committee

16. Rules • House rules specifysize of committees, termlimits for chairperson & their jurisdictions • Govern the form and structure of debates on the floor of the House • Rules that specify committeeprocedures – order in which members ask witnesses questions, proposals are amended, and the form in which bills are reported from committee • Senate operates with rules but they are treated more informally • Senate is more independent, can use the filibuster, the cloture rule, and amendbills on the floor

17. Leadership in the House & Senate • Leadership in the House takes three forms • Strong institutional Speaker • One of the mostpowerful political figures in the country • Wields tight control over the organization and the legislative agenda • Control committee appointments and chair the RulesCommittee • Decentralizedcommitteeleadership • Power of the Speaker has been given to committeechairpersons • Committee chairs are selected through seniority • Powerful committee chairs compete with one another to control the legislative agenda • Political Party control • Speaker represents the majorityparty more than the institution as a whole • Newt Gingrich’s “Contract with America” – agenda to reform many aspects of American national government; committee chairs were appointed based on party loyalty rather than seniority • Leadership in the Senate • VicePresident is the President of the Senate • Notconsidered to be a member of the Senate • Only real power is to cast tie-breaking votes • Leadership is not as formal due to tradition of individual independence in that chamber

18. Supporting Legislation • Members of Congress initiate legislation based on campaignpromises to constituents, response to problems or crises, or their own analysis of what laws are needed • CongressionalResearchService frequently assists Congress by providing information and analyzing issues • CongressionalBudgetOffice provides the budget for a bill and its projected costs

19. Information and requests for legislation come from the following sources: • ExecutiveBranch • Article II, Section 3 requires the president to give Congress information on the State of the Union (SOTU) • The SOTU outlines the president’s legislative agenda • Proposals from the Executive branch are aimed at improving the functions of the departments or agencies that Congress has created • Constituents • Make telephonecalls, respond to public opinion polls, send faxes and emails, write personal letters, participate in letter – writingcampaigns, and use blogs to inform their elected representatives and persuade them for new legislation • Interest Groups • Influencing Congress & legislation through lobbying • Businesses, civic organizations, professional associations, & nongovernmental organizations • Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1996 requires lobbyists to disclose the interests they represent, the issues in which they are interested, and how much money they spend annually • Lobbying is protected under the First Amendment – speak, assemble, and petition • Effective lobbyists must be well-informed, knowledgeable, organized, and cooperative

20. Power to Investigate • Congress has conducted hundreds of investigations since 1792 • Why? • Findfacts on which to base legislation • Discover or influence public opinion • Oversee administrative agencies • Probe into questionable activities of public officials • Securing partisan political gain • Only began making full use of its inherent power to investigate in the 20thcentury • Labor practices in the 1930s resulted in federal labor legislation • The explosion of the Challengerspace shuttle in 1986 • The terrorist attacks on the US in 2001

21. Power to investigate as part of the power to impeach • House may initiate impeachment proceedings through a resolution • Committee determines the charges • If there are grounds for impeachment, it reports “articles of impeachment” to full House for debate • If majority of those present and agree on impeachment, it goes to the Senate for trial • Conviction requires a 2/3rds majority vote

22. House does not often use the impeachment power • 17 national officers have been impeached • Presidents AndrewJohnson & BillClinton(both acquitted) • Secretary of War WilliamBelknap (acquitted after resignation) • Senator WilliamBlount (Charges dismissed after expulsion from Senate) • 13 federal judges (Seven guilty, four acquitted, two resigned), including Supreme Court Justice SamuelChase (acquitted) • The threat of impeachment can be powerful • RichardNixonresigned from the presidency in 1974 • Supreme Court Justice AbeFortas in 1969

23. How a Bill becomes a Law • Enacting a law is one of the mostcomplicated processes in American politics • One in ten survives and rarely without significant changes • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxT7QjlvDqM

24. Flow Chart