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Congressional Oversight of the Bureaucracy

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Congress can choose to not fund the bureaucracy

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Power of the Purse

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The influence legislatures have over public policy due to the authority they wield to grant/reject the president's budget requests to fund executive agencies/programs

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Casework

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Legislative work on behalf of individual constituents to solve their problems with gov. agencies and programs; cutting through red tape to get people what they think they deserve (ex: local senator pulls some strings for support)

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Incumbent Advantages

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Name recognition, experience, credit claim, franking rights, war chest ---> incumbents are most likely the winning candidate

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Incumbency rate difference in House and Senate

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Senate incumbency is lower since it involves an entire state (harder to win over) whereas house incumbency rates are higher due to smaller districts in which the incumbent is more likely to meet people's needs (esp. through casework)

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Pork Barrel

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Appropriation of gov. spending on projects solely to bring money to a representative's district; added during Conference Committees *can be completely unrelated* (ex: Bridge to Nowhere by Ted Stevens, bridge btwn an island and Alaska)

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Revenue Bills

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Tax bills originating in the House to raise money for the government

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Setup of Committees in the House and Senate

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Committee of Committees decides who goes on what committee

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Types of Committees

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Standing committee - permanent, most important, responsible for particular issues; Conference committee - put together similar legislation passed in diff. houses of Congress/compromise btwn the 2 houses; Select committees - joint committees for special purposes, most often investigation (ex: Watergate)

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Impact of the Federal Census on Congress

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Leads to reapportionment

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Bicameralism

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Consists of the House and Senate, created by the Connecticut Compromise; created in order to retard the process of creating bills/laws and provides checks and balances Smaller states are overrepresented (ex: CA vs. WY representatives)

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Confirmation of Presidential Nominations

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Senate must approve presidential appointments to the federal judiciary and heads of bureaucratic agencies

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Rules Committee

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Most important committee in the House of Representatives that can influence legislation since they choose where the bills go in terms of assigned committees (and can kill a bill by sending it to an insignificant committee)

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War Powers Congress

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Congress gave themselves the power to pass a joint resolution in which troops stationed overseas by the president can be withdrawn/recalled immediately (cannot be overridden by the president)

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Legislative Oversight

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Congress' monitoring of the bureaucracy and its administration of policy, performed mainly though hearings.

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Presidential Succession Act of 1947

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If the president dies then the vice president takes over, after which it is the Speaker of the House, the pro tempore, then down the cabinet

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Executive Agreements

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Treaties or agreements with foreign nations made by the president that does not require Senate approval

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Power of the President's Cabinet

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The president's cabinet can act as a burden to the president if their interest conflict since after official appointment they are more independent

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Presidential Power (The Hats)

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Chief Legislator (proposes/vetoes legislation, SOTU address) Chief Executive (enforces laws, treaties, and court decisions as well as executive orders) Commander in Chief (head of the armed forces) Chief Diplomat (sets foregn policy, appoints ambassadors, sets treaties and acknowledges foreign governments) Chief of State (ceremonial head of our nation, combines Chief Exec. and State roles) Chief Jurist (appoints federal judges, issues pardons/amnesty)

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Council of Economic Advisors

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Three member body appointed by the president for advice on economic policy

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Office of Management and Budget

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Developed from Bureau of the Budget (1921), consists of a handful of political appointees and hundreds of skilled professionals to perform managerial/budgetary functions

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Government Accountability Office

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Keeps track/regulates taxpayer dollars

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Natl. Security Council

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Meet when a crisis occurs; involves the president, vice president, secretary of defense, and other military advisors

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Vice Presidential Duties

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Backup of the president, casts tie-breaking vote in the Senate

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Removal of a President from office

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25th Amendment and the Presidential Succession Act of 1947 describe the cirumstances

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Choosing White House Staff

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Chief of Staff presides over the White House Staff

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25th Amendment

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Passed 1951; permits the vice president to become acting president if the president's cabinet determines that the president is disabled; also outlines how a recuperated president can reclaim the job

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Steps in passing a Law

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Must go through House, Senate, and president for approval

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Executive Privilege

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The president can withhold particular information (such as discussions with the national security adviser) form Congress

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Presidential Powers

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Can veto legislation, commander in chief, executive orders and agreements

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Veto

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Presidential power to nullify/void a bill or action

