U.S. Congress - Lecture notes - POL 323 1 - 30 - 12 PDF

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Errol Kupelian

1/30/12 POL 323- Legislative Process

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Constitutional Convention o Battle over ratification once drafted  Federalists= advocates, had advantages over the anti-federalists  Federalist Papers used in State Conventions  Anti-Federalists= opponents  The lack of unity was the weakness to the opposition, had a multitude of complaints whereas the federalists only had support the Constitution (ex Federalist Papers- #15). o Federalists tended to concentrate on the coasts, where the anti-federalists were usually in the interior/frontier areas in land.  The manufacturing/commerce sectors, which concentrated on the coasts, saw the disaster that was the Articles, where the anti-federalists appealed to the homesteaders and frontier people who just wanted to be left alone by the government. o Among the states that had not yet ratified the constitution, Virginia and New York did not ratify after a few weeks, but eventually ratified. o Rhode Island refused to even have a Constitutional Convention, and resisted for months until they were threatened with foreign nation status March 1789- Washington was inaugurated and a government was ready to set up. The government was extremely small back in the beginning. The expectations for government were so radically smalle r. Early operation of Congress o Initially small government due to low expectations for services provided:  Deliver mail  Collect ‘tariffs’ on imported goods  Modest defense needs  No welfare, art subsidies, consumer protection, environmental protection, etc. o State governments had much greater impact on citizens than federal government Congress set up to maximize member participation & control, not efficiency o Few staff aides o No debate limits in either chamber  People could speak on questions for hours, but there was nothing to do in Washington anyway o No leadership structure beyond constitutionally mandated ones  Speaker is constitutionally mandated, however on a technical point, it does not say the speaker needs to be a member of the House  Two leadership positions in Senate  President of the Senate (Vice President of the US)  President Pro-Tempore o No standing committees  No House Rules Committee

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Determines the procedures that are used on the floor of the House. Ex: whole bill may be amended, or half may be amended, allocations of time, rules of normal procedure etc. Without the Rules committee, all bills were handled the same way. A bill creating the judiciary system would be no different between establishing a federal turnpike between cities.  No seniority system  System for allocating power on committees. The power on the committees goes to the most senior members. Didn’t exist because there were no standing committees. Very efficient way of doing business, even with all its flaws.  Prior to standing committees, congress would create ad hoc committees or select committees for issues.  Early Congress:  Senate and House discuss bills as whole. After debate and general points lay down, an ad hoc or select committee to finetune the details. It would then go back to Congress for final approval. Very inefficient  Modern Congress:  Bill introduced, goes to one of the standing committees. Once the standing committee believes the legislation is worthy, they will send the bill to Congress for approval. Complete reversal from the early Congress. o No party organization  Members talk about party caucuses, Jeffersonian Caucus or federalist caucus etc. The assumption through most of our history is that there was always a highly organized party system. Others disagree saying that there was no organized party system, because the members were talking about how the opposition had some kind of mysterious cabal of members. They never spoke about their own organization, only the other side’s shadowy organization.  Also points out, if their were parties, you would expect to see party voting for the speaker’s election in the House of Reps. This is because the speaker was a very powerful figure, and would have been very important for a party to control. The votes for speaker were typically split, lots of candidates got lots of votes, which lashes against the concept of a unified party to push candidates.  Nominations for people to be on committees also show a lack of organization. The committees had some kind of representation formula for the different boarding houses. Each boarding house would get one assignment. The boarding houses could be the basic political unit of Congress. Boarding Houses really worked as Blocs. Something like 98% of individuals in a boarding house voted the same way. There must have been some kind of pressure/influence for the boarding houses. Boarding houses were listed in the congressional records rather than political party. The Boarding Houses were all the 

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social life that existed in the Washington community, which created lots of pressure for conformity. The real unified political party came into existence under Andrew Jackson.

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Errol Kupelian

1/27/12 POL 323

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Legislative Process Shay’s Rebellion (1786)- final straw showing need for stronger government  Indebted farmers rebelling against foreclosure of their farms for debt. Massachusetts’s mercantile interests were demonized; Shay used the Sons of Liberty mindset and tried to prevent foreclosure proceedings in courts.  Massachusetts was having difficulty putting down the rebellion, and no other state was going to help.  Shay’s rebellion was ominous to foreign relations, indicated that the US might not survive. Proved need for strong central government. o States afraid of spread of unrest and their inability to handle it Decision to hold convention in Philadelphia in 1787 to amend the Articles Constitutional Convention Purpose to amend the Articles of Confederation. Meeting was held in secret closeted their proceedings and closed off for several months to facilitated compromises. We do not really know everything that happened in the Constitutional Convention, did keep a record of the formal votes they took. Became clear the Articles could not be amended, but needed a new system. o Most obvious issue was power of national government  Right to levy taxes essential  States would never volunteer funds under the articles  Right to maintain national army was also key  Asking voluntary militia cooperation was not effective o Issue of who would control new government  Virginia V New Jersey Plan  Virginia Plan- 1st plan (Large state plan) advantaged the large states. Virginia plan had 2 chambers. The lower chamber would be based on population; the lower chamber would select the upper chamber.  The representatives would be coming directly from the people, considered pretty radical  Executive was unspecified  Decisions made by majority vote  Legislature could override state laws  Executive removal- unspecified  National judiciary  Ratification- people would approve it, special conventions/vote where the people would directly decide  New Jersey Plan  One chamber, representatives derived from states  Executive had more than one person- goal to not centralize to much power

