Every four years, the American people one of the most important decision in American Government. The country’s vote on who will be the president for the next four years. The president is one face who is seen as the head of the country, responsible for every aspect of it. Although many Americans view the president as this type of figurehead, a great deal of people do not actually know what responsibilities the president has or what powers he/she has to change the state of the country. Understanding the powers of the presidency as a country will help the voters to make a more informed decision and judgement in regards to the presidency. The expressed powers are clearly defined in Article II, Section 2 and 3 in the United States Constitution. …show more content…
American democracy is built upon the three separate branches and the separation of powers that occurs. The body of Congress has the responsibility to make and pass laws, and Congressional committees are a major part of that. The Congressional committees divide the House and the Senate members into smaller groups to divide the work of Congress into categories according to their subject matter. These committees allows Congress to be more effective and better serve the government and country. The Congressional committees take advantage of the divide and conquer technique of accomplishing tasks. These committees include but are not limited to Agriculture, Armed Services, Financial Services, Intelligence, Transportation and Infrastructure, Budget, Veteran’s Affairs, Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Each committee is a microcosm of the full-sized Congress. They each has officers, members, and jurisdiction in their own subject matters. The members of the House and the Senate join these committees based on their strengths, their interests, and the desires of their constituents. Incoming bills are assigned to the related committee and are reviewed/voted on by the members. This system is more efficient because certain committees can meet to discuss a proposed bill while other members focus on other work rather than all the members of Congress convening to review a bill that only a few really care …show more content…
First, the committee system does not allow everyone to be a part of every group, so Congress members are not represented in committees of which they are not a part. Also, the committees are not randomly and equally divided; they are not diverse or an accurate representation of the States. For example, the Agriculture committee may be overpopulated with people from the Midwest where farming is most prominent. The Coastal area may be underrepresented in this committee. Although it seems to make sense because, say, Idaho is more affected by agriculture laws than California, this unevenness in representation relates back to the issues the colonists had with England. Committees could also lead to favoritism among long-standing committee members. Fortunately, the Congressional committees do not decide the state of a bill; they refer bills up to the larger Congress. Using the committees as a preliminary check before reaching the House or the Senate helps mitigate the risk of the Congressional committee system and make Congress more
The President of the United States is instrumental in the running of the country. He serves as the chief executive, chief diplomat, commander in chief, chief legislator, chief of state, judicial powers, and head of party. Article II of the Constitution states that the President is responsible for the execution and enforcement of the laws created by Congress. He also is tasked with the authority to appoint fifteen leaders of the executive departments which will be a part of the President’s cabinet. He or she is also responsible for speaking with the leaders the CIA and other agencies that are not part of his cabinet because these agencies play a key role in the protection of the US. The President also appoints the heads of more than 50 independent
As the President of the United States, a president have powers that other members of the government do not. Presidential power can be defined in numerous ways. Political scientists Richard Neustadt and William Howell give different views on what is presidential power. These polarized views of presidential powers can be used to compare and contrast the presidencies of George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
To summarize, the congressional committee system is a double-edged sword. It ensures that appropriate attention is given to each bill, but it can be easily corrupted by partisan influence. Surely, though, the advantages far outweigh the consequences. Committees are an integral part of the law-making process. They help to expedite the process of passing laws and ensure that only relevant issues are brought to the chambers of Congress for consideration.
In conclusion, even though some of the Congress processes and its structure seem to be made to slow things down and to reduce effectiveness, they exist to, as discussed in class, protect the minority from the tyranny of the majority. After all, one of the main objectives of having a government is to create a balanced society, and to reduce the chances of having social convulsion and anarchy.
Congressional committees are the part of the iron triangle that puts bills into the legislative process after they work with interest groups. A member of a congressional committee proposes a bill into the committee to be voted on. Members of congressional committees are members of the legislative branch, so when they propose the bill into their committee they work with the other members to get it passed. If one member doesn't like the bill they can try to get the bill maker to change it to his liking so he will vote for it. For example in my congressional committee, the judiciary committee, congressman Mclenan proposed a bill to give tax cuts to banks who approve a certain amount of low income people's loans. We all thought that other people that needed loans might be overlooked just because they were not low income people. We made him make guidelines for that issue, so we could vote for it.
