In general for any level of government, a private agency or even within one group, gaining support starts with interest, need, demand, and potential success. Legislative changes will go nowhere without one or more of these concepts. Nor should it- whats the point? Legislative success among the president deals greatly with legislative advocacy. Legislation is generally successful when a large majority of those to be affected will benefit from the legislation. The new Health Care Reform for example is a good idea generally supported by Congress and Senate however it’s slow to gain acceptance from the people resulting from its multiple flaws(Sollenburger). A president’s legislative success is based upon his interest and ambition. Showing you care and that you are determined to bring nothing but great success to the county surely affects the opinion of the Congress positively and proves that you can handle major issues and successfully overcome issues and major events. Advocating for what people believe in comes naturally to many, but there are a host of good reasons for legislative advocacy in particular(CTB Legislative Advocacy). Legislative Advocacy is the act of working with the individual lawmakers and lawmaking bodies to gain support for your initiative or cause. This is important among the president’s concern with showing interest because if he has a plan he must be able to pursue it. Simple political, intellectual, or moral support could potentially be the support of lawmakers, like Congressmen or state legislators, or it could even be the support of other somewhat powerful people who don’t directly make laws themselves, but may be listened to by those who do(CTB Legislative Advocacy). Legislative Advocacy is ... ... middle of paper ... ...impler for those you are trying to convince but also those who are working with you to get the job done. If your message isn’t specific or accomplishable these busy Legislators and lawmakers won’t pay great attention and essentially they will not become involved to assist with the goal. A president gains legislative success by approaching legislators and other policymakers. Maintaining regular and basic contact with policymakers is important for rising issues. Doing so will prevent a major issue to explode and being pressed for time because there was no previous planning. Three basic rules for this contact with legislators and policymakers is to first approach them personally, second have a clear goal in mind to speak to them about, and finally make sure they understood the advantages of supporting you and the results of not doing so(CTB Legislative Advocacy).
Members of congress have three specific goals. The one that seems to be the most important
...agree with President Obama’s tactic of addressing Congress and persuading them to pass the Affordable Care Act. Neustadt stated in his book one of the effective ways presidents can bargain with other members of government which is “ …the bargaining advantages inherent in his job with which to persuade other men that what he wants of them is what their own responsibilities require them to do.” President Obama addresses Congress’s responsibility to represent the interest of the people in order to pass the legislation.
What motivates members of Congress to act the way they do? Mayhew would argue in Congress: The Electoral Connection that members of Congress are ‘’single-minded re-election seekers’’ and that re-election is their one and only goal. Whilst the assumption that all members of Congress are ‘‘single-minded re-election seekers’’ does go some distance in analysing the motives behind members of Congress, the reading fails to take into account the other key goals of members of Congress. Other goals include good policy and future career positions. It is important to remember that the achievement of both re-election and other goals are not exclusive, members of Congress often are motivated by more than one goal.
Most individuals with a general background knowledge of the United States Federal Government system are aware that in order for a bill to become a law, it must first pass a majority vote in Congress. There is, however, a very important step in the legislative process that sometimes goes unnoticed. The committee system of the legislation process ensures that the appropriate attention is given to each bill introduced to Congress. Each member of both chambers are assigned to committees and subcommittees, and are expected to become subject matter experts in their respective roles as committee members.
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.
National lawmaking: the creation of a policy to address the problems and needs of the entire nation
Presidential Influence in Congress." American Journal of Political Science 29.2 (1985): 183-96. JSTOR. Web. 19 May 2014.
Public opinion is like this because many U.S. citizens believe that Congress is not taking the right action to help and benefit the people. Citizens believe that Congress is doing what is best for them and not for this generation and the next of U.S. citizens. A way that Congress could approve its public opinion is that Congress could ask the opinion of citizens and keep it mind. Doing so it would make the people feel like their voice is being heard. Telling the people about what a Bill entails would as well help raise the public opinion of Congress. This is going to be a bill that could affect them; citizens have the right to know what is going on within their own government.
Direct Communication: Direct communication methods such as letters and emails were used to converge support against SOPA and PIPA Act.
One such example is of the proposal of mandatory background checks for gun buyers by President Obama. As of now, only about six states out of 50 states do background checks at gun shows. Most of the other states are not that strict when it comes to gun laws. A majority of American was in support for the Gun Show Background Check Act of 2013. About eighty-five percent Americans showed their support for background checks for gun buyers. But, what is shocking is that even after such support from the citizens, the Senate still didn’t approve the bill. In response to the bill, the NRA gave a statement that; “it will not prevent the next shooting, will not solve violent crime and will not keep our kids safe in schools.” Background checks on gun buyers would be some cause of prevention. It would be much safer to perform checks before letting someone buy a gun. At least it would keep the guns away from those who shouldn’t possess them. But, it is not easy for a President to propose a bill and get it passed into a
Famous American poet James Russell Lowell once said, “Democracy gives every man the right to be his own oppressor” (“Quotations” 2011). And it should be just that. James Russell Lowell successfully defined democracy when it is in its truest form; a citizen’s beliefs should be equally represented and considered for. The representative democracy instated in the United States presents the need for three branches in the government; they include the executive, legislative, and judicial branch. The Congress embodies the lawmaking branch of the government, having “all legislative powers” as it is stated in Article I of the Constitution. To prevent one state from having too much power over other states, the Congress was separated into the House of Representatives and the Senate to have checks and balances over each other. Although they have several different functions in society, both legislative bodies play a very important role in representing both the citizens’ and government’s choices.
As seen quite often in the Obama administration, legislation gets stuck and lost in Congress due to the polarization of the parties in recent years. In Obama’s case, he has frequently threatened to go around the House and Senate if they could not reach an agreement or would shoot down his plans. Cato’s Pilon points out, however, that the hurdles of Congress are no mistake. Pilot states that the framer’s of the Constitution knew what they were doing, and this was intended to keep the checks and balances as well as accountability to the public (Lyons,
nothing but making citizens' voices, opinions, and perspectives “present” in the public policy making processes (11). When political representatives not only speak but also advocate and champion the cause of the people, both symbolize and act on behalf of the vast majority of people in the political arena, political representation then occurs. In essence, political representation refers to kind of political assistance that the political representatives give to the people at large. This seemingly straightforward definition, however, is squarely not sufficient and inadequate because it leaves the concept of political representation underspecified and does not convey the full meaning of the term. The concept of political representation carries
...ing it to committees, marking it up, floor debating it, or having it signed by the president. They all play a part in the process. Congressman definitely have their work cut out for them when they try to introduce ideas into the house or senate. With only about 10% of bills even getting any attention it is a very difficult and probably frustrating job. But that is why our country is so great because of our congressman and the decisions that they must make day in and day out about legislation.
legislation being passed or not. Scholars recognize this power and recognize that it can make a big