Teaching Congress

Online & Classroom Instruction Through School of Government/           Political Science and/or School of Liberal Arts

Undergraduate Course:  Congress & The Legislative Process                  3 Credit Hours and/or Certificate for Online Study

Summary:  Congress has more impact on American daily lives than just about any institution in the United States today.  Some say it is highly dysfunctional.  Others say it works as America’s founding fathers designed it to work.  You be the judge.  Together we will explore how laws are made, the committee system prevails, and individual member offices have given them a degree of independence from the political parties that makes anything possible in the houses that Jefferson, Madison, Monroe and others forged over the past two hundred and twenty-six years. 

Grading:  Grades for the semester will consist of five parts:  Part I will be class participation for which 10% of your grade will be evaluated based on topics that will be covered in class but not through your assigned readings.  Part II will be your mid-term exam for which 20% of your grade will be earned.  Part III will be your term paper for which 20% of your grade will be earned.  Part IV will be a case study for which 20% of your grade will be earned from this exercise.  Part V will be your final exam for which the remaining 30% of your grade will be earned.  A voluntary mid-term review and a final review will be offered two weeks before each exam.  Midterms and finals will consist of both multiple choice and essay questions consisting of equal values.  Recommended readings will be provided for each class session.

·       Week 1

o   Congress in Perspective

Topics To Be Explored:

·       What the Framers Envisioned

·       Uncle Joe Cannon’s Congress

·       The Modern Congress

·       Week 2

o   The Political Parties in Congress

Topics To Be Explored:

·       Democrats

·       Republicans

·       Independents

·       Mavericks

·       Week 3

o   Member Behavior & Congressional Leadership

Topics To Be Explored:

·       Personal vs Party Role

·       In Committee or on the Campaign Trail

·       House Leadership

·       Senate Leadership

·       Week 4

o   The Committees

Topics To Be Explored:

·       The Money Committees

·       The Oversight Committees

·       The Policy Committees

·       The Caucuses

·       The Conference Committee

·       Week 5

o   The Personal Offices

Topics To Be Explored:

·       Clerk Hire

·       Official Expenses

·       Independent vs Party Member

·       Washington & in the District Offices

·       Week 6

o   Rules & Procedures

Topics To Be Explored:

·       Jurisdiction

·       In Committee

·       On the Floor

·       Week 7

o   H’s and S’s

Topics To Be Explored:

·       Representatives

·       Senators

·        Week 8

o   Midterm Review

o   Midterm Exam 

·         Week 9

o   Congress & The White House

Topics To Be Explored:

·       Lead or Follow

·       Advise & Consent

·       Recess Appointments

·       Budgets & Deficits

·        Week 10

o   Congress & The Courts

Topics To Be Explored:

·       The Third Branch

·       Judicial Policymaking

·       Justice for the Justices

 ·        Week 11

o   Congress & The Media

Topics To Be Explored:

·       The Fourth Estate

·       Scandals & Investigations

·       Press Conferences & Media Avails

 ·        Week 12

o   Congress & The Special Interests

Topics To Be Explored:

·       K Street

·       Advocacy Groups

·       The Social Media Impact

 ·        Week 13

o   Congress & Policymaking

Topics To Be Explored:

·       The Budget & Appropriations Process

·       Congressional Record vs Federal Register

 ·        Week 14

o   Reforming Congress & The Upcoming Elections

Topics To Be Explored:

·       In Committee

·       House & Senate Rules

·       The 2012 Results

·       The 2014 Races

 ·        Week 15

o   Thanksgiving Holidays

 ·        Week 16

o   Course Review & Connecting the Dots

 ·        Week 17

o   Final Exam

Course-related books might be taken from the following sample literature on the subject:

·       Roger H. Davidson & Walter J. Oleszek, Congress & Its Members, 17th ed, Congressional Quarterly Press, 2010.

·       Lawrence C. Dodd and Bruce I. Oppenheimer, Congress Reconsidered,  9th ed., Congressional Quarterly Press, 2009.

·       David R. Mayhew, Congress:  The Electoral Connection, 2nd ed,,  Yale University, 1974.

·       Steven S. Smith, Jason M. Roberts, and Ryan J. Vander Wielen, The American Congress, 6th ed, Cambridge University Press, 2009.

·       Julian E. Zelizer, On Capitol Hill: The Struggle to Reform Congress and its Consequences, 1948 – 2000,

·       Ken Burns, The Congress , PBS 1988.