CONGRESS EXAM REVIEW ADVANCED PLACEMENT AMERICAN GOVERNMENT 80 Questions/60 Minutes MAX Mr. Baysdell

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1 CONGRESS EXAM REVIEW ADVANCED PLACEMENT AMERICAN GOVERNMENT 80 Questions/60 Minutes MAX Mr. Baysdell 1. Things you should know about Congress: Members have two different types of staff members; personal staffs that handle constituent concerns and committee staffs, which help the Congressman on committee tasks. The most important structural principle of Congress is bicameralism, which designates that there are 2 houses, the lower House of Representatives and the upper house, the Senate. Control of committees is influenced by seniority, but this is not the only factor. Study groups exist to unite Congressmen with similar identities. 2. With respect to political parties and the structure of Congress, you should know: Members are divided along party lines for organizational purposes The majority party gets all the committee chairs The Republican Conference and the Democratic Caucus serve as the beginning of important organizational decisions in both the House and Senate The party s leaders are selected through the party conference or caucus 3. The Conservative Caucus, the Wednesday Group, and the Conservative Democratic Forum (Blue Dog Democrats) are all examples of study groups or coalitions. Standing committees are permanent subject matter committees. 4. Know about the following forms of representation: Demographic Representation Does the Congressman s race, religion, etc. match his constituency? Formal Representation American colonist belief that to be represented, Colonists needed actual seats in the British Parliament Virtual Representation British idea that all MPs represent the entire Empire, therefore Colonists claims were unfounded Symbolic Representation Is the lawmaker considered believable and one of our own by people back home? 5. Views of Congressional Representation: Delegates do what their districts want Trustee use best judgement to help nation as a whole Partisan vote w/party regardless of issue Politicos balancing act (most Congressmen) Delegates want premium committee assignments in areas affecting local policy; trustees want it to address broad issues

2 6. The primary institutional function of Congress is lawmaking, but a secondary function is oversight, or ensuring that the executive and judicial branches are carrying out their duties in proper accordance. 7. Influences on members of Congress include: Philosophic convictions/ideology Colleagues on both sides of the aisle Congressional staffs (personal and committee) Party Constituents back home Interest Groups The most consistent and predictable influence on members of Congress as the serve as lawmakers is the personal political philosophy or ideology 8. A newly elected Democratic Senator would receive his/her committee assignments from the Steering Committee. A Republican Senator would get their committee assignment from the Committee on Committees. 9. Know the following terms for leadership roles: Majority leader Majority whip Minority leader Minority whip President pro tempore Speaker 10. Know the following institutional functions of Congress and which belong to the Senate alone: Confirmation of Appointees Investigation Oversight Policy Clarification Consensus Building 11. The real position of power in the United States Senate is Majority leader. Currently Tom Daschle (D-SD) 12. In the House of Representatives, the most important position is Speaker of the House, currently Dennis Hastert (R-IL) 13. The Minority leaders in the House and Senate are currently House Dick Gephardt (D-MO) Senate Trent Lott (R-MS) Know who Strom Thurmond is

3 14. Know about the following types of committees: Subcommittees Standing Committees Special Committees Joint Committees Conference Committees 15. The key to committee assignments and influence is seniority in most cases. The member of the majority party with the longest continuous service on the committee becomes the chair however Republicans modified the rules in 1994 know how and why 16. Know the terms committee chair and ranking member 17. The Rules Committee of the House of Representatives has power that stems from its ability to set the time for debate and determine what amendments will be allowed on a bill. 18. Know the roles of the following Senate Committees: Finance deals with revenue (like House Ways and Means) Budget duh! Governmental Affairs-- Judiciary (who is current chairman of JC?) confirmation process (usually obstructionist if opposite party is in power) Appropriations spending committee 19. The Congressional system of standing committees is significant because it fosters the development of expertise by members. It does not appreciably reduce staff costs (it may actually increase them), it does not insulate decision making from the influence of special interests (lobbyists know precisely where to go), it does not weaken Congress in its dealing with the President, and it does not prevent Congress from effectively processing its large legislative workload. 20. The committee system is more important in the House than the Senate because the House is so large that more work can be accomplished in the committees than on the floor. 21. Members try to chose committee assignments that relate to their personal goals. Senators from farming states, for example, want to be on the agriculture committees. Senators deeply concerned with foreign affairs would be on the foreign affairs committee. The hottest committee to be on is appropriations. 22. Joint Committees are committees of both the House and Senate. Conference committees, which iron out differences in bills, are a type.

4 23. Know the difference between Ways and Means and Appropriations!! There is a BIG difference. Which one is restricted by the Constitution? 24. You should know the following about the House Appropriations Committee: The job of the committee is to approve the spending bills that make up the federal budget The committee will review spending plans in the house before the bills are sent to the Senate The chairs of the 13 subcommittees are very powerful members of the House The committee is a very powerful influence on our nation s policies and programs because of its ability to increase or decrease funding. The committee is NOT constrained by the Ways and Means Committee s decisions about how much taxes are raised the committee may lapse into deficit spending 25. With respect to Congressional committees, you should know: Committee recommendations have a huge influence on floor voting Standing committees oversee the bureaucracy s implementation of policy, with some help from other committees Membership on key committees is not restricted but CHAIRMANSHIP LENGTH IS The work of a committee is not over when it submits a bill to the full House or Senate 26. Committee staffs do not deal with a Congressman s casework, or answering letters and phone calls from constituents. They might review testimony from a hearing or help the Congressman with information pertinent to the subcommittee. Committee staffs function as key policy experts and policy advisors to the members of a committee. The massive growth in the # of Congressional staff has not speeded up legislation, but it has given Congressmen more control over legislation. 27. Know about the Congressional Budget Office Congressional Printing Office Office of Technology Assessment Congressional Research Service 28. Communication between congressional representatives and constituents is through personal staffs; communication between Congress and the executive branch may be through personal or committee staffs. 29. The vast majority of bills submitted in Congress die in committee. 30. Debate in the House of Representatives under a closed rule means that no amendments to the bill can be submitted from the floor. Open rules mean that amendments can be offered. The rules committee, controlled by the majority party, decides what rule to apply. If you think amendments would harm your bill, you try to request a closed rule. This prevents your bill from ending up as a Christmas Tree Bill, with lots of riders.

