THE US Congress        THE Presidency        THE NATIONAL Bureaucracy

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THE US CONGRESS

Qualifications to Run for Congress

House

25 years of age when seated, not when elected

US citizen for 7 years

resident of state from which elected - custom that a representative live in the district that he/she represents, not Constitutional

Senate

30 years of age when seated, not when elected

US citizen for 9 years

resident of state from which elected

C-SPAN CONGRESSIONAL RESOURCES

POWER RANKINGS

Congressional Leadership

I. Senate

Majority Party (most senators)

President Pro Tempore - selected by majority party & usually most senior member of the Senate majority party

Majority Leader - leads majority party

Majority Whip - assists majority leader, rounds up votes, heads group of deputy whips

Chairman of the Conference - presides over meetings of all members of the Senate majority party

Policy Committee - schedules legislation

Legislative Review Committee - reviews legislative proposals and makes recommendations to senators of the majority party

Steering Committee - assigns Senators of the majority party to committees

Republican/Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee - provides funds, assistance to Republican/Democratic candidates for the Senate

Minority Party (least senators)

Minority Leader - leads minority party

Assistant Minority Leader - assists minority leader, rounds up votes

Chairman of the Conference - presides over meetings of all senators of the minority party

Policy Committee - makes recommendations on party policy

Committee on Committees - assigns Senators of the minority party to committees

SENATE REFERENCE SECTION

II. House

Majority Party (most representatives)

Speaker of the House - selected by the majority party

Majority Leader - leads majority party

Majority Whip - assists majority leader, rounds up votes, heads large group of deputy and assistant whips

Chairman of the Caucus - presides over meetings of all members of the majority party

Steering and Policy Committee - schedules legislation, assigns members of the majority party to committees

Republican/Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee - provides funds, advice to Republican/Democratic candidates for the House

Minority Party (least representatives)

Minority Leader - leads minority party

Minority Whip - assists minority leader, rounds up votes, heads large forum of deputy and assistant whips

Chairman of the Conference - presides over meetings of all members of the minority party

Committee on Committees - assigns members of the minority party to committees

Policy Committee - advises on party policy

Research Committee - on request, provides information about issues

Powers of Congress

found in Article 1, section 8, of the Constitution -

levy and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises

borrow money

regulate commerce with foreign nations, among the states and with Indian tribes

establish rules for naturalization (becoming a citizen)

establish rules for bankruptcy

coin money, set its value and punish counterfeiting

fix the standard of weights and measures

establish a post office and post roads

issue patents and copyrights to inventors and authors

create courts inferior to (below) the Supreme Court

define and punish piracies, felonies on the high seas and crimes against the law of nations

declare war

raise and support an army and navy and make rules for their governance

provide for a militia (reserving to the states the right to appoint militia officers and to train the militia under congressional rule)

exercise exclusive legislative powers over the seat of government (the District of Columbia) and over places purchased to be federal facilities (forts, arsenals, dockyards and "other needful buildings")

"make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for the carrying into execution the foregoing powers and all other powers vested by this Constitution in the government of the United States"

How a Bill Becomes Law

A. Introduction - any member can introduce a piece of legislation

House - legislation is handed to clerk of the House or placed in hopper

Senate - members must gain recognition of the presiding officer to announce the introduction of a bill during the morning hour … introduction of bill postponed until next day if any senator objects

bill assigned a number (HR 1 or S 1)

bill labeled with the sponsor's name

bill sent to Government Printing Office (GPO) to make copies

Senate bills can be jointly sponsored

members can cosponsor legislation

B. Committee - bill referred to appropriate committee by Speaker of the House or presiding officer in Senate … often actual referral decision made by the House or Senate parliamentarian

bill may be referred to more than one committee

bill may be split so that parts are sent to different committees

Speaker of the House may set time limits on committees

bills placed on calendar of the committee to which assigned

failure to act on a bill is equivalent to killing it

bills in House can only be released from committee without a proper committee vote by a discharge petition signed by a majority of the House membership (218 members)

