Chapter 12 Congress

I. The Representatives and Senators

A. The Job
1. Salary of $145,100 with retirement benefits

2. Office space in D.C. and at home and staff to fill it.

3. Travel allowances and franking privileges.

4. But, there’s often 10 to 14 hour days, lots of time away

from the family, and lots of pressure from different people to
“do the right thing.”

II. Congressional Elections

A. Who Wins Elections?
1. Incumbent: Those already holding office.

2. Congressional Elections

B. The Advantages of Incumbents

1. Advertising:

a) The goal is to be visible to your voters.

b) Frequent trips home & newsletters are used.

2. Credit Claiming:

a) Service to individuals in their district.

b) Casework: specifically helping constituents get

what they think they have a right to.

c) Pork Barrel: federal projects, grants, etc. made

available in a congressional district or state.

C. The Advantages of Incumbents

1. Position Taking:
 a) Portray themselves as hard working, dedicated
individuals.

b) Occasionally take a partisan stand on an issue.

2. Weak Opponents:

a) Most opponents are inexperienced in politics.

b) Most opponents are unorganized and underfunded.

3. Campaign Spending:

a) Challengers need to raise large sums to defeat an

incumbent.

b) PACs give most of their money to incumbents.

c) Does PAC money “buy” votes in Congress?

D. The Role of Party Identification

1. Most members represent the majority party in their
district.

E. Defeating Incumbents
1. Some incumbents face problems after a scandal or other
complication in office.

2. They may face redistricting.

3. They may face massive voter retaliation.

F. Open Seats
1. Greater likelihood of competition.

G. Stability and Change

1. Incumbents winning provides stability in Congress.

2. But, it makes it more difficult to change Congress

through elections.

3. Are term limits an answer?

III. How Congress is Organized to Make Policy
A. American Bicameralism
1. Bicameral: Legislature divided into two houses.

B. The House
1. 435 members, 2 year terms of office.

2. Initiates all revenue bills, more influential on budget.

3. House Rules Committee

4. Limited debates.

C. The Senate
1. 100 members, 6 year terms of office.

2. Gives “advice & consent”, more influential on foreign

affairs.

3. Unlimited debates. (filibuster)

D. The Committees and Subcommittees

1. Four types of committees:

a) Standing committees: subject matter committees

handle different policy areas.

b) Joint committees: few policy areas- made up of

House & Senate members.

c) Conference committees: resolve differences in

House and Senate bills.

d) Select committees: created for a specific purpose.

2. The Committees at Work: Legislation and Oversight

 a) Committees work on the 11,000 bills every year.

b) Some hold hearings and “mark up” meetings.

c) Oversight involves hearings and other methods of

checking the actions of the executive branch.

d) As the size of government grows, oversight grows

too.

3. Getting on a Committee

a) Members want committee assignments that will

help them get reelected and gain influence.

b) New members express their committee preferences

to the party leaders.

c) Support of the party is important in getting on the

right committee.

d) Parties try to grant committee preferences.

4. Getting Ahead on the Committee: Chairs and the

Seniority System.

a) The chair is the most important position for

controlling legislation.

b) Chairs were once chosen strictly by the seniority

system.

c) Now seniority is a general rule, and members may

choose the chair of their committee.

E. Caucuses: The Informal Organization of Congress

1. Caucus: A group of members of Congress sharing some
interest or characteristic.

2. Caucuses pressure for committee meetings and hearings

and for votes on bills.

3. Caucuses can be more effective than lobbyists.

F. Congressional Staff
1. Personal staff: Work for the member. Mainly providing
constituent service, but help with legislation too.

2. Committee staff: organize hearings, research & write

legislation, target of lobbyists.

3. Staff Agencies: CRS, GAO, CBO provide specific

information to Congress.
IV. The Congressional Process
A. Legislation:
1. Bill: A proposed law.

2. Anyone can draft a bill, but only members of Congress

can introduce them.

3. More rules in the House than in the Senate.

4. Party leaders play a vital role in steering bills through

both houses, but less in the Senate.

5. Countless influences on the legislative process.

B. How a Bill Becomes a Law (Figure 12.2)

C. Presidents and Congress: Partners and Protagonists
1. Presidents have many resources to influence Congress
(often called the “Chief Legislator”).

2. In order to “win” in Congress, the president must win

several battles in each house.

3. Presidential leadership of Congress is at the margins and

is most effective as a facilitator.

D. Party, Constituency, and Ideology

1. Party Influence: Party leaders cannot force party
members to vote a particular way, but many do vote along
party lines.

2. Constituency versus Ideology: Most constituents are

uninformed about their member. It is difficult for constituents
to influence their member, but on controversial issues
members can not ignore constituents.

E. Lobbyists and Interest Groups

1. There are several thousand lobbyists trying to influence
Congress - the bigger the issue, the more lobbyists will be
working on it.

2. Lobbyists can be ignored, shunned and even regulated

by Congress.

3. Ultimately, it is a combination of lobbyists and others

that influence members of Congress.

V. Understanding Congress
A. Congress and Democracy
 1. Leadership and committee assignments are not
representative.

2. Congress does try to respond to what the people want,

but some argue it could do a better job.

3. Members of Congress are responsive to the people, if the

people make clear what they want.

4. Understanding Congress

B. Reforming Congress
1. Democratization - more power was spread around, and
more subcommittees and caucuses were created. Some of this
has been changed in recent years

2. Representation versus Effectiveness - some argue that

Congress has too much to do, poorly organized, too responsive
to interests, and/or too representative. Yet, it has been
effective.

C. Congress and the Scope of Government

1. The more policies Congress works on, the more ways
they can serve their constituencies.

2. The more programs that get created, the bigger

government gets.

3. Everybody wants government programs cut, just not

their programs.