‎2003 FRQ-Congressional Influence

A1. One element of the Congressional committee system is specialization. After being placed on a particular committee (ideally one which relates to their specific district or professional background), a member of Congress develops a level of expertise that leads to influence on the legislative process. Given that 90% of bills die in Congress, policy specialization is critical in determining whether a bill will live or die. A member well versed on the specifics of a particular committee will be more likely to be able to nurture and strengthen a bill into becoming law.

A2. Another element of the Congressional committee system is through party representation on committees. After an election whereby the party out of power, assumes the majority, an important transformation takes place. All committee chairmanships are now given to the new party of the majority. This means that agenda items favorable to the new party in power become the top priority. Additionally, congressional hearings are often held which feature topics of top concern to the new party in power and may be critical of the minority party. Political scores are often settled through this process.

B1. One way in which party leadership in Congress can influence the legislative process is through their skilled use of the media. The party in power through the Speaker of the House or the Majority Leader can easily assemble the press if they desire to focus on a particular topic of concern. Recently, gun control legislation has been proposed by members of Congress in the wake of a mass shooting. Providing regular access to members of the media has built up an almost inevitable move towards pushing gun control legislation forward.

B2. Another way in which party leadership in Congress can influence the legislative process is through insistence of maintaining party discipline throughout their ranks. For several years the Republican Party has insisted on a broad range of tax cuts for all Americans. They have until recent days insisted that all members of the party sign a no-tax pledge that was instigated by political figure Grover Norquist.
There had been a tremendous amount of party discipline maintained while Republicans have insisted on not raising taxes. Unfortunately for them, it had arguably cost them a presidential election and broad disfavor throughout the country.