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Extraordinary vote Vague, but said national laws would be supreme (sign of how desperate the situation was, because the NJ plan was basically a clone of the Articles, and even they had federal supremacy of laws)  A majority of the states could overturn the executive  No judiciary  Ratification would be by the states  Great Compromise  Great Compromise reached on structure of legislature combining elements of the plans. The Great Compromise was specifically involved with the structure of the legislative branch, would keep the bicameral legislature, kept the lower chamber based on population, and had the upper chamber elected by the states. Small states were protected by the upper chamber  In some ways, a powerful president  Commander-in-chief of the armed forces after a declared war, and would be able to respond to an attack.  Responsible for executing laws  Supervising foreign relations  Powers might have been problem but o Assumed Washington would be president (Seen as an American Cincinnatus o States given central role in election via Electoral College  Backup procedure is the vote goes to the House of Representatives (votes by State) o Articles of Confederation Vs Federal Convention  Extraordinary majority vs. majority  Amendment process required unanimity vs. amendment process difficult 2/3rds of house and senate, and then 3/4ths of the states. States could also petition for a new Constitutional convention  No authority to act directly on individuals vs. ample powers to coerce and enforce laws Some omissions o No mention of political parties o Operation of federal system vague  Relationship between national and state governments ambiguous, federal laws would be supreme, but the allocation of powers was not stated. This was remedied somewhat by the 10th amendment to the Constitution. 10th remains very vague and leaves the question open. o No precise standard of citizenship stated  The citizen of each state is entitled to the rates granted to all other citizens in other states. Not rectified until after the civil war. 14th  

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amendment says that all persons born or naturalized in the United States are citizens of the US o “Slavery” never explicitly mentioned  Importation not limited in short run  Fugitives had been captured and returned  Partial counting in census- 3/5ths rule Battle over ratification once drafted o 16 out of 55 delegates at the Constitutional Convention did not sign  Would be ratified when the conventions in 9 states had approved it  Specifically said special conventions would be created rather than relying on states. Wanted a direct expression of support o Federalists = advocates (not necessarily a party, but more of a movement, persuasion)  Federalist Papers used in State Conventions o Anti-Federalists = Opponents (Also not really a party, no formal rules)  Lack of unity amongst opponents, varied complaints- did not want the Constitution as is, but might be willing to ratify under certain amendments  President too strong  No listing of individual rights- most widespread complaints  Corruption possible  Role of states too small o

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Errol Kupelian

2/1/12 POL 323

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Internal Operations: How a Bill Becomes a Law Intro: There is one exception to where legislation begins only in the House- taxation bills. o However, there is a way around this, the Senate can take a bill from the House, gut it and put in taxation legislation, which is a loophole in the constitution. Anyone may draft a bill; however, only members of Congress can introduce legislation, and by doing so become the sponsor(s), members generally say “by request” when the administration wants a bill, and congressmen is doing so as a courtesy. There are 4 basic types of legislation  Bills  HR or S Designation  Has two forms o Private Bill- Bill that concerns a named person. A named person does not have to be a person, could be a corporation, a person, etc. Constitution prevents bills of attainder (legislative punishment), but not private bills. Not published as a public law (PL 120 (120th congress)- #) o Public Bill- everything else  Standard boilerplate language (A Bill to [purpose/title]/ Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the USA in Congress assembled that ______ (Bill continues there).) o This boilerplate language is referred to as the enactment clause; ordinarily every bill must have the enactment clause to be a valid bill. One way of attacking a bill is to amend it by removing the enactment clause. This is a procedural method to attack a bill.  Joint Resolutions  Designation- H J Res, or S J Res, (has lots of whereas clauses…) come in two varieties: o Type A- a joint resolution that goes to the President. Will become law, requires majority in the House and Senate, presented to the President for signing o Constitutional Amendment- all amendments go through the House and Senate in the form of Joint Resolutions, and do not go to the President for approval. They do require 2/3rds majority before they are sent out to the States.  Concurrent resolutions  Designation- H Con res, or S Con Res, concerned both chambers but not the President. There are budget resolutions

