Preview

Congress Dbq

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
683 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Congress Dbq
At its core Congress should act as a representative body. Congress should seek to represent their constituents and ideals the constituents voted for. Moreover, at its core America is supposed to elect a barometer of the public opinion. Americans representatives should strive to represent the people that elected. The ability to participate in a national legislative body through electing a representative is the function of a free republic. Taken to extremes, if a type of representative democracy did not happen, than congress would be free to do whatever it wanted. The real question, is how much can the elected representative shift from the ideals of their constituents. They are human beings with ambitions and goals. The constitutions of congress …show more content…
Obviously, it is difficult to keep track of a representatives every move in the deep dark chamber of congress[Doc G]. In some congress people’s opinion, this anonymity leads them to believe that they don’t have any responsibility to their constituents. This is a classic example a a psychological phenomenon called groupthink, in which anonymity provides a cover for risky and generally worse decision. But, because of the anonymity and the feeling of a responsibility to political parties, the central goal of a legislator can be skewed. A solution to this problem could be the increasing involvement people in the processes of democracy[Doc D]. This should also be the goal of the congress people, not ties to an established political party or group. The people need to be constantly engaged in the processes of their democracy, not only the presidential election. Politicians have to be elected consistently, this should not be intertwined with getting in the favor of political organizations they are associated with [Doc C]. Establishing a role to the people, and the people a role creates a system beneficial for everyone involved. Then political election will be the result of what policy they make, and what policies people vote …show more content…
When citizens become faithless in the core principles of democracy, than that democracy will fail. The congress people have no role in enforcing their specific leaning on their thousands of constituents[Doc B]. It might be the case that legislators become overconfident in their abilities to be a free agent in terms of legislating. When legislators lose focus of the purpose of democracy, than America become more of an oligarch than it does a democracy. As JFK said, “[saying] f the people... would deny the obligation of a representative to be bound by every impulse of the electorate”[Doc A]. This is especially true in context in the context of a democracy. It becomes infinitely regressive for an elected official to disagree with the conclusion their constituents fall upon. This denies the autonomy of a whole population of concerned citizens to participate in the governmental system. The governmental system become corrupts when elected officials become the center of the political system. They say why not this change, then why agree with any other decision that the electorate has. This creates a dangerous system that would not be possible if the congress people were more directly tied to the decisions of the people who elected

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    The first step they must achieve is reelection. The reelection stage is when they establish a home style. By earning the trust of their district’s voters, it is easier to justify their decisions of policy making. This makes the goals of receiving power and good public policy possible. These next two steps involve a congressman’s career in Washington. They must achieve to pass laws that are beneficial to their home district. Good public policy is established to keep existing voters and to allow for a new base of supporters. Once they do this, congressmen must find a balance between their home style and Washington career. First, to distribute their power, a congressman can appoint a higher number of local staff. This makes up for their absence at their home district while working in Washington. The next way a congressman must balance their power is to use their influence in Washington to benefit their home district. The happier a congressman’s support system is, the more likely it is that they will get reelected. When a congressman finds the proper balance of the three main goals, it will ensure a thriving…

    • 459 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    Democracy is deified as a government ruled by its people, a society represented by its own members forming a self deciding and self governed community. This very essential ideal established the founders of the United States has become harder to uphold, and there are restraints that do not allow for true democracy to be fully expressed. Extra-governmental actions by special interests and the intricate costs of campaigns has married the economic and political arenas and it has resulted the creation of heavily influenced representatives that no longer serve their original function- to represent the interest of their constituents. The functionality of today’s political system would be unrecognizable to that of the original Constitution and that of the founders. The absence of term limits of House and Senate representatives have causes two elements that infringes on the democratic value of the government of the United States; now members of the congress and senate are career politicians and hold office for many ulterior reasons other than the honor of public service, and secondly this notion has now created a political class an exclusive society that dictates the legislative process. An Amendment to the Constitution is necessary to overturn the previous institutional establishment of limitless terms for senators and house representatives, because amendments are the only way to modify the articles of the constitution. [1]…

    • 2378 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    It is generally understood that the United States is built upon the principles of democracy, in which the majority consensus of the citizens helps to define the shape of issues or elections. However, in assuming that the Constitution - the document upon which such practices are founded – is inherently democratic is only partially accurate. Indeed, it has been frequently argued that the U. S. Constitution is representative of the rule of law from a federation as opposed to a pure democracy; in a federation, elections occur among the majority of the citizenry but this process results in elected officials who then determine the direction of the country. In short, a federation transforms a democracy from the rule of the many back into the rule of the few, with the “few” in this sense being the elected officials selected through an elections process.…