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War Powers Act

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1973 reactionary act to American troops in Vietnam and Cambodia requiring presidents to consult with Congress prior to using military force and withdraw after 60 days (Congress must declare war or grant an extension); Congress can pass a joint resolution that cannot be overriden in which troops must be immediately withdrawn from wherever they have been stationed

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Line Item Veto

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Proposed by Ulysses S. Grant, giving presidents the power to disapprove of individual items within a spending bill

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Divided Government and Nominations

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Different party ruling in Congress and the president; Conflicting parties results in nullified nominations

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Role of the Cabinet

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Serve as advisers to the president

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22nd Amendment

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Passed by Congress in 1947; places a limit of two-terms on future presidencies

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Presidential Approval ratings

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Tends to plummet throughout the term, highest during the "honeymoon phase"

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Executive Orders

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Orders mandated by the president that cannot be overridden by Congress (ex: Exec. Order 9066)

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President as a legislative Lobbyist

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SOTU Address yo

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Electronic Throne

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"Bully Pulpit"; President has control over the TV channels and can reach homes across America (ex: SOTU Address)

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Government Corporations

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Government agency that operates like a business operation (ex: Postal Service)

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The Hatch Act

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Bars federal employees from active participation in certain kinds of politics showing partisanship and protects workers from bosses using power for political gain

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President and the Bureaucracy

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Appoints heads for bureaucratic agencies

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The Iron Triangle

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Consists of bureaucratic agencies, interest groups, and subcomittees; holds a lot of power and can get things done, an example of which can be observed in the nuclear revolution of the 40s and 50s

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Sunset Laws

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Requires the agencies defends the reasons for their existence

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Criticisms of the Federal Bureaucracy

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Red tape, enforced negative reputation ("lazy", "inefficient")

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Bureaucratic Agency Budget

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Congress controls each agency gets, depending on the political party in power, this determines how the budget is distributed to the agencies

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Getting a job in the Federal Government

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Office of Personnel Management decides who gets hired and performs extensive background checks; hires also incorporate affirmative action

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Bureaucratic Expertise

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Government bureaucracies have more expertise in issues in comparison to state and local governments since the bureaucracy deals with these issues more

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Red Tape

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Strict regulation that must be followed to get something done (ex: urinals in the male bathroom)

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Getting fired by the Federal Government

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Very difficult to fire a civil servant, who is given strong job security; there must be a valid reason to fire a civil servant who must be given a notice 30 days prior and a chance to appeal against the claim

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Federal Bureaucratic agencies

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Ex: OSHA (for workers' rights)

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Job of the Bureaucracy

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Ultimately to carry out the individual goals of the bureaucratic agency; keep things orderly

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Type of Supreme Court Opinions

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Stare decisis, per curium (brief, unsigned opinion)

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Stare Decisis

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"Let the decision stand"; based on precedents

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Judicial Review

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Established by Marbury v. Madison; the Supreme Court has the power to interpret the constitutionality of laws/bills/acts

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Amicus Curiae

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"Friend of the court" briefs in which interest groups show interest in the outcome of a case that will likely affect them (ex: Tobacco and alcohol industries)

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Federalist 78/Article III

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Judicial branch is the weakest of the three branches with the least amount of power; interprets law but cannot create or enforce law

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Characteristics of Supreme Court Justices

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Uber old, plenty of experience/high status as high administrative officials in the field of law

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Decision making process of an appeals court

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Oversees and investigates the constitutionality of a case and the methods conducted during the case

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Selection and role of the Chief Justice

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Selected by President and approved by Congress

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The road to the Supreme Court

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District courts, Court of Appeals, Law clerks and to the Supreme Court

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Judicial Activism

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Philosophy in which the justice system should make bold-decisions and

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Judicial Restraint

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Philosophy exemplifying original intent of the framers, plays a minimal role and tends to uphold precedents (ex: Dred Scott v. Sanford)

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Checks on the Supreme Court

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Legislative check: Amending the Constitution; Executive check: Implementation of policy, can ignore an outcome if necessary to enforce the law

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Writ of Certiorari

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The most common way to get a case onto the docket; issued after the rule of four has been followed and a case will be reviewed on the docket agenda

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Influence interest groups have on Justice appointments

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Influence of Congressmen (particularly the Senate members), who influence confirmation of presidential appointments

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Supreme Court and Public Opinion

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Public opinion does not necessarily matter the Court (though the Court is aware of the general consensus)

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Types of Federal Courts

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District, District Court of Appeals, Supreme Court

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