Interest Groups and Congress 

==Why is Congress bicameral?==

  • checks and balances and separation of powers
  • influence of British government
  • avoid tyranny
  • the Great Compromise

==House Powers==

  • power of the purse (tax/spend public money)
  • impeachment of any federal official
  • voice of the people
  • strict time limit for debate
  • 435 voting representatives
  • lower house
  • 2-year terms

==Senate==

  • constitutional responsibility to advise the White House on treaties
  • confirms all presidential appointments
  • tries an impeached official
  • can filibuster
  • 100 members
  • 6-year terms

Filibuster- no speaking limit during debate; 60 vote majority; an attempt to delay or block a vote on a piece of legislation

==Powers of both the House and Senate==

  • both have to pass legislation
  • can override the president’s veto by passing the bill again with 2/3 vote
  • both elected by popular vote by their constituents

==Leadership and organization of Congress==

^^House^^

  • Speaker of the House- most powerful person; determines the schedule, who’s on committees, and is 3rd in line for the president
  • Majority Leader- keeps the party united, steers legislation through the house, and organizes plans or support
  • Minority Leader- works with the majority leader; develops criticism of the majority’s parties’ bills

^^Senate^^

  • President- the Vice President; breaks a tie

  • President Pro Tempore- presides over the Senate more often than the VP; 4th in line for the president

  • Majority Leader- keeps the party united, steers legislation through the louse, and organizes plans or support

  • Minority Leader- works with the majority leader; develops criticism of the majority’s parties’ bills

Whips- assistant party leaders that make sure their party is present for votes and support their decisions

==How a Bill Becomes a Law==

  1. introdcued
  2. assigned to a committee
  3. reported to the floor
  4. debated/ voted for
  5. goes to the opposite house
  6. debated/voted for in the second house
  7. differences between houses are reconciled
  8. sent to the president

The ^^idea for a bill^^ can come from..

  • a member of Congress
  • individual citizens
  • special interest groups
  • the president
  • corporations

However, ^^only a member of Congress^^ can @@i@@^^ntroduce^^ a bill

%%How do you know which house a bill comes from?%%

  • The way it is ^^titled^^ (S or HR)

pigeonhole - kill the bill before other house reviews it

roll call vote- voting done electronically

voice vote- voting done by voice

cloture- ends the filibuster and mandates a vote to the issue at hand (60 senators)

pocket veto- when the president chooses not to act on the bill and if Congress is not in session (the bill dies)

==Reapportionment==

Redistricting- when the number of reps changes, so does the number of districts and the boundary lines need to be redrawn

Gerrymandering- drawing congressional district lines to favor one poltical party over another

%%2 Types of Gerrymandering%%

  1. ^^packing^^- drawing lines to pack opponents into fewer districts
  2. ^^cracking^^- divding oppoments into various districts to disfuse their votes

%%Why is the Census Important?%%

  • representation in the House
  • reapportionment
  • determines future trends

%%Criticisms of Congress%%

  • polarized
  • refusing to improve major issues
  • too much arguing
  • not looking into the future enough
  • pork barrel legislation~ frivilous projects are funded in order to secure re-election
  • districts are too big/ too many constituents are out of touch

==Models of Representation==

Delegate- they follow constituents’ opinions and wants

Trustee- make their own decision based on their opinion

Politico- use both tactics to make a decision (hybrid)

Interest Groups- private organizations whose members share ^^certain views^^ and work to shape ^^public policy^^

%%Functions of Interest Groups%%

  • raise awareness
  • represent people
  • pluralism
  • pushes the government

==Shaw v. Reno==

==Baker v. Carr==