APGOV Unit 2 Review
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH
the US Congress is a bicameral legislature (contains two houses; the Senate and House) under Article 1
Congress under the Articles of Confederation only had 1 house in Congress, and each state was represented equally
Senate
each state is represented equally; each state has two representatives/two votes
100 senators
more mature body
older than those in the House
must be at least 30
hold 6-year terms
less connected to the people that they represent
deal with big issues
House
each state is represented based on the population
each state is guaranteed at least one representative
federal law caps the number of representatives at 435
they decide how many representatives each state gets through a census
census: held every 10 years; measures how many people live in the US and where they live; then the House seats are reapportioned
must be at least 25
hold 2-year terms
closer to the issues that people in their districts care about
less likely to form bipartisan coalitions (an alliance of legislators that work together towards a common goal)
Congress embodies the legislative branch; they make laws
subtle foreshadowing… in order for a bill to become a law, both houses of Congress have to agree by vote on identical versions of the bill, and if they agree then it gets passed to the president for signing
senate has unlimited debate on bills, house has a limit of an hour per member on debate
Article 1, Section 8: enumerated powers of Congress; lists exactly which powers belong to Congress
power to pass a federal budget (power of the purse)
power to raise revenue (through taxation, tariffs)
power to coin money
power to declare war
power to raise and maintain the armed forces
implied powers of Congress (necessary and proper clause)
enumerated: list it out
necessary and proper clause: Congress has the power to pass any law which may be deemed necessary and proper to the carrying out of the enumerated powers
POLICYMAKING
House
Speaker of the House: chosen by the House (which means they will always be a member of the majority party), the Constitution doesn’t outline what exactly they are supposed to do but the House has written rules
has the power to say who can speak when and who can’t speak
makes committee assignments
Majority and Minority Leaders (aren’t outlined by the Constitution)
guide their party members in policy-making issues
direct debates
Majority and Minority Whips
render party discipline
Make sure party members walk in line with party goals
Senate
President of the Senate (VP of the US)
non-voting member of the Senate
votes to break a tie
President Pro Tempore
senate members choose (member of the majority party)
leads the Senate when the VP ain’t present
Majority and Minority Leaders
Majority Leader sets the legislative agenda (which bills get to be debated and which do not)
Majority Leader controls calendar assignments of bills
calendar: determines what bills and resolutions are awaiting debate and voting
committees: used by both the Senate and House to get their work done; smaller group of legislators that debate and draft legislation
4 types of committees
standing committees:
they are always there bc they deal with issues that are always present
Appropriations Committee (Senate): debates and decides on where federal money is spent
Ways and Means Committee (house): taxation bills
Joint committee
from both the House and Senate
joint committee on library, printing
they can persist over time but sometimes they can be formed in the short term
select committee
A temporary committee formed for a specific purpose
conference committee
formed if both houses can’t agree on an identical version of a bill (they sort out the differences)
Majority Leader controls calendar assignments of bills
HOUSE
limited debate (an hour)
House Rules Committee
gatekeeper for all legislation; lets or doesn’t let a bill through for debate
decides when votes take place, and assigns bills to various committees for debate and revision
committee of the whole: relaxes some of the rules for debates so it can get done quicker
discharge petition: if it gets stuck in committee, if the House gets a majority vote it can bring the bill out of the committee and to the floor for a vote
SENATE
unlimited debate time
filibuster: attempt to stall or kill a bill by talking for a long time
filibusters don’t usually happen anymore; most people just threaten one and it accomplishes the same thing
cloture rule: move to end a filibuster by getting 3/5 votes (60 senator votes) and bring that bill to a vote (not easy to do)
unanimous consent: agreement by all Senators to restrict certain privileges to get work done faster (if everyone agrees to proceed without threatening a filibuster, then they can proceed faster)
HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW
a member from either the House or the Senate can sponsor a bill
the bill is often changed as it is considered and debated
Non-Germaine riders: stuff added to the bill that has nothing to do with the subject of the bill (can benefit a certain representative’s district or state)
pork-barrel spending: funds designated for a particular representative’s district
once a bill is assigned to a committee, it can be further debated and changed
once it comes out, it goes to the floor for a vote
if the bill passes both houses, it goes to the president for signing
logrolling: I’ll vote for your bill if you vote for mine (senate)