Contrasts in the lawmaking methodology utilized as a part of the House and Senate reflect the distinctive size of the two chambers and individual terms of its parts. In the House, the dominant part gathering is inflexibly in control, stacking advisory groups with lion 's share party parts, and utilizing principles to seek after enactment supported by its parts. In the Senate, singular parts are better ready to hold up the procedure, which prompts lower similarity costs, however higher exchange costs. The complication of the lawmaking procedure gives rivals different chances to murder a bill, making a solid predisposition for the present state of affairs.
Congress and The Presidency Congress as a whole makes laws. When Bills are addressed they must meet the approval of both the House and the Senate in order to become a Law, and then the President can always veto it. Congress also deals with matters of public concern be it something that needs to be investigated or something that needs to be put before the public to raise awareness. Congress is made up of two parts: The Senate and the House of Representatives. Each is granted different powers and responsibilities.
Congress is split into two large bicameral legislatures, the house of representatives and the senate. The Constitution grants Congress the sole authority to enact legislation and declare war, the right to confirm or reject many Presidential appointments, and substantial investigative powers which shows how they have too much power because even though they are split into two separate entities, they can share and overtake other parts of the government and basically do whatever they want from making laws to declaring war.
Political scientists have continually searched for methods that explain presidential power and success derived from using that power effectively. Five different approaches have been argued including the legal approach, presidential roles approach, Neustadtian approach, institutional approach, and presidential decision-making approach. The legal approach says that all power is derived from a legal authority (U.S. Constitution). The presidential roles approach contends that a president’s success is derived from balancing their role as head of state and head of government. The Neustadtian approach contends that “presidential power is the power to persuade“ (Neustadt, p. 11). The institutional approach contends that political climate and institutional relations are what determines presidential power. The last approach, decision-making, provides a more psychological outlook that delves into background, management styles, and psychological dispositions to determine where a president’s idea of power comes from. From all of these, it is essential to study one at a time in order to analyze the major components of each approach for major strengths and weaknesses.
Understanding and evaluating presidents’ performance often poses challenges for political experts. The nation votes one president at the time and each presidency faces different tests. The environments surrounding a presidency have a tremendous impact on the success and failure of that presidency. In addition, the president exercises his power through a check and balance system embody in the Constitution. As stated in (Collier 1959), the Constitution created a government of “separated institutions sharing power.” As a result, a president works with others institutions of the government to shape the nation’s agenda. Thus, determining a presidential performance becomes difficult, especially when it comes to comparing the performance among presidencies.
Members of congress serve in committees and subcommittees, in which they make rulings in specific fields. Congress determines the budget and funding, and they also have the ability to establish jurisdiction of the executive agencies and regulatory commissions that work in that field.
Did you know that Congress is made of two houses? The houses of Congress are the House of representatives and the senate. The House of Representatives and the Senate are different when it comes to governing. They have different functions, stature, and are organized differently.
The membership of the standing committees of each House is chosen by a. vote of the entire body; members of other committees are appointed. under the provisions of the measure establishing them. Each bill and resolution is usually referred to the appropriate committee. committee, which may report a bill in its original form, favorably. or unfavorably, recommend amendments, or allow the proposed amendments.
Richard E. Neustadt, the author of Presidential Power, addresses the politics of leadership and how the citizens of the United States rate the performance of the president's term. We measure his leadership by saying that he is either "weak or "strong" and Neustadt argues that we have the right to do so, because his office has become the focal point of politics and policy in our political system. Neustadt brings to light three main points: how we measure the president, his strategy of presidential influence, and how to study them both. Today we deal with the President himself and his influence on government action. The president now includes about 2000 men and women, the president is only one of them, but his performance can not be measured without focusing on himself.
In our countries government, Congress plays a major role in decision making. They’re primary role is to pass laws. These laws start off as bills. Bills can only be introduced by members of Congress. Although these bills only come from Congressman, there are many people who influence these bills. Such as the president, regular citizens, offices in the executive branch, and many others. The bills right off the bat do not have a very good chance of passage. Only one out of every ten bills even gets any attention at all. This is because they must go through many tests and hearings before they even have a chance of landing on the president’s desk. These steps in a bill becoming a law are very important, and make sure that all bills passed into law are the best of the best.