Committee Steps:

1.      comments about the bill's merit are requested by government agencies                       

2.      bill can be assigned to subcommittee by chair

3.      may hold hearings

4.      subcommittees report findings to the full committee

5.      vote by the full committee - bill is "ordered to be reported"

6.  committee will hold "mark-up" session during which it will make revisions and additions - if substantial amendments made committee can order the introduction of a "clean bill" which will include the proposed amendments, have new number and be sent to floor while the old bill is discarded (chamber must approve, change or reject all committee amendments before conducting a final passage vote)

7.  after bill reported, committee staff prepares written report explaining why they favor bill and why they wish to see amendments, if any, adopted … committee members who oppose a bill sometimes write a dissenting opinion in report

8.  report sent to whole chamber and placed on calendar

9.  House - most bills go to Rules committee before reaching floor and committee adopts rules that will govern procedures under which the bill will be considered, for example, a "closed rule" sets strict time limits on debate and forbids introduction of amendments

10. rules can have major impact on whether bill passes … rules committee can be bypassed in three ways: 1) members can move rules to be suspended (requires 2/3 vote) 2) a discharge petition can be filed 3) the House can use a Calendar Wednesday procedure

C. Floor

1. Calendar

House: bills placed on one of four House Calendars in the order which reported but don't usually come to floor in that order and some never reach the floor at all

Speaker of the House and Majority Leader decide what will reach floor and when (legislation can also be brought to floor by discharge petition)

Senate: legislation placed on Legislative Calendar … Executive Calendar deals with treaties and nominations

Scheduling of legislation is job of Majority Leader but bills also brought to floor whenever majority of Senate chooses

2. Debate

House: Debate limited by rules formulated in the Rules Committee … Committee of the Whole debates and amends bill but cannot technically pass it. Debate guided by Sponsoring Committee and time divided equally between proponents and opponents. Committee decides how much time to allot to each person. Amendments must be germane to subject of bill - no riders allowed. Bill is reported back to House (to itself) and voted on. A quorum call is a vote to make sure there are enough members present (218) to have final vote. If no quorum, House will adjourn or will send Sergeant at Arms out to round up missing members.

Senate: debate unlimited unless cloture invoked. Members can speak as long as they want and amendments need not be germane - riders are often offered. Entire bills can be offered as amendments to other bills. Unless cloture is invoked, Senators can use a filibuster to defeat a measure by "talking it to death"

3. Vote

If passed, sent to other chamber unless that chamber already has a similar measure under consideration. If either chamber does not pass bill dies. If the House and Senate pass the same bill then sent to President. If the House and Senate pass different bills they are sent to Conference Committee. Most major legislation goes to a Conference Committee.

D. Conference Committee

1. Members from each house form conference committee and meet to work out differences. Committee usually made up of senior members appointed by presiding officers of the committee that originally dealt with bill. Representatives from each house work to maintain their version of the bill.

2. If the Conference Committee reaches compromise, it prepares a written conference report submitted to each chamber.

3. Conference report must be approved by both House and Senate.

E. President - bill sent to President for review

1. Bill becomes law if signed by President or if not signed within 10 days and Congress is in session.

2. If Congress adjourns before 10 days and President has not signed bill it does not become law ("pocket veto").

3. If President vetoes bill it is sent back to Congress with note listing reasons. The chamber that originated the legislation can attempt to override veto by a vote of two-thirds of those present. If the veto of the bill is overridden in both chambers it becomes law.

4. Once a bill is signed by President or his veto overridden by both houses it becomes a law and is assigned an official number.

ReadTheBill.org

The Budget Process

I. Budget Facts

The government spends most of your money on a few major programs.

Social Security - 23%

Defense - 16%

Medicare - 12%

Medicaid - 7%

National Debt - 10%

The government collects most of its revenues from a few main sources.

Individual Income Taxes - 48%

Social Security Receipts - 34%

Corporate Income Taxes - 10%

Because all revenues do not cover the costs of all spending, the government borrows money to finance the deficit. The total it has borrowed over the years, but not repaid, is the national debt.