2 types of federal spending
mandatory spending: the money they have to allocate by law (Medicare, Medicaid)
discretionary spending: anything not outlined by the law; most goes to federal employees in the government
deficit spending: as mandatory spending increases, discretionary spending SHOULD decrease, but it usually doesn’t; so they borrow it or raise taxes
CONGRESSIONAL BEHAVIOR
ideological divisions: liberals and conservatives represent two different ideologies; over the past few years, Republicans have turned more and more conservative, and Democrats have turned more and more liberal
The best way to get work done is to have the same majority party in the House and Senate
divided government: opposing parties hold a majority in both houses or when the president is in one party and Congress is in the other
lame duck president: when a guy has no chance at being president again, so Congress doesn’t have much incentive to work on his agendas with him
models of representation
delegate model: the representative believes that they should vote with the will of the people even if it goes against their own judgment (most of the time in the House)
trustee model: the representative believes that since he has the people’s faith, he should vote according to his conscience; can vote against the will of the hearing even if it’s against the will of the people
politico model: hybrid; can act like a delegate when his constituents feel strongly about an issue, but if not they can act like a trustee
Redistricting
every 10 years, based on information gathered by the census, congressional districts are redrawn to reflect the most current population number
Baker v Carr:
In Tennesse, the rural voters had more voting power than urban residents
they argued that it violated the EPA of the 14th Amendment
Supreme Court agreed
resulted in one-person-one-vote principle: redistricting had to be done so that every person’s vote was equally as powerful
gerrymandering: districts are drawn to benefit one party or group over another
partisan gerrymandering: districts are redrawn to favor one political party over another
racial gerrymandering: districts are redrawn to favor one race over another
Shaw v Reno
in NC, districts were drawn weirdly to create majority-black districts
The court ruled that drawing districts solely based on race was a dangerous practice that could, on occasion, be used to disenfranchise minority votes
the practice was deemed unconstitutional
EXECUTIVE BRANCH
policy agenda: every president has a set of policy issues that he campaigns on
The president can’t pass laws
Formal Powers: those powers explicitly given to the executive in Article II of the Constitution
power of the veto: can veto any bill that comes across the president’s desk
Congress can override the veto with a 2/3 vote of each house
the president has 10 days to sign a bill once it arrives on his desk
the president will veto a law if it is not in line with the presidential policy agenda
if Congress adjourns the bill before the 10 days and the president hasn’t signed it yet, it’s effectively vetoed
foreign policy: the president is the commander-in-chief of the US armed forces
informal powers: not mentioned in the Constitution
bargaining and persuasion
they can talk to the people to pressure legislators to pass legislation in line with their policy
they can bargain with Congress to try and get stuff past
executive order: instruction from the president that has a force of federal law, but is not actually a law
a way for the president to direct the bureaucracy, or move money around, or whatever, to accomplish their policy agenda
Lincoln’s emancipation proclamation
signing statement: an additional optional statement from the president when signing a bill that informs the nation how he interprets the law, and how he intends to executive it (often different than the Congressional intent)
executive agreement: agreement between the president and another head of state
not a formal treaty (needs Senate approval)
an agreement the president makes on his own authority
only exists when the president is in power
LIMITS ON PRESIDENTIAL POWER
beef between the president and senate
Senate has the power of advice and consent: presidential appointments have to first be approved by the senate
The president has the power to appoint ambassadors to foreign countries; the Senate just has to rubber-stamp to send him on his way
ambassador: diplomats who are assigned to foreign countries to organize the US presence there and help the relationship between the US and that nation
The president has the power to appoint white house staff: needs no approval from the Senate, the president appoints all kinds of staffers
The president has the power to appoint members of the presidential cabinet (heads of all main executive departments)
up for Senate approval
approved without much of a fight
The president has the power to make appointments to federal courts (especially the Supreme Court)
has to be appointed by the Senate
There is usually a major beef because the justices hold that position for life
Federalist 70:
Hamilton argues for a single executive (power not divided between a few presidents, which is what anti-federalists argued for because they didn’t want a monarchy; they wanted several presidents (council of executives) to prevent tyranny)
Executives must have ENERGY (quickly and decisively) - he thinks that executives with energy will create good government, and a feeble executive has a feeble execution of the government
