Assemblies

definition• Legislative bodies• Their formal approval usually required for major

public policies• Generally elected by popular vote• Also called legislatures, parliaments, senates,

chambers, houses, or diets• Almost all political systems today have

assemblies– More than 80% of countries in the UN have an

assembly– Suggests a legitimate government must formally

include a representative popular component

structure• Vary in size and organization• Unicameral – one chamber• Bicameral – two chambers

– Most common in democracies and some authoritarian systems– Federal systems provide for 2 forms of representation based on

population and geographic units– Even common in unitary systems

• Second chamber serves to check policymaking rather than represent subnational units

– Usually 1 chamber is dominant • US unusual because both House & Senate have roughly equal powers• 1 chamber normally designed to protect regional interests• 2nd chamber sometimes chosen by regional governments, not by

popular vote

Internal Organization• Two kinds of internal legislative organization:

– Party Groups• Democrats, Republicans, Labour, Conservative, etc.

– Formal Assembly Sub-Units• Presiding officers, committees, etc.• All legislatures have committee structures

– Would be impossible to handle large flow of legislative business w/o them

– Committees can be very influential, as in US and Germany– Strong committees tend to have clear legislative division of labor matching executive branch– British committees are weaker – small staffs & get appointed for one bill at a time

• Often an inverse relationship: stronger parties = weaker committees and vice versa– British members of Parliament vote strictly along partly lines much more

consistently than in US Congress• British rarely vote against instructions of partly leaders• Deviating from party line means risking fall of government & new elections

– In presidential systems, president & legislature are independently elected for fixed terms, so the fate of the governing party is less tied up with voting on legislative matters• Party discipline operates principally on procedural questions, such as questioning

committee assignments• Legislators are freer to decide whether or not to vote with party leaders

functions• Deliberate, debate, and vote on policies

– Legislation is formed elsewhere in most countries, like by the political executive & bureaucracy

• Most important policies & rules must be considered and formally approved by assemblies before becoming law

• Typically control public spending (budget)• Some may serve as court of appeals

– British House of Lords in criminal cases

• US Congress at one extreme of importance in policymaking– Very active role in forming & enacting legislation

• House of Commons in Great Britain is in the middle– Legislative proposals sometimes initiated or modified by members of Parliament– Public policy is usually proposed by members of the Cabinet (who are chosen from the

Parliament)

• National People’s Congress of People’s Republic of China the other extreme– Meets infrequently– Does little more than listen to statements by party leaders & stamp decisions made

elsewhere

• Assemblies are not only legislative bodies– Can play role in elite recruitment, esp. in parliamentary systems– Committee hearings & debates are places for interest articulation and aggregation– Debates can be source of public information for citizens

US Congress

• All representatives chosen through direct election (vacancies may be filled by gubernational appointment though)

• Two houses:– Senate

• Serve 6-year terms, with staggered terms (every 2 years, approximately 1/3 of the Senate is up for election)

• Each state has 2 senators• 100 total representing 50 states• Vice President is the ex officio

president

– House of Representatives• Serve two-year terms• Districts apportioned by population

using Census results• Elects a Speaker that serves as the

majority party’s leader

• Almost all affiliated with Republican or Democratic Party

• Belong to committees, based on their specialties, that write legislation– Ideas for legislation come from

members, lobbyists, state legislatures, constituents, counsel, or executive agencies

– Only members of Congress may introduce bills

– Most originate from the Executive branch

– Bills that get approved in one house go to the other and are passed, rejected, or amended

