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GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS IN THE USA
Lecture Summary 16 - (7th May, 2008)
Congress: The Structure of Power
Introduction
One almost universal phenomenon in contemporary democratic government is the decline in the
power of legislatures in relation to the executive branch of government. The U.S. Congress is the
one western democratic legislature that stands out against this trend. It is a powerful legislature
both relative to other parliaments and in absolute terms.
U.S. Congress as a dynamic body. It changes its nature over time. There have been periods in
history where Congress has really been the dominant force in American politics, but there have
also been times when Congress has been relatively passive and even subservient to the President.
Different “moods” of Congress can’t necessarily be equated with good or bad government.
Basic Organisation of Congress
The structure of Congress was the product of a compromise at the Constitutional Convention
between the interests of the large states against the small states. Constitution established
bicameral legislature consisting of a House of Representatives and Senate.
House of Representatives consists of 435 full members who serve a two-year term of office. The
Senate consists of 100 members, two from each State irrespective of the size of the State.
Senators serve six-year term of office and things so arranged so that one-third of the Senate
seats are up for election every 2 years.
There are differences between House and Senate. House has sole power to initiate revenue bills,
Senate has sole power to approve nominations and treaties. But the assent of both the House
and the Senate is necessary before legislation can go to the President and become law. (See
attached Figure 1 for diagrammatic description of the legislative process in Congress).
Distribution of Power in Congress
(a) Political Parties
Parties are weak in U.S. Congress — strict party voting uncommon — constituency influence
more important that party loyalt