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Question 38
Power, Money, Political Party, and Career are four principle factors that influence the way Congress votes. These factors can weigh heavy upon a congress man or woman when choosing what they believe is the right vote. Whether the vote benefits who they are voting on for or if selfish reasons are jeopardizing their vote which has been criticized by many taxing paying citizen who want the money to go into programs, services, and projects to improve the nation. Congress votes should always benefit the country as a whole, not certain people.
Power is the main influence on Congress members. Without power there would not be a need of money, people wanting the best career for reasons other than to be successful, and Republican and Democratic parties who dominate all parties who have other views. Power is great or marked ability to do or act, strength, might, force. A certain member or party who has a lot of force in Congress can persuade other Congress men or women to vote for what they are told. The people who are tricked into schemes tend to be young members or those seeking approval and power themselves. These plans and wishes for control can cause loss of confidence and criticism of government, not only Congress. If members are found guilty of pressuring, paying money, among other things they can be brought to trial. In the end, this costs the country money to hold a trial that will most likely go to supreme court who have enough trials to take care of. Not all Congress members play mind games and vote for what they believe is best for the public good. The hard part is voting for who you believe is the best fit to make those decisions.
Money is a powerful tool when influencing anyone not only the people who w...
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...o keep their jobs, Congress members must please the majority of a state and in the nation. Citizens are the people who help campaign and vote to re-elect you or have someone take your job. Members when voting must remember that and consider voting in favor of what the majority in their state wants even if he or she disagrees. If they do not listen to state residents who are the voters, this can lead to someone sitting down in their former seat.
All four of these pressures on how Congress votes can be arguably positive or negative depending on who you ask and what you believe. Many things can happen if tactics to gain vote were all uncovered. This could lead to the public less and less trust in government which could result in many things happening. But for now, you should vote for who you believe supports the nation and not just the town or state they are from.
The excerpt “Congress: The Electoral Connection” written by David Mayhew centers around the fundamental arguments that discusses how members of congress are self-interested for reelection. Mayhew further elaborates on his idea by discussing the electoral activities that congress members devote their time into and resource from, which are advertising, credit-claiming, and position taking. Mayhew’s excerpt further examines the framework in how congress operates which contributes to the explanation of how and why congress partakes in the certain electoral activities.
Members of congress have three specific goals. The one that seems to be the most important
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 the past century, people continued to express an increasingly discontent view of Congress especially true when one looks back before the Clinton Impeachment debacle As the size of the nation and the number of congressman have grown, the congress has come under attack by both public influences and congressman themselves. Yet looking at one congressman's relationship with his or her constituents, it would be hard to believe that this is the branch of government that has come under suspect. In “If Ralph Nader says congress is 'The broken branch,' how come we love our congressman so much?” author Richard F. Fenno, Jr., provides insight into this view and why, through congress coming under fire, constituents still feel positively about there congressmen. Although congress is often criticized, its fine tuned functioning is essential in checking the power of congress without hindering the making of legislation.
Davidson, Roger H., Walter J. Oleszek, and Frances E. Lee. Congress and Its Members. Washington, D.C.: CQ, 2009. Print.
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.
The Constitution gives powers to Congress in order to execute its many responsibilities. These responsibilities are necessary and proper for carrying out its policies such as, imposing taxes and regulating interstate commerce. The constitution has 435 members in the House and 100 more in Senate. Congress faces issues with action problems and the solution to correcting these collective problems are at the expense of the incentive members. The Cabinet, President, state and federal courts, political groups, media, etc. all have input when determining a political decision in the United States. Open arrangement is an objective arranged strategy that the legislature follows in managing an issue or issue in the nation. Open approaches are focused around law; however numerous individuals other than officials set them. People, gatherings, and even government organizations that don 't follow strategies can be punished. This confounded procedure has been concluded with an anticipated arrangement of steps.
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 has helped develop the Presidency as we know it today. This is because Congress argues over proposals and legislation proposed by the President. They are a major determent in whether bills turn into laws. But it’s not easy. One reason for this is because there are many powerful groups out there who argue about what should be discussed such as air pollution with the EPA or jobs.
Passing legislation through Congress is a challenge by itself, but for a president acting as chief legislator it can prove to be even harder such as attempting to pass legislation and Congress. For instance, the president of the United States has several significant occupations to conduct while in office, which include the formal roles of Chief of State, Chief Executive, Commander in Chief, Chief Diplomat, and Chief legislator. In modern society, having an understanding of what goes on between the United States Congress and the current president, Barack Obama, acting as chief legislator is crucial to American citizens because although it may not change one’s views of politics, it will aid in having a better understanding of what is going on
As long as there has been a two party system there has been party politics. This phenomena by definition is a Congressmen (Be him or her Democrat or Republican) is so loyal to the party that they will vote for those bills, or resolutions, or whatever just because their party supports it. This becomes problematic when you want to express what is best for your constituents, but may not be what the party is pushing for. This makes a very lazy Congress no matter the party, bills can go through that are not what are best for his or her distract but for the good of the party. Out of the three factors, this is the one that hinders Congressional oversight the least. While this is a problem it doesn’t hit the factor of oversight hindrance as much as the other two. This practice is becoming more common every year, and because of that it’s almost unheard of for Democrats or Republicans to vote outside of their party lines.
In conclusion, The Legislative Branch is the most powerful branch of the United States government not only because of the powers given to them by the Constitution, but also the implied powers that Congress has. There is also Congress’s ability to triumph over the Checks and balances that limits their power. The only thing truly holding The Legislative Branch back from gaining all the power, is the large amount of people involved in the process and their difference and ideologies, and that Congress is split into multiple houses, with public opinion and elections affecting half of the branch of government. Therefore, The Legislative Branch is the most powerful branch of the United States Government.
I would have to say on this matter, it depends on the person, but I feel that majority are not honestly thinking about the average citizen. I cannot think of one republican that presents themselves in a way that is truly in the interest of the American people. I can think of a few democrats on the national level, Tammy Duckworth, Elizabeth Warren, and my personal favorite Bernie Sanders. I’m sure there are more than that that are genuinely fighting for the majority but it seems that far too many are more interested in their own personal pocket book or personal interest. I feel that I could be more confident in saying that our congress represented the people if there were less of an influence and conflicting interest. Until then I will have to say that I truly believe that they are not representing the American people.
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.
Politics is the means for attaining valued things. Although, valued things are different in every society, the means of securing those things has never changed. The competition for power, authority and influence will always be the backbone of politics. Applying power, authority and influence to the valued things that support the public good, will produce the quality of life a society desires. In the present day, citizens in the United States demand certain valued things such as welfare, education, safe streets and healthcare. Through politics, citizens can apply their power in many different ways to get the things they want. Power is the ability to get someone to do something they may or may not want to do. Through the use of or the application of coercion, persuasion, manipulation and negotiation, power is used to influence the system.