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Legislative branch
535 members total who make up Congress. Congress is bicameral and made up of the House (435) and the Senate (100)
House Representative
More closely tied with constituents because they only serve 2 year terms. Representatives are apportioned based on the population of the state; they represent a district (meaning fewer people)
Senate Representative
100 representatives with 2 per state. They represent the state and serve for 6 years so they are less connected to constituents.
Coalitions (House v Senate)
House: shorter lasting, changing more often due to term lengths
Senate: Longer lasting and more durable
Enumerated powers (congress)
powers stated in the constitution (article I, section 8)
Examples of enumerated powers (congress)
Raising revenue with taxes
Coin money
Pass a federal budget
Declare war
Raise armies
Pass draft laws
Direct funding to the armed forces
Implied powers
Powers that are required to carry out enumerated powers (implied in the constitution via the elastic/necessary and proper clause)
Implied powers examples (congress)
When congress passes legislation concerning the economy, for example, when a National Bank was established.
Speaker of the House
Chosen by House members→they are apart of the majority party.
Powers:
Recognizes who can or cannot speak
Assigns representatives to committees
Majority and Minority leaders (House)
Powers:
Direct debates and guild their party members in policy making issues
Whips (house)
Powers:
Render party discipline and make sure members of the party walk in line with the party’s goals.
President of the Senate
The VPOTUS. A non-voting member who only votes to break ties.
President Pro Tempore
Most senior member of the majority party. They have the authority to act as pres. of the senate when VPOTUS is unavailable.
Senate Majority Leader
Most powerful in the senate leadership as they set legislative agenda→determines which bills reach the floor for debate.
Whips (Senate)
Same as house→make sure party members are in good standing
Why are Committees important? (Congress)
They get the most work done in Congress, drafting precise legislation and doing work that would be impossible in large group settings.
Standing Committees
Pernament Committees
Ex:
House: House Judiciary Committee
Senate: Standing Committee on the Budget
Joint Committees
members from both the House and Senate
Select Committees
Temporary committees created for specific purposes
Conference Committees
Created to reconcile differences in legislation
Who do committees serve?
The majority party because they hold the majority of seats and the committee chair is from the majority party.
House debate rules (who are they created by?)
Limited debate time
House rules Committee creates the debate rules and also decides which bills make it to the floor for debate.
What is the purpose of the Committee of the Whole?
It includes all representatives in the House, but only has a decorum of 100 members which relaxes rules for debates so amendments for bills can be considered and debated quicker
Discharge petition
Used to force a bill out of committee for debate and voting
Senate debate Rules
Unlimited debate time→filibustering (speaking for a long time to kill a bill) is allowed
Can be ended via a Cloture vote (needs 3/5 vote)
How can filibusters be outlawed in Senate (not cloture!!)
Through Unaminous Consent
What is unanimous Consent?
Senate pres. asks all senators to agree to limit debate (no more filibustering) but all must agree
If one senator objects, then filibustering is allowed. This is known as a “hold”
How does a bill become law?
Introduction: Bill is introduced in either House or Senate.
Committee Review: Bill is referred to a committee for study and revisions.
Floor Debate: Bill is debated and voted on in the originating chamber.
Other Chamber: If passed, it goes to the other chamber for the same process.
Conference Committee: If there are differences, a conference committee resolves them.
Final Approval: Both chambers vote on the reconciled bill.
Presidential Action: Bill is sent to the President, who can sign it into law, veto it, or allow it to become law without a signature.
Override: If vetoed, Congress can override the veto with a two-thirds majority in both chambers.
What is a rider?
An amendment added to a bill (usually added in the committee review step) in order to increase the bill’s odds of passing or to benefit a representative’s agenda.
What is pork barrel spending?
Pork barrel spending refers to funds set aside for specific projects within a representative's congressional district, often referred to as "bringing home the bacon." It typically aims to benefit constituents and secure political support.
What is logrolling?
Logrolling is the practice of exchanging favors, often in the form of votes, between legislators, where one member supports another's bill in exchange for support on their own legislation.
