Unit 4 Mastery Project: Legislature

Daniela Avila-Period 5 Silver

Victoria Macias-Period 6 Blue
Stacy Garcia-Period 5 Blue
AP Government
December 2015

Learning Objective #1: Identify and explain the organization of the

Legislature
Laws enacted by legislatures are known as legislation. The national
legislatures include parliament and congress. They have authority to amend
budgets involved in government processes. A legislature creates a complex
interaction between individual members, political parties, committees, rules
of parliamentary procedures, and informal norms. The legislature is
composed of different assemblies that separately debate and vote upon bills.
The US has a bicameral legislature; the House of Representatives and the
Senate. Each state also has its own legislature. The legislative environment

includes political parties, the president, and constituents. According to the

separation of powers doctrine, the legislature in a presidential system is
considered an independent and coequal branch of government along with
both the judiciary and the executive. Through legislative process, a bill can
pass through the senate or house unless it dies in congress or is vetoed by
the president.
Learning Objective #2: Identify and provide an example of the
powers of the Legislature, both formal and informal.
All legislative power in the government is vested in Congress, meaning that it
is the only part of the government that can make new laws or change
existing ones. It also appropriates the money necessary to operate the
government. Informal powers are those that are not clearly specified in the
constitution. These include actions such as Executive Orders, which are
presidential directives that create or modify laws and public policy. He does
this without the approval of congress, but claims that they are in the best
interest of the nation.
Learning Objective #3: Identify and explain how Congress shares
powers with the Executive, Judiciary, and bureaucracy.
Executive branch agencies issue regulations with the full force of the law, but
these are only under the authority of laws enacted by Congress.The
legislative branch of government is responsible for enacting the laws of the
state and appropriating the money necessary to operate the government.The
executive branch is responsible for implementing and administering the
public policy enacted and funded by the legislative branch.The judicial
branch is responsible for interpreting the constitution and laws and applying
their interpretations to controversies brought before it. Bureaucrats put
government policy into practice, and therefore the federal bureaucracy has a
large impact on policymaking. In order to get their policies passed, the
president and Congress must work with the bureaucracy.
Learning Objective #4: Discuss the implications of Congress sharing
powers with each of the following: Executive, Judiciary, and
bureaucracy.
The fact that the president has to share powers with other parts of the
government safeguards against tyranny. The president doesnt have enough
power to be able to take over the government. The connectedness keeps the
president in touch with what the people want, and also protect them from an

oppressive leader. Each branch monitors each other, to prevent them from
abusing their power or having more power than another.
Learning Objective #5: Discuss the functions that Congress
performs.
The major functions that Congress performs is making laws, representing the
people, being their voice, overseeing that all laws are being followed, and
being a representative trustee. Congress makes national laws in order to
keep the country away from major chaos, tyranny, and making sure there is
order such as regulating television, having gun control, and deciding on
national budget. They also have representatives, from each state, that are
the voice of the people during law making and making national decisions;for
example passing Obama Care. They make sure that the people are aware of
what is occurring in the national government and resolving problems that
accommodate all ethnical groups. It is also responsible for making sure that
laws are reinforced by the help of police reinforcement and state legislatures.
Learning Objective #6: Identify how the power of the Congress
has/may evolve gradually.
Over the years Congress has gradually gained more power as a result of
attempting to solve conflicting problems of the nation that is for the greater
good of the country. The supreme court and the implied powers, known as
the necessary and proper clause, have also contributed to Congress gain of
power as well as their enumerated powers, which are the ability to coin
money, provide an army, conduct foreign affairs etc. The interstate
commerce act has allowed Congress to have more control over state power
in regulating trade.
Learning Objective #7: Identify how the power of the Congress
has/may change dramatically as a result of crisis.
The Vietnam War was one crisis that has changed the power of Congress
during that time because they seemed to have lost power since Congress
had lied about the real results of the war and kept sending more and more
troops to fight. The people lost trust in the government because they were
being told false facts and once they knew the actual results of it their
perspective of the government had changed. Congress had to gain back their
trust over time, but if the citizens are on the same page as the government
during a war it would have been easier to pass a law. The nation could be
united as a country or Congress may not want to deal with the situation,
instead they kick the can, so their image and reputation is not affected.

Learning Objective #8: Identify and discuss the ties between the
Congress and political parties.
Congressmen tend to always agree with their political partys ideas unless
they have strong beliefs in a specific concept as demonstrated in Mr. Cao
Goes to Washington when Cao decides to vote for the Democrats health
care plan and voting against republican beliefs because he thought that it
would benefit the people in Louisiana. Another way that Congress and
political parties are tied would be the majority leader influence on party
decisions, which tends to be the majority party spokesperson therefore
whatever party the leader is in they will have better opportunities passing
their own agenda rather than a bill.
Learning Objective #9: Identify and discuss the ties between the
Congress and interest groups.
Interest groups in the United States are often ways that minorities earn
attention for their specific causes. Lobbying is a very popular method by
which these particular groups influence and educate members of Congress
on the issue they want attention being paid to.
Learning Objective #10: Identify and discuss the ties between the
Congress and media.
The contemporary media focuses largely on the actions taken by the overall
body of Congress. It is rare for media attention to be focused on individual
Congress members, unless that member has made specific efforts to earn
media coverage in the popular newspapers, websites, TV commercials, or on
the radio. Congress members can even earn support for a particular bill
through media coverage, or by having certain media groups sponsor their
cause.
Learning Objective #11: Identify and discuss the ties between the
Congress and state and local governments.
Congress is bound to treat all local and state governments equally, but will
do so more actively if members of a certain state legislature serve as
allies/sponsors for a particular bill they are trying to rally support for. State
and local governments will usually attempt to make friends of their state
Congressman or Congresswoman in order to earn their attention on an issue
of that state are dealing with. For example, in the film titled Mr. Cao Goes to
Washington, Mr. Cao tried to stay in a close relationship with other members
of the Louisiana legislature in order to be better informed about the concerns

and wants of the people of that state (and local governments are usually the
most well-informed on what citizens of all backgrounds need).