(Unit 2)Congressional and Presidential Powers

Interactions Among Branches

• Differences between the House and Senate:
  • District size.
  • Chamber size.
  • Enumerated powers.
  • The framers aimed to satisfy states with large and small populations.
  • The structure and operations of Congress reflect the republican idea of self-government through representatives.
• House of Representatives:
  • Lower chamber of Congress.
  • 435 representatives.
  • Members serve 2-year terms.
• Senate:
  • Upper chamber.
  • 100 representatives (2 per state).
  • Senators serve 6-year terms, with 1/3 running for re-election every 2 years.
• Constituents: Voters in a legislative district.
• Coalition: Alliance of political groups pursuing a common goal.

Similarities and Differences Between the House and Senate

• House members are more responsive to constituents' concerns due to shorter terms.
• Debate procedures are less formal in the Senate because of its smaller size.
• The House is less likely to form bipartisan coalitions due to representatives' sensitivity to constituent concerns.
• Different enumerated and implied powers exist between the chambers.

Senate

• Representation: 2 per state.
• Procedures: Less formal rules.
• Filibuster: Yes.
• Holds: Yes.
• Unanimous consent agreements: Yes.
• Rules Committee: No.

House of Representatives

• Representation: Based on population.
• Procedures: More formal rules.
• Filibuster: No.
• Holds: No.
• Unanimous consent agreements: No.
• Rules Committee: Yes.
• Revenue bills originate in the House due to the responsiveness of representatives.
• Impeachment trials are a power unique to the Senate, giving states equal power over the presidency.

Congressional Powers

Senate

• Ratifies treaties.
• Confirms cabinet and court nominees.
• Initiates impeachment trials.

House of Representatives

• Initiates revenue bills.
• More powerful in some aspects due to size and rules.

Congressional Procedures and Tactics

• Cloture: A Senate procedure where 60 senators can vote to limit debate and end a filibuster.
• Discharge Petition: A petition signed by House members to bring a bill out of committee and onto the floor for a vote.
• Filibuster: A tactic used by senators to block a bill by continuously speaking until the bill's supporters back down.
• House Rules Committee: Schedules and manages the flow of legislation on the floor to make processes more efficient.
• Logrolling: When legislators agree to trade votes for each other's benefit.
• Pork Barrel Legislation: The use of federal funding to finance localized projects, bringing money to a representative's district to please constituents.
• Speaker of the House: The de facto leader of the majority party.

Court Cases and Powers

• Baker v. Carr: Rejected the way a state was apportioned because districts did not have an equal distribution of population, violating the equal protection clause.
  • Established "One person, one vote."
• Shaw v. Reno (1991): Ruled that race cannot be the predominant factor in creating congressional districts, claiming North Carolina's congressional district violated the equal protection clause because of majority-minority groups.

Presidential Powers

• Formal Powers: Powers outlined in Article II.
• Informal Powers: Claimed powers, such as:
  • Cabinet: Presidential advisors; power justified by sections 1 & 3 + carrying out law enforcement.
  • Executive Agreement: An international agreement between the president and another country.
  • Executive Order: A presidential order to the executive branch that carries the force of law.
  • Pocket Veto: An indirect veto where the president leaves a bill unsigned for less than 10 days before Congress adjourns.
  • Signing Statement: A presidential statement upon signing a bill into law, explaining how the president's administration intends to interpret the law.
  • State of the Union Address: The president's annual message to a joint session of Congress, evaluating the nation's top priorities.
• Some specific powers include:
  • Conferring diplomatic recognition of other governments.
  • Serving as Commander-in-Chief of the army.
  • Making treaties.
  • Granting pardons.
  • Adjourning Congress and convening Congress.
  • Appointing officers.
  • Directing the bureaucracy.
• Intended interpretation of bill and setting priorities of Congress also fall under presidential powers.

Presidential Checks

• Executive orders.
• Pardons.
• Appointing government officials and judges.
• Setting priorities for Congress.
• Adjourning Congress.
• Military force deployment.
• Presidential nominations: The president's formal proposal of a candidate to fill a position, such as cabinet or Supreme Court.
• Confirmation: Senate approval of a presidential nomination; can pose questions and create conflict.
• Executive Order: A rule issued by the president without the cooperation of Congress that carries the force of law.
  • Represents enhanced presidential power beyond expressed powers.