– Both houses must agree to identical versions of the bill for it to become law

• Functions– Authority over financial &

budgetary policy– Collect taxes, duties, imposts, and

excises– Pay debts & provide for common

defense and welfare• Declare war

– Issue patents & copyrights– Establish post offices– Investigate & oversee executive

branch

Structure of British Government

Public

Local Governmen

t

Scottish Parliament

Welsh Assembly

House of Lords

Prime Minister

Civil Service

Cabinet

House of Commons

British Parliamentary System• Disclaimer - Monarch is ceremonial head of state, not an actual ruler• Public vote for members House of Commons [Parliament]• Members of the Parliament choose the Prime Minister, who is the head of

government– Must first be elected leader of his or her party – Needs to maintain popularity with the public and Parliament– Must keep confidence of the majority party to stay in office– Makes & balances policies

• Prime Minister selects members of the Cabinet– Senior ministers that are members of the House of Commons

or House of Lords• Initiate policies• Avoid unpopular decisions• Success depends on promoting department interests in Parliament

– Ensure agreement about major policies– Frequency of meetings has been declining for past 20 years or so– Remain important as department heads – decisions are made within departments

& they’re responsible for overseeing all services of government– Departments: External Affairs, Economic Affairs, Law, Social Services, Territorial,

& Managing Government Business

• Civil Servants administer laws & deliver public services; also advise Cabinet ministers

Role of Parliament• Elected House of Commons + nonelected House of Lords

– House of Lords initially hereditary peers, now life peers, members of House of Commons, or prominent donors of money to a party

• Principal division is between the majority party and opposition in the House of Commons

• Voting is [almost] always along party lines– Someone voting against the party leader’s decision is considered rebellion– Need to maintain the majority in Parliament to keep your job.. So vote the ‘right way’– Opposition cannot expect to alter major government decisions because it lacks a

majority of votes in the Commons

• Government, not Parliament, decides budget for programs [institutions, civil servants]

• First function is to weigh political reputations – members assess colleagues as ministers or potential ministers

• Second function – members have access to ministers to express concerns• Third function – publicizing issues• Fourth function – scrutinizing legislation• Fifth function – examine how well departments administer public policies;

investigate complaints about maladministration• Limited influence of both houses of Parliament encourages proposals for

reform– Power to make major changes rests with the government rather than House of

Commons

Pen Pal Letter

Explain the structure of the US Congress and ask questions about the assembly of your pen pal’s country.

Representation• Legislative assemblies

valued for representing citizens in national policymaking process

• It is not obvious what the ideal linkage between citizens & government officials should be

Qualities for Representatives

• Generally want people to be agents for constituents – Selected for ability to serve interests

of citizens– Regardless of sharing voters’

background characteristics

• Need similar preferences to citizens– Generally aligned by political party

• Need skills to do their job– Education + experience

Descriptive Representation

• Government officials should mirror the characteristics of citizens as far as possible

• Especially important with race, class, ethnicity, gender, language, and age

• Tends to be more important to people in local assemblies than regulatory agencies

Do you think it is important that a Senator look like you to represent your interests?

Limits of Mirroring• Better to have reps be more educated, better

informed, and more experienced than you? • Should we will an assembly with people lacking

skills and qualifications just for their skin color or gender?

• Members of legislative assemblies hardly ever mirror citizens– Tend to be middle- or upper-class, or well-educated from

lower classes– Women poorly represented in political leadership– Unrepresentative with respect to age (<40 years old

rare)– Class biases getting worse, while women’s

representation getting better

Diversity of the 113th Congress

• Most diverse in history!• Record number of Blacks, Latinos,

Asians, and women sworn in among 535 Senate and House members– 8% Black [43]– 6% Latino [32]– 5.6% Asian [30]– 18.9% Women [101]– Four Arab Americans & 1 Caribbean

American too

• First openly gay Senator elected• First openly bisexual woman in the

House of Representatives• First Buddhist Senator & Hindu

House Rep.• Average Age of Senators - 61• Average Age of House Members -

56

• Not reflective of US demographics– 13% Black– 16% Hispanic– 5% Asian– 51% Women– Median Age :

37

Debate• Do demographics impact effective

representation of interests in legislature?

• Do the representatives need to look like you to defend your beliefs and values?