Government: The Legislative Branch

By Kevin Lo, Dustin Perez, Peter Phong, and Jeremy Siocon

The Congress

• Legislative branch of government• Purpose: pass laws and balance power of

judicial and executive• Made up of House of Representatives and

Senate• Act as counters and countered by Executive

and Judicial Branches

Balance of Power

• Judicial Balance: Congress approves all Federal Justice nominations by president

• Executive Balance: pass impeachment bill and vote on impeachment of president

• Judicial Counter: Justices can render laws void if Unconstitutional

• Executive Counter: President nominates Justices; President can veto bills passed by Congress

House of Representatives

• 435 representatives (based on state populace)• Leaders are Majority, Minority, and Speaker of

the House• All leaders are elected by the representatives• Each individual member holds little power;

generally obey party whips and vote on party lines

• More specialized; more influential on budget

Senate

• 100 senators (2 per state)• Leaders are Majority, Minority, and Vice

President• V.P. only oversees – holds little clout in Senate• Individual members generally do not follow

party whips – do what they think benefits their constituents the best

• More general; focus on foreign affairs

Congressional Elections

• Incumbents generally win elections• Higher incumbent wins percentage in Senate

than in House• Incumbents have more money and public

awareness than Challengers• Challengers have a higher chance of winning if

there is a scandal or if the Incumbent retires• 6 year Senate terms; 2 year House terms

Bill Overview• Bills either drafted by members of Congress or

submitted by public via petition• Go over bills in congressional committees• To make bills more appealing, add:Pork Barrel SpendingChristmas Tree Bills• Bills only enter Congress for voting after being

approved by committees

Bill Overview (cont.)• After debating bill in both House and Senate, two

new bills created from original if bill passed• If bill rejected or if not passed before

Congressional recess, bill is dead• Senate and House reconcile differences in Joint

Committee• Bill then sent to president for approval or veto• Congress can override presidential veto with 2/3

vote

The Filibuster

• Exclusive tactic to Senate• Used by Senators in opposition of bill to block

passage by wasting enough time until voting period passes and Recess is called

• Senator must continue talking and may not sit, leave the room, lean, etc. for the duration

• Senators may pass the Filibuster onto allies if they do so during the Filibuster

Linkage Institutions

• Interest Groups: Fund Congressmen campaigns with money in exchange for support on issues

• Media: More money = more advertising = more recognition among voters; Incumbents generally do better due to having more money

• Sub-national Government: Consist of constituents that Congressmen try to please in order to gain votes

Constituents

• Include sub-national governments, groups, and citizens in the congressional district

• Congressmen try to gain support by:Pork Barrel Spending (indirect: based on bills)Casework (direct: getting past red tape)• Generally support incumbent unless retiring

or involved in scandal