Essay On Members Of Congress

Legislative redistricting in nature is a simple concept. However, the implication of legislative redistricting arises complications. Redistricting is a powerful tool used by our government. It influences how a state will be represented and in turn how the people will be represented. The misuse of this power can lead to catastrophic consequences. Redistricting in itself is not a political question, but because of its implication and threat to the right to vote, it becomes one.

The political theorists David R. Mayhew, Gary W. Cox, and Matthew D. McCubbins argue on how the US Congress functions. They focus on the members of Congress and their actions. The basis of disagreement between the theorists lies in what Congress members find of importance. Mayhew argues that members of Congress, primarily concern themselves with reelection, as such, any action taken only benefits that. Cox and McCubbins’, however, formulate that Congress functions on the basis of majority party control and unity. These arguments present different perspectives, however, they do have agreements amongst them. Overall, Mayhew presents an argument that is believable and shows the truth of members of the US Congress.

James Madison’s Federalist 10 was written amid criticisms that a republican form of government had never been successful on a large scale. Madison’s argument was that a well-constructed union could control factions. He argued that in order to control factions from their causes, we would need to either give up liberty or free thought. Since we cannot infringe upon these two natural rights, we must move on to controlling the effects. A republic, Madison argues, would be able to do this because the people choose the representatives, and they choose representatives who they feel best represent their opinions. The representatives would be the voices of their constituents, leaving them with the responsibility of making decisions for the public good.

Congressional Gridlock is a recurring issue in America’s political system, and it is crippling the efficacy of the governments ability to lead the country to overall prosperity. Gridlock, in terms of politics, refers to the inability for the political system to adequately satisfy the needs of the citizens in that country. In reference to Congress, a gridlock is when the people cannot be satisfied due to disagreements in legislation that hinder the process of making laws. One recent consequence of congressional gridlock is the congressional stand still concerning gun violence in our nation and the oppositions on what affect, if any, it has on gun laws. Another example of a congressional gridlock is the lengthy wait for

Congressional term limits have been what restricted the amount of time that anyone can work in office whether it be to a representative, senator, or even the president. People have debated over keeping or losing the term limits, since each come with their own benefits and faults at the same time. In the argument for term limits, some may argue that they are necessary because, “Congress will be more responsible toward their constituents because they will soon be constituents themselves” (Weeks). The validity in this statement proves to be one of the strongest arguments because the creation of laws is mean to serve all people, and if the people in office had complete immunity, it would serve unfair and unjust to the rest of society. For this reason, it always will make those in office consider how impactful and

Individual rights are involved because members of congress that have been their positions for many years may have prejudices and grudges against certain people, groups and parties, and this may affect their decision during the passing of laws or the approval of a constitutional amendment, therefore, it is for the benefit of peoples right in general, to have members of congress that are not allowed to serve indefinitely, otherwise not only will ideas stagnate, but prejudices that may infringe upon peoples equality when it comes to the passing of laws will remain in congress for extended periods of time and be able to cause greater negative

Divided government occurs when one political party controls the presidency and another controls one or both houses of Congress. The struggle between parties can create significant issues for the government, including the appointment of judges and high officials and the creation of effective problem-solving legislation.

While some Americans blame the government for it being undemocratic, the elected officials have provided us with evidence that America is undemocratic. An ideal democracy is how the government puts the people’s interest before the businesses interest. In Lindblom’s story “The Market as Prison”, it introduces a mechanism called the automatic punishing recoil mechanism (APRM). This provides businesses to have a privileged position in society.

Throughout the recent years the majority of the able voting population are exercising their privilege to vote. Even during the presidential elections the voter turnout rate was 50% or less than that. The act of voting should be a personal responsibility of every citizen meaning it should be a obligation. But to specify on this statement, it should not lawfully required to vote because people also have the right not to vote too (and it would be weakening personal liberties) , but it should be a personal responsibility for citizens if they are to complain about how the government run rather than every citizen. A personal responsibility is when we are the cause of our own actions. Through voting we are responsible on who gets into office. Elected representatives are responsible more many choices

The article is written by Richard Fenno in 1978, summarizing the dilemma of congressmen in the contemporary time. The author was specifically discussing about members of the House, who always seek for reelection during his legislative career, as stated in the initial part of the paper. Fenno went on to propose the conflict in incumbent congressmen 's career: more attention for the Washington career leads to less attention for the congressmen 's home state. The Washington career required commitment to build up support within the House. However, focusing on Washington rendered the congressman homeless, or losing his home 's supportive forces. Thus, there were two solutions. Firstly, the congressman can change the expectations of his

Separation of church and state is one of the many social issues debated in the country today. Similar to politics there are groups who dispute the topic, separatist who according to Merriam Webster is "a advocate of racial or cultural separation", and accommodationist who"favor or practice accommodation or compromise"(dictionary). Each group share's their own opinion on the mater, but both can agree that the matter is relevant. Separatist believe that the constitution gives the government no power over religion, while accommodationist believe that the constitution gives some but not all power for government to regulate certain aspects of religion.

In 2010, Missouri’s 7th Congressional District elected Republican Representative Billy Long to office. Representative Long triumphed over his Democratic opponent by receiving 63% of the popular vote, which translates to 141,010 votes. Interestingly, the Republican primary election in 2010 was more closely contested than the general election. Similar election results occurred in 2012 as well. Billy Long would defeat Jim Evans, his Democratic opponent with again approximately 63% of the votes. However this time, the 63% of the voting translated to 203,565. This speaks of the voter turnout in this district. Representative Long

The act of influencing legislation in government is called “lobbying”. The right to lobby is protected by the First Amendment of the Constitution. It states “Congress shall make no law abridging the right of the people to petition the government for a redress of grievances” (APUS, n.d). Besides, this is considered to be part of the Freedom of Assembly and Petition Clause in the First Amendment. This essay will discuss the impact of lobbyist on legislation in Washington, DC and the amount of dollars spent to influence federal policies.

When the United States of America was founded, George Washington warned against the formation of political parties. By the time the second election came around there were already two political parties, the Federalist and Democratic-Republicans. These parties eventually turned into the Republican and Democratic parties we have today. While these parties have shifted to become almost polar opposites politically, they still share some common goals. Republicans’ and Democrats’, both, main goal is to brand the United States of American into their vision of a better place, just through different plans.

On the onset, it might appear as though the federal bureaucracy and Congress are two completely separate entities, with no relation to each other. However, upon a further look into the situation, it is obvious that the two work closely together, Congress makes and passes the laws, and the federal bureaucracy institutes and enforces those laws into action. Even though these two separate entities have their own specific functions, Congress is truly in control over the federal bureaucracy. Among the several different methods of control Congress employees, there are two specific measures Congress takes that standout among the rest. The measure of control is Congress institutes is Congressional investigations. These investigations can be launched