Executives are supposed to act fast and quickly (with energy), unlike the legislative branch, which is supposed to act slowly
Unity - The more executives you have, the less energy the office has (or their ability to carry out the demands of the office), which causes division, which will interfere with the more important parts of the government, or split the community into violent factions
in the legislative branch, they are made up of many people which requires them to debate before legislation is passed; he argues it would counteract those qualities those qualities in the executive branch
he thinks that it’s less likely that one dude will be able to consolidate enough power to become tyrannical
he thinks a single person can act more decisively when required
he thinks one executive would be a protection against the expansion of power because if they mess up, the people will know exactly who to blame, and they are watched so closely
Washington believes that executive power is to be deferred to Congress
Andrew Jackson believes that they should be representative of the people and wants to carry out their will (constitutionally, Congress represents the will of the people)
Lincoln assumed executive powers to save the Union and to emancipate the enslaved, he also suspended habeas corpus (people can be arrested without a trial)
FDR: made broad use of executive powers to help Americans during the Great Depression (New Deal, veto (635), buttloads of money)
checks on the powers of the presidency: impeachment (Trump, Clinton, Johnson), 22nd Amendment (limited presidential terms to two terms)
A State of the Union Address is required from the president, and happens at the beginning of every year; makes policy recommendations to congress while the public listens
Bully pulpit: bully - excellent
JUDICIAL BRANCH
Jurisdiction: extent of the power of the court (what kind of cases that kind of court can hear)
original jurisdiction: the court can hear a case for the first time (it doesn’t have to come from an appeal)
Appellate jurisdiction: The court can only hear appeals from lower courts
Judiciary Act of 1789: established the courts under SCOTUS
Structure of the Federal courts
SCOTUS: only court established by the Constitution (Article 3)
Judges are appointed by the president, confirmed by the Senate, and hold lifetime appointments on good behavior
jurisdiction: both original and appellate
original jurisdiction in cases between two states or involving an ambassador or other public official
The majority of cases are appeals
Courts of Appeals
have appellate jurisdiction
The nation is divided into 12 regions, and each one has a court of appeals which hears appeals from the lower courts (job to make sure that the law was applied correctly in the lower court)
no judges and no jury
District Courts
94 courts scattered throughout the nation
have only original jurisdiction
cases heard by a judge and a jury
Each state has at least one
Judicial Review: The court has the power to rule on the constitutionality of laws
Federalist 78:
The judicial branch’s independence protects its power
The lifetime appointments of its judges achieved independence; it insulated them from political pressures so they could only focus on constitutional interpretation of laws (they don’t have the fear of being reelected)
The court should be able to review the laws made by the legislature and determine if they align with the constitution or not, and if not, strike them down
Anti-Federalists were against the lifetime appointments of judges (they are not elected, they are appointed)
They think if they are insulated from the people, they are more likely to slide into tyranny
The judicial branch has the power to establish national policy through judicial review
Whenever the court rules on the case, it creates a precedent
precedent: the decision the court makes will act as a template for future decisions
stare decisis: let the decision stand (Latin)
Precedents can be overturned, but it is usually in a monumental case
usually depends on whether the majority of justices are liberal or conservative
Judicial activism: When courts establish policy, they consider the broad effects that their decision will have on society (they look past the Constitution and instead rule on the majority opinion of society) (not liberal or conservative)
Judicial restraint: they believe judges are not appointed to make policy (job of the legislator); they think a law should be struck down not if it affects society, but if it violates the actual written word of the Constitution (huge emphasis on precedents and stare decisis) (can violate civil rights)
Checking the Judicial Branch
Congress can pass laws that modify the impact of prior decisions
Congress can pass amendments that can change what the court ruled
Congress can pass legislation that impacts the court’s jurisdiction (they can restrict their appellate jurisdiction by deciding which kind of cases they can hear)
The president can check them by appointment (they can appoint justices who will make different decisions once the same issue arises)
The president can not enforce the decision that was handed down
FEDERAL BUREAUCRACY
consists of the millions of people who are employed to carry out the responsibilities of the federal government
falls under the authority of the executive branch (they help to enforce laws)
cabinet departments
There are 15 departments
department of defense, education, etc.
