LECTURE 9

CONGRESS

Political Science 200

David Tabb

1. Congress as world’s most important representative body

• It has not become a place—as legislative bodies have become in many parliamentary systems—where the executive’s bills are rubber-stamped
• In Britain, approximately 97% of the Government’s (Prime Minister and Cabinet) bills are approved by the house of Commons

2. Structural Foundations of Modern Congress

• constitutional rules—bicameralism, enumerated powers, "elastic clause"
• the economy
• the political culture
• nature of population

3. Political contexts

• elections, parties, interest groups, public opinion, and social movements
• electoral connection
• electoral districts—majority of senators (54) come from states which together make up only 20% of population.
• House of Representatives—representation based on population with reapportionment based on national census every ten years
• Gerrymandering occurs when boundary lines are drawn to ensure the election of a particular party. Racial gerrymandering
• Money and Congressional elections
• In the 1994 elections House and Senate candidates spent $690 million
• incumbency factor. Number of competitive districts have declined and incumbents win at higher rates today than in the past.
• From 1950 to 19, over 90% of the House incumbents (those already holding office) ran for reelection, and over 90 percent of them were successful, even in the anti-incumbent atmosphere of the 1992 and 1994 elections, incumbents who ran were reelected at the rate of 88% in ’92 and 91% (in 1994)
• incumbents have 4:1 advantage over challengers in contributes
• PACs give to incumbents—Republican changes
• franking privileges, high-tech computerized mail
• travel budgets and personal presence back home
• case work and pork

5. HOW CONGRESS WORKS

1. The changing shape of the congressional agenda—Welfare as example of most significant shift in 60 years of public policy—

--- ends federal entitlement to welfare and converts the program into a block grant; imposes a five year time limit on welfare benefits without guaranteeing public jobs; significantly curtails access to social welfare programs for legal immigrants who are not yet citizens; pressures states to deny additional benefits to women who have children while already on the rolls, cuts spending on welfare, food tamps and other social programs by about $60 billion over six years.

• Role of President—changing shape of who proposes and who disposes
• role of interest groups—"retro-conservatives" and moralists—Christian Coalition

• role of the states and governors---wanting fewer mandates yet moralists requiring more. Who was going to write the bill –governors or social conservatives.
• voters –and the changing shape of the Southern coalition and the prospect of the 96 election
• the media
• social movements—role of church on left for civil rights and on right for welfare and abortion—Catholic church’s reaction to cutting off benefits to teenage mothers as a possible stimulant to abortion.

1. Congressional committees and process—

1. Standing Committee politics --House, Senate, Conference Committee
2. Committee assignments and Role of Speaker Gingrich and Welfare bill.
3. Role of Party caucuses –Democrats –moderates, conservatives and 2000 electoral cycle.