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AP US Government AMSCO Guided Notes

2.4: Congress

AP US Government
AMSCO Guided Notes
2.4 Congress
2.5 The Presidency
2.6 The Judiciary
2.7 The Bureaucracy

AP US Government Guided Notes

AMSCO 2.4 - Congress

Essential Questions

  1. What are the structures, powers, and functions of each house of Congress?
  2. How do the structures, powers, and functions of Congress affect the policymaking process?
  3. How do the structures, powers, and functions of Congress affect the policy-making process?
  4. How is congressional behavior influenced by election processes, partisanship, and divided government?
I. Congress: The Senate and the House of Representatives

1. What is Congress and what are its primary functions in the U.S. government?

A. Structure of Congress

1. Why did the framers create a bicameral legislature and how does the Great Compromise reflect this structure?

2. How do the House and Senate differ in terms of size, term length, and constituency representation?

3. What was the purpose of the Seventeenth Amendment and how did it change the Senate?

1. Article I

2. Size and Term Length

1. How does the Reapportionment Act of 1929 affect House representation and why must it be applied every ten years?

2. Why are senators' six-year terms and continuous body structure designed to make the Senate more cautious than the House?

B. Caucuses

1. What are caucuses and how do they differ from official congressional committees in their role in the legislative process?

C. Powers of Congress

1. What are enumerated powers and why did the framers limit Congress to these specific powers?

1. Power of the Purse

1. What does the power of the purse allow Congress to do and why is this power significant?

2. Regulating Commerce

1. How has Congress used the commerce clause to expand federal authority and what limitations exist on this power?

3. Foreign and Military Affairs

1. What powers does Congress have over foreign policy and military affairs, and how are these powers shared with the president?

2. What did the War Powers Act of 1973 require the president to do and why was it necessary?

D. Implied Powers

1. What is the necessary and proper clause and how has it allowed Congress to expand its powers beyond those enumerated in Article I?

E. Differing Powers for House and Senate

1. What exclusive powers does the House have and what exclusive powers does the Senate have in the legislative process?

2. What is the Senate's advice and consent power and how does it function in presidential appointments and treaties?

II. Structures, Powers, and Functions of Congress

1. How does Congress's constitutional design shape the policymaking process?

A. Policymaking Structures and Processes

1. How is Congress organized by house, party, leadership, and committee to carry out its functions?

1. Leadership

1. What are the roles and powers of the Speaker of the House and how does this position compare to Senate leadership?

2. What are the responsibilities of the majority and minority leaders and the whips in each chamber?

3. Why does the Senate majority leader have more actual power than the vice president or president pro tempore?

2. Committees

1. What are standing committees and why are they essential to the legislative process in both chambers?

2. What are the differences between standing committees, joint committees, select committees, and conference committees?

3. How do committees conduct oversight of executive branch agencies and what is the significance of this power?

B. Committees and Rules Unique to the House

1. What rules limit debate in the House and why are these restrictions necessary?

2. What is the Rules Committee and why does it wield significant power over House legislation?

3. What is the Committee of the Whole and how does it function differently from regular House procedures?

4. How does the discharge petition allow House members to bypass the Rules Committee?

C. Rules and Procedures Unique to the Senate

1. How do Senate debate rules differ from House rules and what advantages do these differences give senators?

2. What is a filibuster and how does it function as a tool in Senate debate?

3. What is the cloture rule and how did it change Senate procedures for ending filibusters?

4. What are unanimous consent and holds, and how can senators use these procedures strategically?

D. Foreign Policy Functions

1. Why does the Senate have greater foreign policy responsibilities than the House?

E. The Legislative Process

1. What is the process for introducing and amending bills in Congress?

2. What are riders and omnibus bills, and how do they affect the legislative process?

3. What is pork-barrel spending and why has it become controversial in recent years?

1. Introducing and Amending Bills

2. Assigning Bills to Committee

1. How are bills assigned to committees and what happens during the hearings, markup, and reporting stages?

3. Voting on Bills

1. What factors influence how lawmakers vote on bills?

2. What is logrolling and how does it affect the passage of legislation?

F. Generating a Budget

1. What is the role of the Office of Management and Budget and the Congressional Budget Office in the budgeting process?

2. What are the five main sources of government revenue and how has their relative contribution changed since 1950?

3. What is the difference between mandatory spending and discretionary spending, and why has mandatory spending grown significantly?

4. How do conservative and liberal perspectives differ on addressing the federal budget deficit?

III. Congressional Behavior

1. What factors influence congressional behavior and how do they affect the legislative process?

A. Influences on Congress

1. How has intensifying partisanship and polarization changed congressional behavior and effectiveness?

1. Partisanship and Polarization

1. How has party-line voting become more common and what consequences does this have for members who stray from party positions?

2. What are the delegate, trustee, and politico models of voting and how do they differ in representing constituents?

2. Redistricting

1. What was the significance of Baker v. Carr and how did it change the Supreme Court's role in redistricting?

2. What is gerrymandering and how does partisan gerrymandering affect congressional elections and legislative behavior?

3. What is racial gerrymandering and what conflicting constitutional principles did Shaw v. Reno address?

B. Divided Government and Senate Showdowns

1. What is divided government and how does it contribute to partisan gridlock in Congress?

2. How have Supreme Court nominations become increasingly contentious during periods of divided government?

C. Congress's Public Image

1. Why does Congress have a low approval rating despite individual members maintaining higher approval from their constituents?

Key Terms

advice and consent

bicameral

caucuses

coalitions

enumerated powers

implied powers

House of Representatives

necessary and proper clause

power of the purse

Senate

Seventeenth Amendment (1913)

War Powers Act (1973)

cloture rule

Committee of the Whole

conference committees

deficit

discharge petitions

discretionary spending

filibuster

germane

hold

joint committees

logrolling

mandatory spending

omnibus bill

pork-barrel spending

President of the Senate

president Pro tempore

rider

Rules Committee

select committees

Senate majority leader

Speaker of the House

sponsor

unanimous consent

Ways and Means Committee

whip

Baker v. Carr (1962)

delegate model

gerrymandering

gridlock

"lame duck" president

"one person-one vote" principle

politico model

racial gerrymandering

Shaw v. Reno (1993)

swing district

trustee model