Congress Notes

Some people prefer the concept of legislators as __________________, mirroring the preferences of their constituents.

instructed delegates

Bicameralism means that the legislative body is one in which?

is one divided into two houses

Party loyalty at the voting booth is still a good indication of voting behavior or not?

it is not as strong as it was a generation ago, it is still a good predictor of voting behavior.

The United States Senate has _________________ members.

100 (two from each state)

The United States House of Representatives has _______________ members.

435

Members of Congress who informally band together in groups to promote and protect mutual interests form what are called what? Provide two examples.

Caucus ( is a grouping of members of Congress sharing some interest or characteristic. ex: Black Caucus, the Hispanic Caucus, the Congresswomen's Caucus, and the Sunbelt Caucus

What does a Conference committee do ? What is a Conference Committee ?

Conference committees are formed to work out the differences when different versions of a bill are passed by the two houses. Membership is drawn from both houses.

The framers of the Constitution conceived of ______________________ as the center of policy making in America.

Congress

The filibuster is a technique used where and to do what?

Filibuster permits unlimited debate on a bill. In practice, this sometimes means that opponents of a bill may try to "talk it to death" at the present time, 60 members present and voting can halt a filibuster by invoking cloture*closure) on debate.

To be sent to the president, a bill must be passed by

House Rules Committee

According to the Constitution, revenue bills must originate in the

House of Representatives

The single most important advantage to someone trying to get elected to Congress is being what?

Incumbents ( those holding office). Incumbents usually win congressional elections.

What does a Joint committee do? What is a Joint Committee ?

Joint committees are study committees that exist in a few policy areas, with membership drawn from both the Senate and the House.

What is the process of monitoring the bureaucracy and its administration of policy?

Legislative oversight—the process of monitoring the bureaucracy and its administration of policy—is one of the checks Congress can exercise on the executive branch.

Federal grants and contracts that members of Congress try to obtain for their constituents are collectively referred to as

Pork barrel (expenditures on federal projects, grants, and contracts for cities, businesses, college, and institutions)

How are members of congress like or unlike the American public as a whole?

Members of congress come mostly from occupations with high status and usually have substantial incomes. Law and business are the dominant prior occupations, with elite occupations also well represent.

What is true about the minimum age requirement for members of the House? For the Senate?

Members of the House must be at least 25 years old. Senators must be at least 30 years.

What happens to most bills formally submitted for consideration in Congress? When does it happen?

Most bills are quietly killed off early in the legislative process

The House __________ Committee reviews most bills coming from other committees before they go on to the full House, thus performing a traffic cop function.

Rules

What does a Select committee do ? What is a Select committee?

Select committees are temporary committees appointed for a specific ("select") purpose, such as the Senate select committee that looked into Watergate.

The ___________________ is next in line after the vice president to succeed a president who resigns, dies in office, or is impeached.

Speaker of the House

What does a Standing committee do? What is a Standing committee?

Standing committees are permanent subject-matter committees, formed to handle bills in different policy areas. Each chamber has its own committees and subcommittees. In the 103rd Congress, the typical representative served on two committees and four subcommittees, while senators averaged three committees and seven subcommittees each.

List the different types of committees in Congress

Standing, Joint, Conference, Select

Millionaire Senator Edward Kennedy sponsoring a bill to help the poor and disadvantaged would be an example of

Substantive representation.

Which of the following is responsible for making economic projections about performance of the economy, the costs of proposed policies, and the economic effects of taxing and spending alternatives?

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO)

The real differences between the House and the Senate lie in what?

The Senate is less discipline and less centralized that the House. Today's senators are more equal in power than representatives are.

Compare and contrast the roles of the majority leader, minority leader, and the party whips.

The majority leader is responsible for rounding up votes on party legislation and for scheduling bills in the House.The minority party is also organized (with a minority leader and whips), and is prepared to take over the key posts if it should win a majority in the House. Party whips work with the majority leader to round up votes and to report the views and complaints of the party rank-and-file back to the leadership.

Relative to the total population, the most underrepresented group in Congress is which group?

The most underrepresented demographic group in congress are women. More than half of the population is female, but only 20 senators and 91 voting representatives are female.

What role do the committees play in the Congressional process?

They control the congressional agenda and guide legislation from its introduction to its send-off for the president's signature.

Which of the following is NOT one of the three primary activities that members of Congress engage in to increase the probability of their reelection?

They engage in advertising, credit claiming, and position taking.

When the House and the Senate pass different versions of the same bill what happens?

When the two chambers pass different versions of the same bill, some committee members will be appointed to the conference committee.

Compare and contrast members of the House and Senate.

a.Even though senators have a better-than-equal chance of reelection, senators typically win by narrower margins than House members. b. One reason for the greater competition in the Senate is that an entire state is almost always more diverse than a congressional district and thus provides more of a base for opposition to an incumbent. c. Senators have less personal contact with their constituents and receive more coverage in the media than representatives do (and are therefore more likely to be held accountable on controversial issues). d. Senators tend to draw more visible challengers who are already known to voters and who have substantial financial backing.

Studies have shown that presidential ___________ in an election have little effect on the success of the party's candidates for the House and Senate.

coattails

Most of the business of Congress takes place

committees

An example of casework by a member of Congress is

cutting through bureaucratic red tape

Most members of Congress would be considered

politicos

What do lobbyists do?

represent the interests of their organization. They also provide legislators with crucial information, and often can give assurances of financial aid in the next campaign.

The English politician and philosopher Edmund Burke favored the concept of legislators as ______________, using their best judgment to make policy in the interests of the people.

trustees