Unit 2
4.01 - The House of Representatives
The Legislative Branch (Congress) is bicameral
House of Representatives
Senate
Apportionment
Determines the number of representatives a state is allotted
Each state has at least 1, total 435
Each member represents a district
Census every 10 years
Reapportionment
The redistribution of seats in the House of Representatives
State legislature creates district lines
Gerrymandering is prohibited
How are representatives elected?
25 Years of age
Reside in the state they represent
US Citizen for a minimum of 7 years
Must rerun every 2 years
Speaker of the house
elected by majority party
Committe membership assignment
Bill committee assignments
Scheduling
Majority and Minority Leaders
Organize party activities
Majority and Minority Whips
Making sure representatives vote along party lines
Work with majority and minority leaders
Committee Chairpersons
Power depends on importance of committee
House Committees
Work on specific policies
Guide legislation
Control congressional agenda
Each representative often belongs to multiple committees
Types of House Committees
Standing committees
Permanant
Have sub committees
Joint Committees
Comprised of both senators and represenatives
Conference Committees
Comprised of both senators and represenatives
Overview bills before they are presented to the president
Select Committees
Appointed for specific situations
Iron Triangle
Congress works with Bureaucracy and interest groups
Defense Iron Triangle - Armed Service Committee, Defense Department, Boeing Corporation
Positives: working together, practical and effective laws, interest groups have a direct say, reliance on outside experts
Negatives: committees and bureaucracies become too comfortable, interest groups have too much influence, government waste or overspending
4.02 - The Senate
Each state has two senators (Total of 100)
Represent larger number of constituents
Serve for 6 years
Qualifications to run for senate
Must be at least 30
Live in the state they represent
Be a US citizen for at least 9 years
Only 1/3 of senate seats are up for reelection every 2 year
President of the Senate (Vice President)
Only role is to break ties
President Por Tempore
Used when vice president isn’t available
Elected by other senators
Always from majority party
Often the senator who has served the longest
Majority and Minority Leaders
Decide Agenda
Majority and Minority Whips
Support leaders
Party members vote along party lines
Committee Chairpersons
What bills their committees will consider
Order of consideration
Powers of the Senate
Power of Confirmation (Check on other branches)
Uses simple majority
Confirm treaties
2/3 vote
Impeachment convictions
2/3
Examples of Senate Committees
Budget Committee
Armed Services Committee
Appropriations Committee
Senators serve in multiple committees
Try to serve on committees that will have the biggest impact on their state
Try to serve on nationally important committees
Open and unrestricted debate on bills
Filibuster - opposed legislation is debated for as long as possible to prevent the Senate from voting on the bill
Motion to terminate proceeding
Motion for Cloture (3/5 majority needed)
4.03 - Bills and Resolutions
Forms of Legislation
Bills
Joint resolutions
Concurrent resolutions
Simple resolutions
Legislation can be introduced by
Representatives
the President
Interest Groups
Private individuals
Bills
Deal with domestic and foreign issues and programs, as well as the appropriation of money to various government agencies and programs
Types of Bills
Public Bills
Taxes (Must be first introduced in House)
Benefits for citizens
Allocations of money
Private Bills
Affect smaller groups or individuals
Joint Resolution
Most often used for continuning or emergency resolutions
Used for declaring war and amending the constitution
Simple Resolution
Addresses matters within one house
Do not need president or other house’s approval
Not intended to become law
Concurrent Resolution
Make or amend rules that apply to both houses
Do not require signature of the President
Do not become law
4.04 - Legislation to Law
If introduced in house
Assigned both a title and number
Assigned to relevant committees
Most legislation dies in committee
Subcommittees review legislation, hold hearings, add amendments
Sometimes Junkets happen - see if there is support in the area it would affect
Once passed committee, then moves to rules committte
Assigns date, rules, # of amendment, etc
Then moves to house floor
Debate, amend, or vote on it
Committee of the Whole
Quorum Vote, 218 must be present
Voice Vote (Yeas and Nays)
Vote by Division (Standing)
Teller Voting (Not common)
Roll Call Voting (Now electronic)
Then move to Senate if passed