In its first 150 years, the government sometimes generated budget deficits (for instance, to finance a war) but later ran surpluses and repaid much of the debt that had accumulated.

In 2001, the national budget surplus was $184 billion. Budget deficits had grown more frequent in the last half-century and they soared during the 1980s. At the end of fiscal year 1977 the deficit was $706 billion. By the end of fiscal year 1997 it was $5.38 trillion - almost 8 times as much as it had been 20 years earlier.

In its first three years, the government spent a total of about $4 million. By 1800, total annual spending amounted to less than $11 million. Almost two centuries later the total has climbed to $521 billion.

National spending climbed during the 1930s from $4 billion in 1931 to over $8 billion in 1936. WWII increased that number to over $91 billion by 1944.

II. Types of Spending

Discretionary - 35% of all Federal Spending

This is the money the President and Congress must decide to spend each year. It includes money for such programs as the FBI, Coast Guard, housing, education, space exploration, highway construction, defense, foreign aid and so on.

Mandatory - 65% of all Federal Spending

This is the money that the national government spends automatically - unless the President and Congress change the laws that govern it. It includes entitlements - such as Social Security, Medicare and Food Stamps - through which individuals receive benefits because they meet some criteria of eligibility (e.g. age, income). It also includes interest on the national debt, which the Government pays to individuals and institutions that buy saving bonds and other US securities. Despite its name, however, mandatory spending is not unchangeable. The President and Congress can change the laws that govern entitlements or taxes but they must take explicit action to do so.

III. The Budget Process

The President's budget is sent to Congress in early February. This proposal is his plan for the next fiscal year, beginning October 1. This plan, however, only becomes official after Congress passes and the President signs spending bills and legislation creating new taxes and entitlements.

After receiving the President's budget, Congress examines it in detail. Scores of committees and subcommittees hold hearings on proposals under their jurisdiction. The House and Senate Armed Services Committees, for instance, hold hearings on the President's defense plan. If the President's plan contains proposals that affect federal revenues, the House Ways and Means and Senate Finance committees hold hearings. The President, the Budget Director, the Cabinet and others work with Congress as it accepts some proposals, rejects some and changes others.

Each year Congress must pass and the President must sign, 13 appropriation bills that include all of the discretionary spending. The President and Congress do not have to enact new laws governing entitlements or taxes. If they do not, the government will pay the benefits for Social Security and other programs and collect the taxes required by laws already in place.

IV. Budget Calendar

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THE PRESIDENCY

I. Qualifications

Must be a natural-born citizen of the United States (can be born abroad of parents who are American citizens).

Must be 35 years of age.

Must be a resident of the United States for at least 14 years (but not necessarily the 14 years preceding the election).

II. Benefits

White House

a salary of $400,000 per year (taxable)

expense account of $50,000 per year (taxable)

travel expenses of $100,000 per year (tax-free)

pension, on retirement, cabinet member's salary (taxable)

staff support on leaving the presidency

a place in the country - Camp David

a personal airplane - Air Force One

a chef

III. The Powers of the President

According to Article II of the Constitution the President has the following powers:

Serve as commander in chief of the armed forces

Commission officers of the armed forces

Grant reprieves and pardons for federal offenses (except impeachment)

Convene Congress in special sessions

Receive ambassadors

Take care that the laws be faithfully executed

Wield the "executive power"

Appoint officials to lesser offices

Powers shared with the Senate

Make treaties

Appoint ambassadors, judges, and high officials

Powers shared with Congress

Approve legislation

State of the Union (SOTU)

White House Tapes: The President Calling

Supreme Court Nominations Not Confirmed

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THE NATIONAL BUREAUCRACY

The executive branch consists of a number of different people/offices other than the president.

