The Congressional Process

1. The Congressional Process

2. Caucuses • Caucus: a group of members sharing some interest or characteristic. • Usually based around the interests of a group and obtaining specific goals • Ex: Black Caucus, Caucus for Women’s issues • Staff Agencies: • Congressional Research Staff (CRS): responds to Congressional requests for info on nonpartisan studies. • Government Accountability Office (GAO): Helps Congress with its oversight of the executive branch. • Congressional Budget Office: focused on analyzing the President’s budget and making economic projections

3. Making Laws! • Bill: a proposed law drafted in legal language. • Anyone can draft a bill but only a member of the House or Senate can propose a bill. • Leaders often refer bills to several committees at the same time. • Ends up complicating the process • Sometimes party leaders can bypass committees for high-priority legislation. • Omnibus: when leaders combine numerous unrelated subjects into a bill to ensure its passage • Due to lack of leadership strength in Senate, it is typically harder to pass legislation

4. How a Bill Becomes a Law T12-5 (continued)

6. Presidential Leadership in Congress • President is sometimes called the “chief legislator” • The President’s political agenda is also their party’s political platform • Presidents can merely try to persuade Congress • The President may call members of Congress directly to try and persuade their vote. • Congressional leadership is at the margins • The President plays a very limited role in legislation

7. Party Politics • Most times, party members vote strictly along “party lines” in Congress • During certain issues, coalitions come apart. • Issues such as Economic and Social Welfare policy create party divides • Democrats more supportive: minimum wage increase, aid to poor, and grants for education • Why so polarized? • Redrawing of districts removed diversity of political parties. • Very visibly liberal or conservative • Eliminated the need of cooperation to get reelected

8. Legislation philosophy • Trustees: View that legislators use their best judgment to make policy in interest of people. • Instructed delegates: Legislators work according to the will of the people. • Politicos: adopting both the trustee and instructed delegate models while making decisions • This is where most modern-day politicians fall. • In most cases, the stronger a constituencies preference on an issue, the more likely a legislator will follow their district opinions.

9. Finishing up • The success of government depends on the quality of those inside of it. • Much of Congress is unrepresentative of the people of the United States. • As a result not much really gets done… • Criticism: Congress is too representative • Incapable of decisive action on issues. • Government spends too much • Trying to protect too many individuals interests

10. Congress is organized in such a way that its leaders have important roles. • a.) Describe how the Speaker of the House of Representatives is selected and describe that • position’s power. • b.) Describe how the President of the Senate is selected and describe that position’s power. • c.) Identify another leader, other than the Speaker of House or President of the Senate, and describe that position’s power.