If introduced in Senate
Assigned to Committee (Decided between leaders)
Amendments are offered
Added amendments are added as riders
Faces Debate
Voted On
Roll Call Voting is done electronically in house, but manually in senate
Does not have Rules Committee
If made through both chambers
Moved to Conference Committee
Reconcile differences between versions
Final draft moves back to chambers
Then to president
Actions President can take
Sign into law
Veto
Goes to original house
Needs 2/3 vote from both houses
Sits on presidents desk for 10 days, automatically becomes law
Pocket Veto
Less than 10 days less in legislative session
Dies due to inaction
Judicial Review
Judicial Branch declares law constitutional
5.01 - The Nature of a President
Qualifications of a President
Natural born citizen
At least 35
Resident for 14+ years
Expectations of a President
Strong communication skills
High degrees of education
Professional and leadership experience
Traditional Presidential Roles
Chief executive
Commander-in-chief
Diplomat
Head of state
Legislator
Line of Succession for President
Vice President
Speaker of the House
President pro tempore of the Senate
Secretary of State
Cabinet Secretaries
Approval of 2nd Vice President in the event of succession (25th Amendment)
New president selects someone
They must be approved by both houses
President can only serve 2 full terms (22nd Amendments)
+2 years if through succession
Impeachment
The process of formally removing a president from power
Andrew Johnson, Bill Clinton, and Donald Trump have been impeached
Nixon resigned before being impeached
First 100 days in office (Honeymoon Phase)
After General elections (Lame Duck period)
Imperial Presidency
President’s power increase compared to Congress
Presidential expansion during the Cold War
5.02 - Presidential Roles
Enumerated Roles
Chief of State (Represents country as a whole)
Commander in Chief (power to deploy troops)
Chief Executive (Oversees the federal bureaucracy)
Chief Diplomat (Foreign relations, representing American interests, hosting dinners, ambassadors)
Chief Legislator (State of the Union, Congressional Agenda, Veto Power, Executive Order)
Power of Clemency
Pardons for Federal Crimes
Party Leader
Coattail Effect for future presidents
5.03 - The White House
Principal Offices Associated with the White House
The First Lady
President
Vice President
Chief of Staff
Political offices
Support services
Policy offices of the executive
President’s Aides
Chief of Staff
Political advisers
Press Secretary
Counselors
Congressional liasons
White House Office
National Security Council
Office of Legislative Affairs
Council of Economic Advisers
Office of Management and Budget
Pyramid Model of Management
President-vice-chief of staff- cabinet and executive departments-department aides
Hub and Spoke System
President is the hub, spokes are different agencies
Most presidents use a mix of both
5.04 - The Budget
Federal budget is decided one year at a time
Budget is divided into two
Mandatory spending (authorized legislation, national debt)
Discretionary spending (programs with authority to spend federal money, at Congress’s discretion, includes defense)
Budget authority gives legal authority for agencies to spend federal money in discretionary spending
The Fiscal Plan - How much money the government will need and how they will spend it
The Budget
Budget is managed by the Office of Management and Budget
Budget is started in Spring, then reviewed by agencies and the president before being presented to Congress
Congressional Budget Office
Both houses must agree by April 15th
Budget Resolution - total spending limit for all federal programs
Budget Reconciliation - The process of rewriting authorized legislation to comply with the budget resolution
Legal borrowing limit for the country - the debt ceiling
6.01 - The Nature of the Bureaucracy
Max Weber’s Theory
Created the Weberian Theory of Bureaucratic Management
Hierarchical structure of authority
Vertical chain of command
Divisions of labor
Job specializations
Merit based hiring
Standard operating structures
Public Servant, Bureaucrats - Regular non-elected employees in the federal government
Bureaucratic Agency Examples
Department of Transportation
Department of Defense
Department of Homeland Security
Department of the Interior
Shadow Bureaucrats
Work under government contracts or grants
Implement policies, but do not receive the benefits of being on the government’s payroll
Each bureaucratic agency is created by congress, writes the policies it administers, and sets its own budget
Patronage System
Not given a job by merit, but by loyalty
Assassination of James Garfield led to Pendleton Civil Service Act of 1883