True or False: Congress determines the federal budget?
True. Congress has the constitutional power to create and approve the federal budget.
How does congress get federal funds?
Via taxation, particularly income taxes.
Mandatory Spending
Spending required by the law (also known as entitlement spending). this includes Medicaid, Medicare, and interest payments on the national debt.
Discretionary Spending
Discretionary spending refers to the portion of the budget that Congress allocates through the appropriations process. This spending can be adjusted by Congress each year and includes funding for various government programs and services that are not mandated by law, such as education, defense, and transportation.
Appropriations
Appropriations refer to the legislative grants of money to specific government departments, agencies, or programs. They are determined through the annual budgeting process and are essential for funding government operations.
What are the two ways Congress can get more money for discretionary spending?
Raising taxes
Increasing deficit spending
What is deficit spending?
The gap between the money used by the government and the money they have available.
What factors affect Congress and their voting?
Ideological divisions and differing models of representation
How can ideological divisions slow down Congress?
Negotiation adn compromise are harder when politics are more polarized.
What is divided government?
When the executive branch is headed by one party and congress is headed by another party.
Three models of representation
trustee
delegate
Politico
What is trustee representation
When a representative believes that they have been entrusted to vote with their best judgement
Delegate representation?
When a representative believes that they must vote with what their constituents want, even if it goes against their better judgment.
Politico Model
A blend of trustee adn delegate; voting depends on the situation and whether or not the constitutents have strong feelings on the issue.
What type of voting models are most common in each house?
Senate: Trustee model→ longer terms, less worried about reelection
house: delegate model→ short terms, more worried about reelection.
What is reapportionment?
The process of reallocating seats in the House of Representatives based on the population changes recorded in the census.
Redistricting
Redrawing of the congressional district boundaries.
What was the impact of Baker v Carr on Redistricting?
Baker v Carr established the principle of 'one person, one vote,' which required that electoral districts must be roughly equal in population, thus leading to more equitable representation in state legislatures. Also decided that apportionment issues were jurisdictional.
Context: districts had not been redrawn, so rurual citizens had more voting power than urban citizens.
Shaw v Reno and its impact on Redistricting.
Shaw v Reno ruled that redistricting cannot be based solely on race; districts must be designed to ensure equal voting power without racial gerrymandering.
Context: districts had been redrawn to create majority African American districts.
What is gerrymandering?
drawing districts to favor one group over another.
Executive Policy Agenda
An executive policy agenda is a list of priorities and issues that the executive branch seeks to address, outlining the administration's goals and initiatives for legislation and governance.
Formal powers of the President (definition)
Powers found in article II of the Contisution
Formal powers of the President (Example)
Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces
Chief Diplomat
Appointing federal officers
Granting pardons
Making treaties with Senate approval.
Vetoing
Veto
President refusing to sign a law so it goes back to Congress for revision where it has to go through the entire process again
How can Congress override a veto?
Through a 2/3 vote
Informal powers of the President (Definition)
Powers not explicitly listed in the Constitution but are derived from the president's role and influence
Inherent powers
Powers that are not explicitly stated in the Constitution but are essential for the President to perform their duties and uphold national interests.
What is the difference between inherent powers and informal powers?
Inherent powers are not explicitly stated in the Constitution but are essential for the President to perform their duties, while informal powers are not explicitly defined and arise from the President's role and influence in governance.
Informal powers of the President (Example)
executive orders
issuing signing statements
employing the power of persuasion to influence legislation.
Threatening to veto
Pocket veto
President not signing a law when Congress only has 10 days left in session so it dies.
Bargaining and persuasion (informal power)
The president has the nation’s attention unlike any other politician.
Executive order
Directive from the president that has the force of a law. (Directs the Bureaucracy and the military)
Signing statement
Informs the nation how the executive branch interprets the law and how they plan to enforce it.
True or false: presidential appointments are unchecked.
False, the senate must approve appointments (advice and consent power)
Who does the president appoint?
