Final Review Unit 4 Institutions of Government (Congress, the President, the Bureaucracy & Budget)

Structure of Congress Bicameral (two-house) Writes laws of the nation (statutes, legislation) 435 in the House of Reps (#/state is based on population; all have at least 1) 100 in Senate (2/state) Reapportionment / redistricting every 10 years Gerrymander: drawing district boundaries to favor the majority party in future elections

Congressional Elections: House of Representatives Elections for all 435 seats in House occur every 2 years Two-year term Elected by district within state States have as many districts as they have representatives in the House Qualifications: 25, resident of state, citizen 7 House incumbent re-election rate is 90%!

Congressional Elections: Senate Qualifications: 30 years old, 9 years a citizen, reside in state you represent One-third of Senate up for election every 2 yrs (continuous body) Term lasts 6 years All states have 2 members Races are more competitive and expensive

Congressional Powers Are expressed and implied Creation of all laws Funding of executive agencies; oversight Declaring war, raising an army Taxing citizens, borrowing money, coining $ Regulating interstate commerce Necessary and Proper / Elastic Clause: may make any law necessary to carry out expressed powers

Congressional Tasks Besides making laws, Congress has other functions Oversight (reviews the work of federal agencies; this checks the executive branch; Senate confirms presidential appointments) Public Education: Floor debates increase public awareness of problems Representing constituents within the gov’t

Legislative Process Process is slow and complex Bill is introduced in House (revenue bills) or Senate, referred to committee, amended and debated, and voted on by general H or S If majority approve, is sent to the other house Rules Committee in House: sets limits on bills Filibuster: unlimited debate in Senate; House is limited/no filibuster

Committees Needed to do huge workload and allow for specialization among members Seniority is key Standing (permanent, subject matter) Select (temporary; set up for investigation) Joint (has members of both houses) Conference (harmonizes final language)

Congressional Leadership House: – Speaker, majority leader, minority leader, committee chairs Senate: – President of the Senate (VP) – President pro tempore (most senior; symbolic) – Majority Leader (controls legislative agenda) – Minority Leader – Whips

Rules Differences House v. Senate House of Reps – Speaker of the House heads powerful House Rules Committee which can stop/forward bills – More formal; limited debate; germaneness requirement; Senate – Majority Leader has most power; other leaders more symbolic; No rules committee equivalent – Less formal, unlimited debate, filibuster/cloture – Germaneness NOT required (may add an amendment that has nothing to do with bill) – Unanimous consent - A senator may request to set aside a rule of procedure to expedite proceedings. If no Senator objects, the Senate permits the action, but if any one senator objects, the request is rejected.

Formal Powers of the President Broadly defined (unlike Congress’ powers) Enforcing laws, handling foreign policy, head of state Can force Congress into session, veto laws, grant pardons and reprieves Many are intermingled with Congress’ powers: appointments & treaties require Senate approval Executive agreements (no S approval needed)

Commander in Chief Congress can declare war but President can make war and move troops President is chief strategist and director of military forces In modern era, he is most important War Powers Act, 1973 attempts to check his war- making powers – Limits the P to 10,000 troops for 60 days, with 30 additional days to withdraw troops unless Congress grants an extension

Informal Powers of President Morale builders for the people Legislative leaders and coalition builders Policy persuader and communicator to Congress and the American people Pressuring Congress with public opinion and approval

Executive Office of the President Helps carry out the President’s administrative responsibilities; hundreds of people who answer to the President Chief of staff is top aide to the President; manages the office of the P National Security Council helps in emergencies Office of Management and Budget allocates $ to cabinet departments through budget process Council of Economic Advisors helps P make national economic policy

Cabinet Not mentioned in Constitution but created through custom Each cabinet secretary is appointed by P and confirmed by Senate Responsible for his/her department 15 cabinet positions today

Impeachment Congress can remove the president for treason or other high crimes House of Reps impeaches (brings charges) with a simple majority vote Senate holds a trial with the Chief Justice of the SC presiding. Removal of the President requires 2/3 vote of Senate

Bureaucracy “4 th Branch” of US Government Bureaucrats staff the executive agencies that run the federal gov’t Take competitive exams (Civil Service) Least partisan members of government / most representative of general population Unelected but have a huge role in shaping public policy

Types of Bureaucracy Cabinet departments (Defense, Interior, …) Independent agencies (NASA) Regulatory commissions (EPA, FCC, FDA, …) Government corporations (Amtrak, US Postal Service)

Iron Triangles Because issues dealt with by bureaucrats are so technical and pertain to small interest groups, iron triangles form Cooperation between a – Bureaucracy (Dep’t of Defense), – Congressional Committee (Senate Armed Services Committee) and – An interest group (Boeing) Work to maintain their benefits

Budget The budget process is complicated, politically divisive and difficult to complete Office of Mgmt and Budget (OMB) initiates the budget process with President (who checks with his departments OMB submits President’s budget to Congress The House Ways and Means Committee deals with the taxing aspects of budget (revenues) Authorization Committees in both H and S decides what programs to fund Appropriations committees in both houses then decide how much money to spend for programs authorized Failure to achieve a budget can shut down the government