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that are introduced (kind of the Congressional response to the President’s budget) but they are negotiated between the House and the Senate, and never given to the President for approval. Passed through a simple majority, it’s not a bill so it does not need presidential approval. Terminology can be tricky. Concurrent means both chambers have to concur or agree with a proposal.  Simple resolutions  Has a designation, H Res, or S Res, has an impact on one chamber only. Only has to be passed by one chamber. Ex: How a bill would be handled on the floor of a particular chamber. o Official legislative process begins when a bill or resolution is numbered H.R. for the House of Reps, and S. for a Senate Bill- referring to a committee and printed by the Government Printing Office. Bills introduced to both the House and Senate at the same time are Companion Bills Step 1: Referral to Committee: o With few exceptions, bills are referred to standing committees in the House or Senate according to carefully delineated rules of procedure o Can become more complicated, could have sequential referral- a situation where one committee will get it initially, and then it gets sent to another committee. Ex: Bill dealing with Taxation of Wheat that is exported to a foreign country. Could go to a taxes committee, then an agriculture committee, and then foreign relations. A bill can go to several committees at once- multiple referrals. Step 2: Committee Action: o When a bill reaches a committee it is placed on a Committee’s calendar (basically just a list of bills). A bill can be referred to a subcommittee or considered by the committee as a whole. It is at the point that a bill is examined carefully and its chances for passage are determined. If the committee does not act on a bill, it is the equivalent of killing it. There are some exceptions where extraordinary measures can be taken to revive a bill. o Just like the House and Senate, each committee has its standing rules, which will dictate whether or not a bill is automatically sent to a subcommittee. Step 3: Subcommittee Review: o Often, bills are referred to a subcommittee for study and hearings. Hearings provide the opportunity to put on the record the views of the executive branch, experts, other public officials, supporters and opponents of the legislation. Testimony can be given in person or submitted in writing.  If hearings are called, at least the sponsors will be brought forth to justify the bill, opponents will come to attack the bill, and the administration will be there to testify to the administration’s stance, special interests, and last and generally least, average citizens will be asked to testify if they have particularly poignant talking points. The average citizens are generally magnets for attention for the public.

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o Some bills don’t have hearings and go directly to the next step in the process. Most bills will have some sorts of hearing; can go from 0 to years of hearings/congresses of hearings. o Ex: Some administration wanted to rewrite the federal penal code, and it took years of hearings, bills, and multiple congresses to finish the job o Lengthy hearings can be used as a tactic against the bill by stretching out other things. o Bills can sit in Congress for the life of Congress, so a bill introduced in the beginning of Congress can languish 2 years. Since the vast majority of bills do not go anywhere, why are they introduced? The main reason is politics, if a politician at least introduces a bill, he can say he has introduced a bill, with no mention of the fate of the bill. Interesting trend, more and more bills are being introduced and much fewer are being passed, where in the past (1790s or something) fewer bills were introduced and most were passed. Step 4: Mark Up: o When the hearings are completed, the subcommittee may meet to “mark up” the bill, that is, make changes and amendments prior to recommending the bill to the full committee. A subcommittee must vote to report the legislation to a full committee. If a subcommittee votes not to report legislation to the full committee, the bill dies. Step 5: Committee Action to Report A Bill: o After receiving a subcommittee’s report on a bill, the full committee can conduct further study and hearings, or it can vote on the subcommittee’s recommendations and any proposed amendments. A full committee can fully review the mark up the legislation again if they want. The full committee then votes on its recommendation to the House or Senate. This procedure is called “ordering a bill reported.” o Full committees can order more hearings for a variety of reasons, either there are a large number of members of the committee who do not understand the full bill, or the subcommittee was not trusted etc. o Designation for “ordering a bill reported” = H Rept 120-# or S Rept 120-# o Judicial question, either or not “reporting a bill” gives a idea of what Congress/Committee was trying to do. But the counter to that is the report is a showing of what the committee wants to do, not the entire Congress.

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Errol Kupelian

2/3/2012 POL 323

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Step 6: Publication of a Written Report: o After a committee votes to a have a bill reported, the committee chairman instructs staff to prepare a written report on the bill. This report describes the intent and scope of the legislation, impact on existing laws and programs, position of the executive branch, and views of dissenting members of the committee.  Ex: There is legislation that allows private companies to open mines on federal land. The bureaucrat who would handle this is the Secretary of the Interior. Congress can also stipulate that there are certain qualifications, like a mining company must cover over and restore the land after mining is done. The Secretary of the Interior may feel a mining company shouldn’t be granted a permit. The Courts then get involved in arbitrating what was the intent of Congress. Some people would look at the written report. Step 7: Scheduling Floor Action: o After a bill is reported back to the chamber where it originated, it is placed in chronological order on the calendar. In the House there are several different legislative calendars, and the speaker and majority leader largely determine if, when, and in what orders bills come up. In the Senate there is only one legislative calendar.  There are several major Calendars:  The Union Calendar- House  The Legislative Calendar/ Business Calendar- Senate  There’s a problem with a chronological list, that means that noncontroversial issues are at the top of the list, and controversial items will be buried further down the calendar.  There needs to be a way to get around the chronological list Step 7 A: Bringing the bill to the floor o Once a bill is buried on the legislative calendar, how do we pick the bill off?  In the House, to pick a bill off one typically goes to the House Rules Committee. “I want permission to bring the bill to the floor out of order, with this order of procedure etc.” o The House Rules Committee grants tickets to the floor, and procedures to be used on the floor. o The House Rules Committee acts like Gods of the process, by reviewing whether or not a bill is worthy of even being considered/ a good bill. o You cannot tell off the House Rules committee, but there is lots of resentment to the House Rules committee.  Senate- unanimous cons...