The cabinet
Ambassadors
White House staff (does not require senate approval)
Federal Court nominations
What nominations get the most scrutiny?
SCOTUS appointments. Because of life terms.
Federalist 70
Hamilton argues that single executives are necessary so decisive actions can be made while also the POTUS can be checked and monitored more easily because it is just one person.
Three main imperial presidents (and how they expanded executive power)
Andrew Jackson: went on with the Indian removal act even after SCTOUS declared it unconstitutional
Abe Lincoln: Suspended the writ of habeous Copus so he could arrest people without a trial
FDR: had 635 vetos and pushed New Deal programs through congress. Failed SCOTUS packing plan, and was elected FOUR times.
Bully Pulpit
Presidents can speak directly to the people and they will listen.
State of the Union Adresss
Speech given to Congress.
Federal Court System
US district courts (94) who have original jurisdiction→US circuit court of Appeals (12) who have appellate jurisdiction→Supreme Court with both original and appellate jurisdiction
How were each level of courts created
SCOTUS was the only court in the Constituion, and the other courts were created by Congress or the Judiciary act of 1789
Federalist 78
Hamilton argued that the judicial branch having life terms gives it the necessary independence to protect its power. He also argued for the power of judicial review.
judicial review
Created by Marbury v Madison and states that the SCOTUS can review constitutionality of other branches actions.
Precedents
A decision handed down by a court, creating a template for future decisions.
Why are precedents hard to overturn?
Stare Decisis
Stare Decisis
Let the decision stand→courts are likely to follow precedents.
Judicial Activism
the idea that the court acts to establish policy adn should consider the broader effects of a decision rather than just the constitutionality of that decision.
judicial Restraint
the idea that judges weren’t appointed to create policy, so a law should only be struck down if it was directly violating the constitution.
Why is SCOTUS’ legitimacy questioned?
They are unelected, yet can make huge controversial decisions.
How can SCOTUS be checked?
POTUS can elect new judges
POTUS can choose to not enforce it
Congress can use legislation to mitigate the effects fo SCOTUS decisions
Congress can limit SCOTUS jurisdiction.
levels of the Bureacracy
Government corporations→Commisions→agencies→Cabinent Secretaries/departments
Cabinet secretaries and departments
Most powerful out of the Bureacracy, and they are the 15 leaders of the executive departments (DoD, DoE, DoHS)
agencies
Departments are divided into agencies who work together to accomplish the goals of the department
Commissions
Regulatory groups who operate somewhat independently of the POTUS and are run by a board of individuals and created for a specific purpose.
Government Corporations
Hybrids of businesses and government agencies. Created when the government acquires businesses when they want to offer a public good but the free market is the best way to offer that service (PBS)
What does the Bureacracy do?
They enforce regulations and make more refined rules that help facilitate the execution of the law.
delegated discretionary authority
Authority given to Bureacracy, giving them the discretion on how to make the rules and carry out the law they make more refined rules that help FACILITATE the execution of the law. They DO NOT determine the law.
Compliance monitering
The Bureacracy makes the rules for certain industries and then watches them to make sure they are following the rules.
Why does the Bureacracy testify before Congress
It is a check, it makes them be held accountable and update the COngress on the work of their agency.
Iron triangle
The relationship bwteeen bureacratic agencies, congressional commmitteees and interest groups.
Bureacractic agencies can provide expert testiomy to guid policy interest gourds have policy experts and can provide funding, and congressional committees help get funding for agencies and pass legislation.
Department of Homeland Security
Protects US from terrorism and controls the nations borders
Department of Transport
Manages transportation like highways and air travel
Department of Veteran Affairs
Manages veterans hospitals and the general wlefare of veterans
Department of Education
Oversees states and their implementation of federal educational standards
Environmental Protection Agency
Works to protect the environment and human health through industrial regulations
Federal Elections Commision
Administers and enforces campaign finance laws
Securities adn Excahnge Commission
Regulates stock market and prevents fraud.
True or false: the POTUS cannot fire leaders in teh Bureacracy
False, it is hard but he can fire them