The president’s cabinets are the heads of cabinet departments
Departments are divided into agencies
Agencies work together to accomplish the goals of the department
Independent regulatory commissions: They operate apart from the president’s authority, but are still part of the executive branch
They are there to regulate some aspect of society
government corporation
a hybrid between a government agency and a private business
created when there are services the government wants to offer to the public, but the free market is the best way to do it
postal services
They write and enforce regulations
They issue fines for non-compliance
Compliance monitoring: when they fine people or businesses for not following their rules
They interact with Congress
Bureaucratic interest groups work closely with congressional committees and interest groups (iron triangle relationship)
work together and rely on one another’s strengths in order to make policies
Bureaucrats offer expertise to congressional committees, and Congress approves funding for their departments
Committee members like interest groups because they have policy experts who inform them of the implications of certain policies
Interest groups can provide funding for congressional races (elections), and if they help them get elected, then they will provide funding for a bureaucratic agency that will address the issues that the interest group focuses on
The relationship isn’t as strong because there are too many groups now and also because of issue networks (they work to weaken iron triangles)
issue networks: folks who disagree about a lot of things come together around a very specific issue and seek to effect change
How people get jobs in the bureaucracy
Andrew Jackson’s days: the spoils system
When the president won the election, he had hundreds of bureaucratic jobs to fill, and he would give them to people who were not necessarily qualified, but rather those who supported him and helped him get elected
he would hear lots of applicants and would have to turn some away; one of Garfield’s turnaways happened to be his assassin after he turned him away from a job
after Garfield’s assassination: civil service reform —> Pendleton Civil Service Act of 1883
Now jobs went to people who were actually qualified for them, rather than people who just supported the candidate
Delegated discretionary authority: Bureaucratic agencies have no constitutional power, so their power is delegated to them to enforce the law
The bureaucracy has rule-making authority: they are the ones who make the specific rules for how the rule will be carried out
Different departments in the bureaucracy
department of homeland security
protects Americans from terrorism and maintains and controls borders (they decide which immigrants are allowed in, and borders and stuff like that)
department of transportation
regulates highways and air travel
how many hours a flight attendant can work, etc.
department of veteran affairs
manages the general welfare of our veterans
creation of veteran hospitals, education, and home loans that go to veterans
department of education
manages states and their implementation of federal educational standards
how schools receive grants, and their qualifications they need to receive them
Environmental Protection Agencies
protects the environment and human health through environmental regulations
Federal Election Commission
administers and enforces campaign finance laws
how someone becomes a political candidate, and how they raise money
securities and exchange commission
regulates the stock market and prevents fraud
Congress makes sure that bureaucratic agencies implement the laws as Congress intended
How Congress (legislative branch) checks the bureaucracy
committee-hearing: Congress has committees that correspond with different agencies and will call directors of those agencies to update them on their progress, etc.
power of the purse: Congress is responsible for funding the bureaucratic agencies, and they cannot spend money until they receive authorization to spend from Congress
If they aren’t executing the law the way that Congress thinks is appropriate, they can decrease the funding
How the president (executive branch) checks the bureaucracy
The bureaucracy falls under the executive branch
If the bureaucracy isn’t cooperating with the president’s policy agenda, he can use formal and informal powers to change that
formal powers: Appointments: if the bureaucracy isn’t behaving the way the president likes, he can appoint new heads of the agencies
They can’t fire regulatory commission heads without a good reason, but they can fire them and hire other bureaucratic positions at will
informal powers: executive order
The biggest slowdown in the bureaucracy is compliance monitoring
compliance monitoring:
How the judicial branch checks the bureaucracy
judicial review