Congress

1. Congress

2. Quick Constitutional Review… • Basis of Constitutional Authority in Article I • House member must be • 25 years old • American citizen for 7 years • Inhabitant of state the representative represents • Senator must be • 30 years old • American citizen for 9 years • Resident of state the senator represents • Common powers to Congress listed Article I, Section 8 • Power to tax • Coin $ • Declare war • Regulate foreign & interstate commerce • Implied powers come from “necessary & proper clause” (aka “elastic clause”)

3. HoR has power to • Begin revenue bills • Select president if no electoral college majority • Initiate impeachment proceedings • Senate has power to • Approve presidential appointments • Ratify treaties • Try impeachment proceedings • Congress may overrule presidential veto by 2/3 vote of each house

4. Bicameral • House of Representatives, 435 members • # of seats established in 1910 • Senate, 100 members • Originally chosen by state legislatures • Changed to election by the people by 17th Amendment

5. Reapportionment • Reapportionment Act of 1929 • Provides for permanent size of HoR & number of seats each state should have based on the census • Each seat represents average of 650,000 people • Individual states determine make-up of each congressional district based upon census changes • leads to charges of gerrymandering, or drawing of congressional districts that favor either the political party that controls the state legislature or the incumbent • To isolate minorities in a district = packing; to divide them across many districts = cracking • … can end up with oddly shaped & created unfair representation patterns…

7. S Court cases have defined manner in which states create representation patterns • Smith v Allwright (1944): denying African Americans the right to vote in primary elections was found to be a violation of the 15h Amendment • Baker v Carr (1962): established 1 man, 1 vote • Wesberryv Sanders (1964): dictated population differences in GA were so unequal, they were unconstitutional • Buckley v Valeo (1976): giving $ to political campaign was a form of free speech & threw out some stringent federal regulations on fundraising & election spending • Shaw v Reno (1993) & Miller v Johnson (1995): race cannot be sole or predominant factor in redrawing legislative district boundaries

8. US Term Limits v Thornton (1995): States cannot set term limits on members of Congress • Bush v Gore (2000): the FL recount for the 2000 election was a violation of the 14th Amendment’s equal protection • Both Wesberry& Bakerdecisions furthered minority representation • But… doctrines modified by S Court in 1990s • Decisions have struck down oddly shaped congressional districts which guarantee minority representation • 1995: S Court ruled a district in GA which was apportioned to create representation for African Americans was unconstitutional

10. Election of Incumbents • Success of Senate incumbents not = to those of HoR incumbents • But it’s obvious a sitting representative has an advantage • Exceptions: scandal, unpopular sitting president during mid-term elections • 1992: HoR members abusing checking & post office privileges, many incumbents decided to not seek reelection or lost • 1994: mid-term elections reflected disapproval of Clinton’s performance (first time had Republican HoR & Senate in 40 years) • The stats: • Only 2 members lost in 1986, 1 in 1988 • On average fewer than 2% are defeated in primary elections & < 7% lose general elections • Rates a little lower for Senate members

11. Why do incumbents have the advantage? • Are highly visible • Cable & C-SPAN broadcast proceedings of Congress • Representatives have free franking (sending of mail) privileges • HoR members • Pride themselves in close constituent relationships • Co-sponsor legislation • Quick to take credit for obtaining earmarks (pork barrel) • Campaign fundraising - $$ advantage over competitors • Results in many weak opponents being nominated – why spend $ in a district your party won’t win?

12. The Average Congressman • Average age: • HoR: 57 • Senate: 63 • Majority religion: Protestant • 95 women in Congress (a record) • 78 in HoR • 17 in Senate • 42 African Americans • 41 in HoR • 1 in Senate • 30 Hispanics • 27 in HoR • 3 in Senate

13. Minorities & women have always been underrepresented in Congress & state legislatures • Reason for Voting Rights Act of 1965 to encourage states to take measures to increase minority representation in Congress • After 1990 census: states redrew districts • Led to increasing African American representation by 50%, Hispanic representation by 70%

14. Population shifts in last 20 years has given more seats to Southern states, meaning other regions losing seats • Suburban representation has increased at expense of rural & urban areas • Draws members primarily from legal & business professions • Almost ½ of HoR & > ½ of Senate have legal background • Reason: lawyers have many prerequisites needed for successful run for Congress: • Interest & experience in law • Prominence w/in community • Personal wealth to at least partially fund election campaign