This act changed the patronage system to a civil service system
Classified jobs (merit based)
Unclassified jobs (appointed by president)
Hatch Act (1939)
Prevents federal employees from participating in partisan politics or running for office
Made bureaucrat jobs nonpartisan
Plum Book
Listing of federal jobs available for presidential appointment
Cabinet secretaries
undersecretaries
Bureau chiefs
Ambassadorships
Office of Personnel Management
Hires most bureaucrats
Tests candidates and places them in appropriate jobs
Senior Executive Service Employees
Work for heads of cabinets
Cannot be fired by president
Employees hired based on merit
Termination only through poor job performance or illegal actions
Heirarchy of the Bureaucracy
Cabinet departments
Independent Regulatory Commissions
Government Corporations
Independent Executive Agencies
6.02 - The Cabinet
Presidential Cabinet - Goal is to carry out the President’s goals
Federal Executive Branch
Cabinet departments
Regulatory agencies
Government corporations
Independent agencies
To date - 15 members of the Cabinet
Attorney General - Chief law enforcement officer of the United States
Inner Cabinet
Secretary of State
Secretary of Defense
Attorney General
Secretary of Homeland Security
Secretary of the Treasury
Presidental Appointments
Upper level White House jobs
Cabinet positions
Sub-cabinet positions
Notable Cabinet Members
Henry Morgenthau Jr - Franklin Roosevelt’s Secretary of the Treasury
Established the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank
George Marshall - Truman’s Sec of State
Marshall Plan
Robert F Kennedy - JFK’s Attorney General
Protected Civil Rights leaders and fought organized crime
Robert Reich - Clinton’s Sec of Labor
Raised minimum wage and implemented the Family and Medical Leave Act
Janet Napolitano - Obama’s Sec of Homeland Security
President of Uni of California
Hilary Clinton - Obama’s Sec of State
Ran for president
Merit-Based Appointments
Foreign Services
State Department
Agencies are sometimes referred to as
Divisons
Bureaus
Offices
Services
Administrations
Boards
“Going Native”
When the head of an agency sides with their department over the president
6.03 - Other Bureaucratic Bodies
Regulatory Commissions and Agencies
Function apart from the cabinet and executive
Independent Agency
Jobs are protected
President has little influence
Main Purposes of Independent Regulatory Commissions
Make rules to protect public interest
Enforce the rules the commission sets in place
Commissions and Boards are governed by a small board
Odd number of board members
Must be confirmed by the Senate
Federal Reserve Board
Regulate banks
Regulate interest rates
Regulate the supply of money
Federal Trade Commission
Consumer protection
Prevents anti-competitive, unfair, and deceptive market practices
Examples of Bureaucratic Bodies
Federal Communications Commission
Federal Aviation Administration
Environmental Protection Agency
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
Securities and Exchange Commission
Government Corporations
Blend of private companies and government agencies
Self-funded
Examples of Government Corporations
Tennessee Valley Authority
Federal Deposit and Insurance Corporation
US Postal Service
Amtrak
Independent Executive Agencies
NASA, National Science Foundation, General Services Adminstration
Don’t fall within the definitions of other agencies
6.04 - Checks on the Bureaucracy
Executive Checks
The president can appoint and remove heads of agencies
Make budget changes
Issue executive orders
Reduce a budget
OMD assessments
Reorganize agencies
Congress Checks
Funding
Create of abolish agencies
Approval of apointments
Launch investigations into policy
Passing legislation to limit influence
Sunset Clause - Ensures that the policy will end without being reauthorized through new legislation
Judicial Checks
Judicial Review
Assess legality and constitutionality
Ensure due process for effects
Hearings and Proceedings
Interest Groups
Part of Iron Triangles
Regulation and special favors
Public Checks
Watches actions
Use of media
National Sunshine Laws
APA
Freedom of Information Act
Government Sunshine Act
Civil Service Reform Act
Whistleblower protections
7.1 - State and Local Courts
Municipal or County Court (Local Trials)
Settle a dispute between 2 or more parties
Civil Trials (Plaintiff v Defendant)
Criminal Trails (Government v Defendant)
Can be appealed by losing party to an Appellate Court
Adversarial System
Two opposing parties present their case to an impartial judge and jury who attempt to determine the truth and decide the case based on the presented evidence
Judges and Juries
6th Amendment - Guarantees the accused the right to trial by jury in criminal cases in both state and federal courts