Vice President

Traditionally, the power of the vice president has depended on the president. The Constitution makes the VP the 'president' of the Senate, but he has no actual power in the Senate. The Constitution mainly provides for a VP who waits around for the president to die. Few VPs, then, are given any real power by their president. Most presidents don't like their VPs (since each was chosen to balance a ticket and has little in common with his 'boss') and don't trust their VPs (since they assume the VP is out to replace his 'boss').

Cabinet

The cabinet is the collective heads of the various executive departments - the head of State, Defense, Commerce, etc. The cabinet was intended to come together and act as a source of wisdom for the president on policy matters. After all, you have in one group the leading authority of every subject in the country. However, the cabinet has never been a major source of policy because members tend to think in terms of departmental interests, rather than national interest.

White House Staff / Office

These are the presidential advisors that actually have offices in the White House. These people - the press secretary, the national security advisor, etc. - will always be the president's closest advisors since, unlike any other officials, they have daily access to the president.

Executive Office of the President

These agencies report directly to the president and perform services directly for him but are not located in the White House. Their contact with the president is direct, but not as intimate as the White House staff. The Executive Office of the President includes such positions as the CIA director and the OMB director.

Bureaucrats

the people who are responsible for implementation - putting specific policies into operation. The chief advantage of a bureaucracy is that is tends to standardize everything so that procedures and personnel can be easily transferred or replaced. Today over 85% of the government operates on the merit system. It is this vast group of people that add stability to the government. Presidents, congressman, judges may come and go but the bureaucracy remains the same. The chief disadvantage of a bureaucracy is that is tends to standardize everything so that people become numbers and problems become cases.  How far can the bureaucracy go in the name of efficiency?

Homeland Security Knowledgebase

Pentagon Official News

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THE NATIONAL COURTS

The Constitution created one federal court - the Supreme Court.

It gave Congress the power to create any additional national courts necessary. The complete national court structure has evolved with 91 national district courts (courts of original jurisdiction), 13 national appeals courts and the Supreme Court. When the Supreme Court hears a case directly it is exercising original jurisdiction.

Comparing NATIONAL and State Court Systems

THE JUSTICE SYSTEM

Each level of the national court system has its own jurisdiction (types of cases a court competent to hear and decide). Even the structure of the Supreme Court is determined by Congress. Originally, the Supreme Court had a chief justice and five associate justices. Today, it has a chief justice and 8 associate justices.

Every year the Supreme Court is asked to review several thousand cases. Judicial review is the power of courts to declare acts of Congress, actions of national executives or laws enacted by any level of government to be unconstitutional.

Virtual Tour of the Supreme Court   

Because the Supreme Court only has time to hear around 150, it must decide which cases to accept and which to reject. The Court decides cases based on merit - cases in which two lower courts have issued contradictory decisions and issues that have broad impact on the country. Occasionally, the Supreme Court will exercise original jurisdiction and hear a case directly.

The Supreme Court only considers cases that are justiciable:

Ø       the petitioner has standing to sue (stake in outcome)

Ø       the case is ripe for decision (has an impact on country)

Ø       it is not moot (it will not have been already decided)

Ø       it is not a political question (issue with which the Congress or the President should deal)

 

A Primer on Supreme Court Procedures

Contrary to popular belief the Supreme Court is limited by a number of factors:

Ø      The Constitution sets certain outer limits by guaranteeing certain rights and liberties.

Ø       Past decisions – precedents - must serve as general guidelines for current decisions.

Ø       The Supreme Court does not have any enforcement power.

Ø       The Supreme Court must rely on public acceptance of its rulings.

Ø       The public may not like a ruling but it must be willing to follow it.

Ø       We can amend the Constitution, which would negate any ruling the Supreme Court may have made on any applicable issue.

The Right accuses the Supreme Court of being too liberal.

The Left accuses the Supreme Court of being too conservative.

If both Republican and Democratic presidents have been able to make their share of Supreme Court nominations over time, can we not say that, over time, we have had a balanced Supreme Court?

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civil liberties & civil rights

The American system of government is based on the concept that power flows from the people to the government.

 

When the power of government is limited by a framework of fundamental written law,
that government is said to be constitutional.

