Lecture Notes: Structure and Functioning of the U.S. Congress

Overview of Congress

• Two Houses
  • Senate: 100 members (2 per state, regardless of population)
    • Terms: 6 years
    • Elected directly since the 17th Amendment
  • House of Representatives: 435 members (based on state population)
    • Terms: 2 years
    • Always directly elected by the people

Eligibility Requirements

• Senate
  • Must be at least 30 years old
  • U.S. citizen for 9 years
  • Resident of the state represented
• House of Representatives
  • Must be at least 25 years old
  • U.S. citizen for 7 years
  • Resident of the state represented

Representation and Diversity

• Historically dominated by wealthy white males
• Underrepresentation of women and minorities
• First female Speaker in 2007

Congressional Elections

• Incumbency Advantage
  • High re-election rates (especially in the House)
  • Incumbents have name recognition, media visibility, and campaign funding
  • Use of franking privilege for communication
  • Credit claiming through casework and pork barrel projects
• Challenges for New Candidates
  • Weak opponents due to lack of resources and recognition
  • Campaign spending advantages for incumbents

Redistricting and Gerrymandering

• Redistricting occurs every 10 years based on the census
• Gerrymandering manipulates district boundaries for political advantage
• Often results in safe seats and decreased competitiveness

Factors Leading to Incumbent Loss

• Bad economy, scandals, shifting public mood
• Effects of midterm elections
• Redistricting changes
• Presence of open seats

Congressional Organization for Policymaking

• Bicameral Legislature
  • House of Representatives: based on population
  • Senate: equal representation per state
• Enumerated and Implied Powers
  • Passing federal budget, raising revenue, coining money
  • Declaring war
  • Necessary and Proper Clause allows broad policy creation

Unique Powers of Each House

• House of Representatives
  • Revenue bills must start in the House
  • Power to impeach
  • Rules Committee controls bill timing and debate lengths
• Senate
  • Confirms presidential nominations, ratifies treaties
  • Holds impeachment trials
  • Filibuster and cloture rules

Congressional Leadership

• Majority and Minority Leaders in both houses
• House Speaker: main leadership role, committee assignments
• Vice President: head of the Senate, votes in ties

Committees and Their Roles

• Types of Committees
  • Standing, Joint, Conference, Select
  • Determine agenda, create legislation, conduct hearings
• Importance of committee assignments for influence and re-election
• Committee Chairs
  • Influence agendas, fast-track bills
  • Generally follow seniority system

Informal Organization: Caucuses

• Congressional interest groups based on ideology, demographics
• Help shape policy and coordinate efforts

Role of Congressional Staff

• Support legislative process, draft bills, meet with lobbyists

Bill Introduction and Process

• Only Congress members can introduce bills
• Must pass through committees before full House/Senate vote

Relationship with the Presidency

• Congress can act independently from the President
• Divided government leads to partisan conflicts
• Constituents hold legislators accountable through elections

Models of Representation

• Trustee Model: Best judgment for the people's interest
• Instructed Delegates Model: Reflect constituents' policy choices
• Politico Model: Hybrid of the two

Challenges and Criticisms

• Unrepresentative demographics in Congress
• Gerrymandering, campaign finance issues
• Tendency to prioritize local over national interests (pork barrel spending)
• Logrolling and its effects on government scope

Note: This summary aims to capture key points from the lecture and may omit specific examples or detailed explanations provided during the presentation.