5 31. The complexities of law-enacting procedures gives the advantage to opponents of a bill. A bill can be killed at least 13 ways. 32. In the Senate, a filibuster can be ended by invoking rule 22 (cloture). This requires 60 votes. Discharge petitions are used in the House of Representatives. A discharge petition allows a bill stalled in committee to be placed on the special Wed. Calendar if 218 signatures can be acquired. 33. Know the following terms as they relate to legislation: Logrolling you scratch my back, I ll scratch yours Mark-up session committee sessions where bills are examined and amended Pork barreling wasteful spending, done to appease constituents. A bill padded with numerous extra appropriations that benefit the districts of members who shaped the bill Cloture Rider-- A nongermane amendment to a bill 34. Details of legislation are usually worked out in subcommittee 35. Most bills that are introduced in the House die in committee. 36. When thee is no quorum present on the floor of the House of Representatives, the rules allow it to conduct business on routine matters as the Committee of the Whole. 37. The purpose of most Senate filibusters is to block legislation. 38. The differences between debate in the House and the Senate are: Debate is more restricted on the House floor The amendment process for bills is more restricted in the House Bills are more likely to bypass committee consideration in the Senate A rules committee sets the guidelines for floor debate in the House but not in the Senate. 39. One of the formal tools used by Congress to oversee the bureaucracy is the authorization of spending. 40. The criticism leveled at Congress that it lacks collective responsibility is supported by all of the following: Policy is approved in authorization or policy committees before being considered by the Appropriations Committee. Few members are willing to cut programs that benefit their districts, despite the fact that many have denounced the budget as too large Congress uses its investigation and oversight powers to focus attention on the Executive Branch, especially the White House and Bureaucracy, leading to the impression that Congress sees fault resting elsewhere. The decentralized nature of Congress disperses power and makes it difficult to place blame on any one person or group

6 41. All of the following are criticisms that are regularly aimed at Congress: Congress obstructs the agenda of the Presidency Members focus too much on their personal career goals Members don t work very hard Interest groups exert too much power on Congress 42. David Mayhew believes that the primary goal of Congressmembers is so seek reelection. Be able to list 3 examples of how this happens. 43. Lawrence Dodd believes that Congress is the product of an ironic arrangement; in efforts to further their own careers, members of Congress have taken steps that weaken Congress as an institution. Provide 3 examples. 44. Timothy Cook would argue that the use of media by representatives has changed the nature and focus of the House of Representatives. 45. Nelson Polsby supports the following statements: The item veto is unconstitutional and would hand too much legislative authority to the Presidency. Many of the complaints about Congress are mistakenly aimed at changing the institution when the basic issues stem from political differences In the era after WW II, a Presidential branch was created If members are limited in the number of terms they can serve, staffs, interest groups, and bureaucrats will rise in the power structure. 46. Richard Fenno thinks: Congress is structured by the members to best serve their goals and desires The primary goal of members of Congress is to seek reelection The goals and styles of a committee such as Appropriations are very different from the goals and styles of other committees in the House Americans expect members of Congress to represent them but we set a different goal legislative problem solving for Congress as an institution. 47. Morris Fiorina believes that Congress establishes and maintains the federal bureaucracy primarily as a means of promoting their own selfinterests. 48. Walter Oleszek maintains that: a. The congressional agena is changing, creating greater legislative workloads b. Political parties are changing and an ideological gulf exists between parties c. Divided government creates gridlock and entrenchment of ideologies 49. Only the Senate can ratify treaties. Requires 2/3 vote.

7 50. The Senate is the only house that approves Presidential appointments, with the single exception of the Vice-Presidency, whose vacancy is confirmed by a majority vote of the House and the Senate. 51. House= 435 Members. Senate= Lawyers make up the largest occupational group in Congress. 53. Each state is guaranteed one member in the House. 54. Most candidates for Congress win nomination in a direct primary. 55. Mid-term Congressional elections usually lead to the President s party losing seats in Congress. Presidents have a diminished coattail effect either way when they run for reelection. 56. Baker v. Carr, Reynolds v. Sims, and Wesberry v. Sanders all dealt with Congressional reapportionment. One person, one vote was first dealt with by the Supreme Court in Wesberry. 57. Know what gerrymandering in and how it is accomplished. 58. Little legislatures refers to the committee system in Congress 59. Conference committees are often referred to as the 3 rd house 60. In the Hoiuse, the majority leader acts as the spokesperson for the majority party in the House. He o she does not serve as Speaker that s a separate office. 61. Know about the intricacies of the 1974 Budget and Impoundment Control Act (slide in lecture) 62. Congress tries to avoid public outcry by giving itself numerous, less obvious fringe benefits. List Seats are reapportioned among the states every 10 years after the Census

AP U.S. Government & Politics Unit 3: Institutions of National Government: The Congress

AP U.S. Government & Politics 2017-18 Unit 3: Institutions of National Government: The Congress Textbook: Chapter 11; Congress: Balancing National Goals and Local Interests ; pp. 286-321 Web sites to use: