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Chapter 11
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Congress as a Career: Election to Congress
Using incumbency to stay in CongressThe service strategy: taking care of constituentsCampaign fundraising: raking in the moneyRedistricting: favorable boundaries for incumbents
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Congress as a Career: Election to Congress
Pitfalls of incumbencyDisruptive issuesPersonal misconductTurnout variation: the midterm election problemPrimary election challengersGeneral election challengers: a problem for senatorsA new threat: super PACs
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Parties and Party LeadershipParty caucus—closed sessionParty unity in Congress
Parties are the strongest force within CongressHeightened unity seen through roll-call votes in recent
decades
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Parties and Party LeadershipParty leadership in Congress
House leadersSpeaker of the HouseHouse majority leaderHouse majority whip
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Parties and Party LeadershipSpeaker of the House
Elected by the House membershipBy default, a member of the majority partySaid to be the second-most-powerful official in WashingtonDevelops party issuesPersuades party membersCan speak first during debateRecognizes speakers during debateInfluences House Rules Committee
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Parties and Party LeadershipSenate leaders
Majority party leader is the most powerful senatorThe vice president presides over the Senate; however, has
power only to cast tie-breaking voteSenate president pro tempore presides over the Senate in the
vice president’s absenceLargely an honorary position held by the majority party’s
senior member
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Committees and Committee Leadership
Committee types: standing, select, conferenceCommittee jurisdiction
Bills introduced must be referred to the proper committee Committee membership typically mirrors the party ratio
of the bodyCommittee chairs
Typically senior members of the majority party Committees and parties: which is in control?
The power of subcommittees: “little legislatures”
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How a Bill Becomes a LawCommittee hearings and decisions
Most work on legislation is done in committeeFrom committee to the floor
Rules for debate are definedLeadership and floor action
Debate, changes, and vote by full membershipConference committees and the president
Reconcile differences between similar legislationPresident signs, vetoes, or uses pocket veto
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Congress’s Policymaking RoleLawmaking function of Congress
Makes laws authorizing federal programsBroad issues: fragmentation as a limit on Congress’s role
The president typically has the more prominent role.Congress in the lead: fragmentation as a policymaking
strengthAbility to deal with narrow problems, but not broad ones
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Congress’s Policymaking RoleThe representation function of Congress
Representation of states and districts: focus on the localRepresentation of the nation through parties: focus on the
big issuesThe obstacle of partisan divisions
Oversight function of CongressSees that executive branch carries out the laws faithfullyDone primarily by committeesDemanding task that can’t be done adequately
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Congress: An Institution DividedPro (advantages):
Culturally representative of nationDiverse interests represented
Cons (disadvantages):National interest subjugated to special interestsDisproportionate influence of the minority
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