AP US GOVERNMENT
Review Topics/Vocab CONGRESS
o Bicameral legislature – why?
o Membership: Congress – 535; House – 435; Senate 100
o Mostly white, male, lawyers (businesspeople next highest)
o 2 senators per state; each state guaranteed at least one seat in the House
o Qualifications for House: 25, 7 yrs. Citizen, resident of district
o Qualifications for Senate: 30, 9 yrs. Citizen, resident of state
o Functions: Legislative (passing laws) and Oversight (overseeing the bureaucracy)
o House members must come from single-member districts of “equal” populations
o Baker v. Carr– Federal courts have final say over state-drawn congressional districts
o Wesberry v. Sanders – Ct. ordered house districts to be as equal as possible, the “one man, one vote” principle.
o Reapportionment:
o Census every 10 years to count population & determine # of each state’s congressional districts
o State legislatures draw district boundaries to ensure equal “populations”
§ Districts also have to be contiguous lines
o So… majority party in state is making the determination on district lines
§ Results in gerrymandering – what is it?
§ Difference between cracking and packing?
o Population shifts in last 2 censuses have increased seats for Southern states & for suburbs
§ Sunbelt Rustbelt Frostbelt
o Elections/Terms:
o House – every 2 years; incumbent rates high (over 90+%)
o Senate – 6 year terms BUT elections for 1/3 of Senate every 2 years; keeps more continuity in Senate (incumbent rates also high – recently 80%)
o U.S. Term Limits v. Thornton – states cannot set term limits for Congress – WHY NOT?
o Advantages of Incumbency:
o Advertising – with franking privilege
o Credit claiming – including casework and pork barrel
o Public Position on issues / Party identification
o Money from PACS goes to incumbents – most effect in House elections
o Attempts to make Congress more representative of the American public:
o Voting Rights Act, 1965 –states to increase minority representation; didn’t happen so Act amended in ’82 with specific reference to blacks & Hispanics
o After ’90 census, states then created majority-minority districts
o Held unconstitutional in Shaw v. Reno, 1993 – invalidated a NC all-black, bizarrely drawn district; boundaries were not contiguous & drawn with intent to discriminate; Constitution does NOT guarantee ethnic & racial representation in Congress
§ Bush v. Vera – says the same thing a couple of years later
o Powers of Congress are spelled out in great detail but P’s powers, for example, are NOT spelled out in as great of detail - WHY?
o Expressed/Enumerated/Delegated Powers: (both houses of Congress)
o Tax, regulate commerce, raise an army, create/make rules for federal courts, DECLARE WAR, establish naturalization laws, establish post offices, provide for militia, coin money….
o Implied Powers – via the elastic clause (a/k/a the necessary and proper clause – why?)
o Powers unique to House: only House may initiate revenue (tax) laws; power to impeach
o Powers unique to Senate: try impeachment cases; ratify P’s treaties (2/3) & appointments (maj.)
o Prohibited actions: no ex post facto laws; taxing exports, titles of nobility; bills of attainder (a measure imposing punishment through legislation without a trial)
o Non-legislative functions of Congress:
o Oversight – oversee bureaucratic agencies (through committees/subcommittees); serves as a check on the executive branch
o Public education – committee hearings/floor debates increase public awareness of problems/important issues
o Help constituents with problems with government (casework)
o Impeachment; Approval of appointments
o Leadership in Congress:
o HOUSE - Speaker (Paul Ryan) – chosen by majority party and directs floor debate, influences committee assignments & Rules Committee
o SENATE – President is VP of US – his only constitutional duty & can only vote to break a tie; President Pro Tempore–senior member of majority party
o H & S: Majority Leader - determines party’s policy & agenda
o H & S: Majority Whip – keeps party members in line and gets out the vote
o H & S: Minority Leader & Minority Whip – same roles for the minority party
o Congressional voting – influenced by party, president, constituents, sigs, PACs. Logrolling – colleague pressure: “you help me on this bill & I’ll help you on yours.”
o Committees: do the work of Congress & majority party rules. It has the majority of seats on all committees & most senior member will become the committee chair. What’s a ranking member?
o House has more committees than Senate but because it’s so large, House members actually serve on less committees and House members become more specialized than Senators.
o Congressional committees have power to subpoena witnesses for committee hearings.
o 4 types of committees:
o Standing – permanent, specialized (by subject matter) committees in each house
o Joint - members from both houses; usually for hearings/investigations; do not write bills
o Select - temporary in each house; special purpose (Watergate); do send bills.
o Conference – temporary with members from both houses to work out a compromise bill when House & Senate pass different versions of a bill
o MOST BILLS DIE IN SUBCOMMITTEE/COMMITTEE!
o Special Committees:
o House has unique, powerful committee – House Rules Committee
§ Acts as “traffic cop” & reviews all bills & determines which get to House floor, sets time limit for debate, sets rule as to whether it can be amended on floor, etc.
o Committees that write tax codes: House – Ways & Means; Senate – Finance
o Appropriations Committee in each house of Congress determine budget for federal bureaucratic agencies.
o Law-making process:
o Only a member of House or Senate can introduce – sponsor – a bill.
o Bills must pass both houses in exactly the same version.
o 1st step after introduction: bills assigned to committee – pass (report out), kill or amend
o 2nd step – to full floor of the House/Senate for debate & voting
§ House – Rules Committee limits debate & whether amendments are allowed
§ Senate – unlimited debate – can filibuster to delay vote on bill (only stopped by cloture – need vote of 60 members)
§ Senate also allows amendments during debate: can have amendments that have nothing to do with the bill – riders – many times pork barrel
· Earmarks - directs approved funds to be spent on specific pet projects (pork) or directs specific exemptions from taxes or mandated fees
o 3rd step if different versions passed – to conference committee for compromise bill
o Once same version is passed, bill goes to President – must act within 10 days:
§ Signs it OR just lets it sit for 10 days while Congress is in session = it’s law
§ Lets it sit for 10 days during which Congress adjourns = it’s a pocket veto and is dead
§ Vetoes it, gives reasons (veto message) & returns it to Congress who can:
· Make changes and resubmit it for approval OR
· Override veto with 2/3 vote in both houses (difficult-only 4% of time)
o Line-item veto – held unconstitutional in Clinton v. NY City, 1996 (we’ll study this when we get to the President chapter … nextJ)
AP U.S. GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
CONGRESS: MAJORITY V. SUPERMAJORITY
Majority Votes required to:
Pass a Bill--Majority in both Houses
Confirm a Vice President (25th Amendment)--Majority in both Houses
Confirm a SC Justice--Majority in Senate
Confirm ambassadors, confirm cabinet members--Majority in Senate
To bring Articles of Impeachment--Majority in the House
Supermajority required to:
Override a veto--2/3 vote in both Houses
Propose an Amendment--2/3 of both Houses
Cloture on a Filibuster--60 votes in the Senate
Conviction and Removal from Office (Impeachment Trial)--2/3 Vote in the Senate
To approve a treaty--2/3 of Senate