Federalist No. 78

• Argues in favor of the unitary executive, necessary to ensure accountability.
• A single executive can defend against legislative encroachment on his power.
• A single executive is easier to remove if they become corrupt and has greater secrecy than a larger group of leaders.

War Powers Act

• Limits presidential power to deploy the US army.

Bully Pulpit

• Theodore Roosevelt's notion of the presidency as a platform from which the president could promote their agenda directly to the public.

Judicial Branch

• Inferior Courts: All lower courts; Congress holds the power to establish inferior courts and determine how they operate.
• Judicial Independence:
  • Factors include lifetime appointments and a ban on salary decreases for sitting justices.
  • Prevents members of the legislative and executive branches from influencing the Supreme Court.
• Judicial Review: The Supreme Court's power to review whether acts of the executive and legislative branches are consistent with the Constitution.
• Federalist No. 78:
  • Judges should serve for life to ensure judicial independence.
  • The judicial branch is the least dangerous because it cannot wage war or collect taxes.
• Article III of the Constitution:
  • Establishes the judicial branch.
  • Gives Congress the power to create inferior courts.
• Marbury v. Madison (1803):
  • Before Adams left office, the Judiciary Act of 1801 was passed, adding judges and giving the President more appointment power.
  • Senate approved the appointment, but some commissions were not delivered (Marbury's).
  • Marbury petitioned for a writ of mandamus.
  • Questions:
    1. Plaintiff's right to receive commission.
    2. Can they sue for their commission in court?
    3. Does the Supreme Court have the authority to order the delivery of commissions?
  • The Judiciary Act of 1789 enabling Marbury to bring the claim to the Supreme Court was unconstitutional since it purported to extend the Court's original jurisdiction beyond what Article III established.
• Judicial Appointment: The President appoints Supreme Court justices and federal judges, attempting to influence the ideology of the Courts for years to come.
• Confirmation Process: The Senate must confirm nominees by a simple majority.
• Life Tenure: Supreme Court justices and federal judges have lifetime appointments.
• Precedent: A legal decision establishes a rule for similar cases in the future.
• Stare Decisis: Making legal decisions based on past precedents.
• Court-Curbing Measures: Strategies for reducing the power of the Supreme Court or its rulings and future appointments.
  • The President can change the ideological composition of the court.
  • Congress may pass acts that prevent the Supreme Court from hearing appeals in certain types of cases.
  • The executive or legislative branch may refuse to implement decisions.
• Jurisdiction: The field of authority a court has to make legal judgments and decisions.
• Legitimacy of the Supreme Court: Public trust in and willingness to accept a Supreme Court ruling.

Judicial Philosophies and Bureaucracy

• Judicial Activist: Belief that the role of a justice is to defend individual rights and liberties, even those not explicitly stated in the Constitution.
• Judicial Restraint: Belief that the role of a justice is to defer decisions to elected branches of government and stay focused on a narrower interpretation of the Bill of Rights (more explicit rights).
• Challenging issues: Other branches may question the court's right to exercise judicial review or the appropriateness of justices' life tenures.
  • Ex: Nomination and confirmation of justices.
• Bureaucracy: Carries out responsibilities of the federal government.
• Merit System: Bureaucrats hired based on skills rather than political connections, enhancing effectiveness.
• Civil Service: Permanent, professional branches of government administration; nonpartisan employees hired based on merit.
• Iron Triangle: A longstanding, mutually beneficial relationship among an interest group, congressional committee, and bureaucratic agency devoted to similar issues.
  • Ex: Social Security Agency, AARP, Congressional Subcommittee of Aging.
• Issue Network: A group of individuals, public officials, and interest groups that form around a particular issue.
• Patronage: The practice of hiring individuals based on political support rather than merit.
• Discretionary Authority of the Bureaucracy: Agencies deciding whether or not to take action when implementing certain laws.
• Rulemaking Authority: An agency's ability to make rules that affect how programs operate.
  • Both enhance the power of the bureaucracy over government policies.

Checks on Bureaucracy

• Congress allots a budget to the federal bureaucracy.
• Committee Hearings: Ask agencies questions.
  • Congress cannot always control the large size of the bureaucracy.
• The president cannot fire lower levels of the bureaucracy, only officers.
• President can make appointments, shift budget/agencies, and issue executive orders.