7th Amendment - Extends the right to a trial by jury to civil cases but only at the federal level
Appeals Court
No witnesses or jury, just lawyers and a judge
Only allowed for criminal cases in special circumstances
Can set precedents
Types of Trial Courts
Superior
County
District
Municipal
State Courts
Family
Traffic
Probate
Small claims
Criminal Cases
7.02 - The Federal Court System
Constitutional Courts
Created with the Judiciary Act of 1789
District Courts
Court of Appeals
Supreme Court
Federal Judges
Appointed by the president, confirmed by senate
Removed through impeachment
Senatorial Courtesy - The Senate defers to the senators from the home state of the judicial appointee
Judicial Districts
1 district court in each state, +DC and Puerto Rico
Includes a bankruptcy court
US Federal Courts
Cases that involve federal law
Civil cases: parties from different states disputing 75k+
Original Jurisdiction - Federal district courts are the first ones to hear these cases
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5th Amendment - Grand juries must be used to determine whether or not a person should stand trial in a criminal case
Federal Courts of Appeal
Appellate Jurisdiction
Only hear cases that come from the lower cases through an appeal
Legislative Courts
Specialized courts
Judges don’t have protections
Examples
The US Court of Federal Claims (Settle claims against the Government)
Federal Tax Court (Civil cases against the IRS)
The Court of International Trade (Trades and tarriffs)
The Court of Military Appeals (Disputed court martials)
Supreme Court
Nine judges with majority rule
Mainly an apellate court, but has original jurisdiction for when an ambassador, consul, or public minister is on trial, or cases in which a state is a party
Petitions for Writ of Certiorari
Certification of a Question of Law - Lower court has a legal question
Stare Decisis - Relying on precedents when making decisions in new cases
Per Curium Decision - A short document that is unsigned by the justices (Unlikely)
Three Types of Opinions Issued by the Court
Majority Opinions
Concurring Opinions - A justice voted with the majority but had a different legal reason for doing so
Dissenting Opinions
7.03 - Historical Supreme Courts
"The judicial Power of the United States shall be vested in one supreme court, and in such inferior courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish.“ - Article 3 Section 1
Chief Justice John Jay -1789
Chief Justice John Marshall - 1801
Grew judicial branch’s powers, expand capitalism, federalism
Marbury v. Madison (Legality of Adam’s judge appointments, established Judicial Review)
Fletcher v. Peck (Contract Clause, Supreme Court can invalidate any state law in conflict with the Constitution)
McCulloch v. Maryland (Federalism, implied powers, supremacy of federal laws)
Gibbons v. Ogden (Congress has the sole authority to regulate interstate commerce)
Chief Justice Roger Taney
Primacy of states right
Scott v Sanford
Dred Scott Case
Black people weren’t considered citizens
Chief Justice Earl Warren - 1953
Civil Rights Era
Brown v Board of Education (School segregation)
Gideon v Wainwright (Legal counsel regardless of wealth)
Engel v Vitale (Prayer in school)
Miranda v Arizona (Miranda Rights)
Right to remain silent
Anything they say can be used against them in a court of law
Right to an attorney
Chief Justice Warren Burger - 1969
Roe v Wade (Abortion rights)
Regents of the University of California v Bakke (Racial quotas are unconstitutional)
7.04 - The Nature of the Supreme Court
Judicial Restraint - The idea that judges should play a minimal role when it comes to policymaking
Does not have the constitutional power
Judicial Activism - The supreme Court makes policy decisions bold enough to establish new constitutional ground
Necessary for the protection of civil rights
Doctrine of Political Question - The issue at hand should be left to another branch
Judicial Review
the Court has the power to determine whether or not acts of government are constitutional
Marbury v Madison
Final authority on the constitution
Loose Construction
The constitution is a living document that must change as society changes
Federalists papers and Article 1 Section 8 show interpretation
Founders couldnt predict modern problems
Strict Construction
Static artifact
Not open to interpretation
The Warren Court
Judicial activism
Civil Rights
The Hughes Court
Conservation
The New Deal
7.05 - The Modern Supreme Court
9 Judges, with 1 being Chief Justice
Chosen by president, confirmation by Senate
Litmus Test
Liberal v Conservative
Divisive issues like abortion or gun rights
Checks from other branches