Historical Development of Congress

1
Historical Development of Congress
2
Processes of Institutionalization Polsby in 1968

• bounded/differentiated from external environment
• internal complexity

3
First Congress/Experimental Congress/Gentry
Congress (1789-1812)

• amateur vs. professional knowledge
• little professionalization
• Emergence of Federalist and Jeffersonian
  Republican faction labels, but not parties per se
• Jeffersonian theory of legislation whole
  Congress, not committees, reigns over legislation
• House most active originator of legislation
• Strongest legislative leaders not MCs! First,
  Hamilton as Sec. Tres.(leads to first House Ways
  Means), then TJ as Pres.
• first Standing Committee on Ways and Means

4
Golden Age (1828-1861) Jacksonian Era

• rise of mass politics
• Congress is democratized
• Age of rhetoric
• impact of Clay Speakership committees become
  dominant force, speaker becomes independently
  powerful
• normal politics is born
• greater professionalization
• Slavery/growing rift between the North and South
• Contest between Whigs (pro-commercial) and
  Democrats (southern)

5
Civil War System (1865-1896)

• Regional policies contested by Democrats (south)
  and Republicans (north)
• Committee system fully fleshed out along partisan
  lines
• Post Civil War Party leaders play stronger and
  more central role Thomas Reed (Reeds Rules),
  Czar Cannon
• Oratory in the Senate Senate becomes the
  millionaires club
• Ends with election of House committees.

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Modern Congress 1880s (or 1912) to Present
fill in with Burns The Congress

• Strong parties era (1890-1918) Reed, Czar
  Cannon parties supercede individuals and
  committees
• Post Civil-War corruption and industrial
  development
• Progressive Era, 1900-1920
• New Deal
• 1950s congressional investigations to expose
  communism in government
• Strong committees era (to 1970)
• Seniority rule, Chair oligarchy, Textbook
  Congress

7
Post 1970s Reform Era

• Individual professionalization and power
• opportunities for policy influence expanded
  increase in staff and resources
• media driven
• decreased powers for committees and chairs
• stronger party leadership
• parties in Congress restrengthened

8
Features of Current Congress The Partisan
Congress?

• Sinclair, New World of U.S. Senators
• cohesive parties exploit rules for partisan gain,
  but individualism still strong (review evidence
  examples)

9
Dodd Oppenheimer, Decade of Republican
Control

• brief return to Czar leadership with Gingrich
• House leaders displaced committees as source of
  power/influence (postscript to Polsby?)
• increase in power of House in national lawmaking
  generally (post 9/11)
• consolidation of GOP control (few competitive
  districts, lower turn-over) influence of pres.
• Polarization resulting in part from electoral
  landscape increasing distrust and incivility
• Current assessments for 109th Congress?