Identify and describe the three prominent methods of forming majorities to pass legislation in Congress. What are the drawbacks of each of these methods?
What will be an ideal response?
Partisan analysis involves convincing members of Congress that the piece of legislation wanted is something that the member of Congress wants as well. Legislation must be designed in such a way that it will appeal to a sufficient number of interest to create a winning coalition. The disadvantage of this method is that the bill must be worded in such a way as to avoid offending potential supporters--the language must deliberately broad and diffuse. Logrolling occurs when members of Congress trade votes on two separate pieces of legislation--each supports the bill of the other regardless of the merits of the other person bill in order to gain support for their own. The practice of logrolling leads to the passage of more legislation that might otherwise be passed--or justifiable in terms of the broader public interests. It can also lead to greater public spending. Pork barrel legislation often involves capital expenditures. Legislation is designed to spread benefits around as broadly as possible geographically and to create a majority by benefitting virtually anyone who wants a piece of the “pork”--“bringing home the bacon.” Like logrolling, pork barrel legislation leads to the expansion of government beyond the bounds that could be set if there were no vote trading, and it leads to greater public spending. Logrolling and pork barrel legislation also make reducing the size of unneeded programs difficult. All three methods tend to lead to the adoption of projects that a marginal in terms of social productivity--providing benefits to narrow groups. Benefits are produced for the few at the expense of the many.
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Which of the following best describes the development and implementation of EU trade policy?
a. The Council of Ministers sets a general mandate that is then administered by the Commission and carried out by the International Trade Commissioner. b. The EU Council sets the general mandate that is then administered by the Commission and carried out by the International Trade Commissioner. c. The Council of Ministers and the European Parliament jointly set a general mandate that is then administered by the Commission. d. The Council of Ministers sets a general mandate that is then administered by the Commission, carried out by the International Trade Commissioner and overseen by the European Parliament. e. The International Trade Commissioner develops, with input from the Council of Ministers, the EU trade policy that he then administers.
Which of the following accurately describes why, when the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was formed, the organization chose to use the court pathway instead of other pathways to advance its goals?
a. Lack of responsiveness from elected officials and clear evidence of racial discrimination led the organization to use the pathway of action that was open to it. b. Hostility toward African Americans had subsided, so the organization saw the opportunity to move forward in the courts with greater acceptance on the part of both judges and the public. c. Most law schools had opened admissions to African Americans, so with the growing number of black lawyers, the court pathway seemed to be a natural course. d. The separate-but-equal doctrine of Plessy v. Ferguson had been overturned, which allowed for the entry of African Americans into the political and legal arenas.
The charismatic leader of the 1979 revolution was Ayatollah __________
Fill in the blank(s) with correct word
In 2009, fewer than one-fourth of Texas legislators were women
Indicate whether this statement is true or false.