Civil liberties - prohibitions against government interference in lives of its citizens.

Civil liberties refer to individuals in general situations -

        my right to say what I please on the street, your right to worship in the church of your choice.

Civil liberties guarantee individuals freedom from government intrusion into their lives.

Government does not provide liberty. It CAN provide the condition of legal order necessary for liberty.

Government can get too strong without restraint - thus the Bill of Rights - but civil liberties are significant only if individuals use them.

Civil liberties are found in the Bill of Rights, Articles 1, 3 & 6, & various Congressional laws - for example, Freedom of Information Act & Privacy Act.

Liberties Guaranteed in the US Constitution (before the Bill of Rights was added)

May not suspend writs of habeas corpus (except during invasion or rebellion).

Congress or states may not pass bills of attainder.

Congress & states may not pass ex post facto laws.

The right of trial by jury in criminal cases is guaranteed.

Citizens of each state are entitled to the privileges and immunities of the citizens of every other state.

No religious test or qualification for holding federal office are imposed.

States may not pass laws impairing the obligation of contracts.

PROTECTIONS AFFORDED CITIZENS TO PARTICIPATE IN THE POLITICAL PROCESS

Amendment 1: Freedom of religion, speech, press and assembly; right to petition government

PROTECTIONS AGAINST ARBITRARY POLICE AND COURT ACTION

Amendment 4: No unreasonable searches or seizures

Amendment 5: Grand jury indictment required to prosecute an individual for a serious crime, no double jeopardy (being tried twice for the same offense), forcing an individual to testify against himself prohibited, no loss of life, liberty or property without due process

Amendment 6: Right to a speedy, public, impartial trial with defense counsel and right to cross-examine witnesses

Amendment 7: Jury trials in civil suits where value exceeds $20

Amendment 8: No excessive bail or fines, no cruel and unusual punishments

PROTECTIONS OF STATES' RIGHTS AND UNNAMED RIGHTS OF PEOPLE

Amendment 9: Unlisted rights necessarily denied

Amendment 10: Powers not delegated to US or denied to states are reserved to states

OTHER AMENDMENTS

Amendment 2: Right to bear arms

Amendment 3: Troops not quartered in homes in peacetime

Although the Bill of Rights is the fundamental charter of American civil liberties,
the Supreme Court determines how those rights are defined and applied.

Civil liberties were established at a time when the common perception was that individuals could take care of themselves if government left them alone. Gradually Americans became less optimistic about the individual's ability to take care of himself and more optimistic about the government's ability to take care of people.

Do you think this has led to our willingness to allow our freedoms to erode?  Do we now say "the government can have my freedom of privacy if they will keep drugs off of my street?"  If so, have our priorities shifted?

Civil rights - regulations permitting state interference to guarantee rights of full political participation to groups excluded by law, custom or condition of poverty

Civil rights are the freedom or opportunity to take part in government. They usually come about after a struggle leading to new laws that offer guarantees to a previously excluded group. America's history is one of the extension of opportunity to participate in politics to more and different groups of people.

Expansion of the franchise (right to vote) is an obvious example of civil rights struggles.

Amendment 15 gave African Americans right to vote.

Amendment 19 gave women right to vote.

Amendment 26 gave 18-to-20 year olds right to vote.

Specific civil rights are found in Amendments 13-15, 19, 24 & 26.

In addition, Congress has passed a number of Civil Rights Acts over the past several decades.

Although the civil rights movement of African Americans is the most obvious struggle, it is certainly not the only one. Other groups - women, Hispanics, gays & lesbians, migrant workers, children - have struggled and continue to struggle to increase their rights in the system.

IMPLICIT ASSOCIATION TEST   

Homo Stereotypus--Wired for Trouble

Stigmatization

Racism Then

Racism Now

Sexism

Anti-Semitism

Genocide in America

Heterosexism

Making Connections

Reducing Prejudice

THE First Amendment Library

Freedom of Information Act

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Copyright © 1996 Amy S. Glenn
Last updated: 17 May 2012