Understanding Characteristics and
Roles Congress10-4 highlights
Part I
The House of Representatives
The Senate
Can just anyone be a representative of the
people?
Who are our representatives like?
A: BackgroundsI) Most House and Senate members are likely to be more wealthy and much older than the agerage U.S. citizens.
A: BackgroundsII) Most members have prior political experience. The average Representative has served four terms.
B: On Being an OfficialI) There are 4 descripions of how and why representatives cast votes.
1. A trustee . . .
2. A delegate . . .
3. A partisan . . .
4. A politico . . .
4 descriptions1. A trustee bases a vote on how he or she sees the merits of a bill.
2. A delegate bases a vote on how his or her constituents feel about the bill.
4 Descriptions3. A partisan bases a vote on party loyalty.
4. A politico bases a vote on a balance between the opinion constituents views.
B: On Being an OfficialII) Representatives fill 5 essential roles.
1.As legislator . . .2.As representative. . .3.As committee member . . .4.As servant . . .5.As politician . . .
5 roles1. as legislators and representatives they write, debate, amend and decide how and why to vote on bills.
5 roles2. as committee members they decide which bills to send to the full chamber for debate.
They also use oversight function to investigate executive agencies.
5 roles4. as servants, they use their power and access to help constituents deal with federal agencies.
5. As politicians they look for reelection by balancing many roles and priorities.
C: Compensation1. Salary (for rank and file members of both chambers) is $174,000.
2. Non Salary : pension, health benefits, and social security benefits.
C: Compensation
3. Operations: franking privilege, a budget for staff, offices, housing, and travel expenses.
C: Compensation3. Pay raises•Congress votes to raise it's pay.• a pay raise is stalled until after next election, except CODA.•Only limited by voter backlash and presidential veto.
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