    • 814 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Today, most American politicians are “fundraisers first and legislators second,” which has numerous consequences (Sarbanes). Congressman John Sarbanes estimated that congressmen devote 30 to 70 percent of their time to fundraising -time that could be spent creating legislation and learning about policy issues (Lieu). Additionally, the unrestricted private campaign donations are undermining democracy, in a sense “buying the government,” while the people’s interests shift to the back seat. To reduce gridlock, we need our congress members time and energy devoted to legislation, and their votes dedicated to the people, not solely the Big Money minority. In accordance with the views of many grassroots leaders, I believe that we need a comprehensive overhaul of the election system. The first step is the reversal of Citizens United, a court case that led to the creation of super PAC’s when the Supreme Court ruled that the federal government cannot limit corporations (or unions, associations or individuals) from spending money to influence the outcome of elections (Liptak). The second step involves transferring power back to the people. As Lawrence Lessig, academic scholar and political activist, points out, “So long as elections cost money, we won’t end Congress’s dependence on its funders (Lessig).” Therefore, our second step must be to adopt a system of…

    • 972 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Sydni Repsone Paper 5

    • 1028 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Congress represents the people of the United States. The members of Congress serve their Constituents. The constituents are the people who live in that specific district from which each member is elected from. Members must respect the opinion and please their constituents if they want to still be in office, because the constituents are who basically elect these members. Every issue and opinion must be taken into consideration. There are three theories of representation. There is the trustee representation, the sociological representation, and the agency representation.…

    • 1028 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Democracy only works if the United States citizens are informed responsibly and frequently. As citizens who are actively involved in elections -whether by voting or running for office- United States citizens need to be informed by non-bias news networks. Politicians rely on Americans not to be informed, that they will follow their words and plans without looking at them closer and seeing their flaws. Davis Mindich reflects this well in his passage.…

    • 551 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Ap Gov, Congress Essay

    • 429 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Fiorna also argues that the growth of an activist federal government has sparked major change in congressional activities as less and less effort is spent on actual lawmaking and an ever increasing amount on pork barreling and casework. Congress is itself creating a centralized, highly un-participatory government which results in “Congress does not just react to big government, it creates it”. According to Fiorna Congress would rather work hard to get reelected rather than make actual laws which often involve difficult decisions and can result in political enemies. All the problems evident with a centralized government are present in Congress.…

    • 429 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    According to David Mayhew, author of Congress: The Electoral Connection, Congress has many different functions that it performs including: “ . . .legislating, overseeing the executive, expressing public opinion, and servicing constituents” (Mayhew 2004, 8). While all these are important to the role Congress plays, the most important ability is the authority to create laws. Congress derives its power to perform its functions and to create laws, from Article I of the Constitution. Although Article I may be oft overlooked, the authority given to Congress from it is critically important to understanding legislative politics. Without structures and rules, Congress would be unable to make laws, would have little authority and could not function properly as a check to the other branches of government.…

    • 2492 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    The United States is a representative democracy. The goal of a representative democracy is to allow new blood to flow through the government each election cycle. This goal, however, is achieved less and less in modern times due to the re-election of many career politicians. These career politicians then spend their next term engaging in activities that will better their chances of re-election, rather than helping their constituents. For this reason, an overwhelming majority of incumbents at the national level get re-elected each term (Sincere, 1995).…

    • 802 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Congress was designed the way it is in order to allow the American people to have a voice in our government. With that it is no surprise that Congress relies heavily on public opinion and involvement. However, too much consideration for how the public feels and what the public wants leaves the door open for a variety of complications. One of the larger complications of this is the impact elections can have.…

    • 1872 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Congress Vs Incumbents

    • 749 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The United States of America is like no other country in the world. Our democracy is confusing to everyone else in the world but makes sense to those born here. But, there is one thing that even confuses Americans, that is, Congress. According to Real Clear Politics, only 15% of Americans approve of job of Congress, while 75% disapprove. This is not surprising, but what is surprising is that even with such low approval ratings, 80% of Senator Incumbents and 95% of Representative Incumbents get reelected. Why? This paradox is the result for multiple reasons. The American people often have presumptuous opinions, are uninformed, or just don’t care. In addition, Congressmen have large influence over outcomes of future elections. Learning why Congressmen…

    • 749 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Term Limits In Congress

    • 841 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Many Americans today are displeased with and have expressed their discontent with the lawmaking actions—or the lack thereof, rather—of members of Congress. However, solutions to resolve, or at least improve, public approval of their congressional representatives are unclear and plagued by some of the following questions: are term limits the answer, will they do more harm than good, and is it just a trade-off for different, yet equally adverse issues?…

    • 841 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Informed Voting

    • 2086 Words
    • 9 Pages

    It is the duty of the American people to play an active role in determining who represents their best interests in Congress. Stephen Witham, in his presentation titled, Becoming an Informed Voter, says the following in regards to the American peoples’ responsibility to not only vote, but to do so intelligently, “We, as voters, are supposed to focus primarily on electing Congress…I challenge the students to think about voting for an individual based on the way they vote to represent you in Congress.” In response to the aforesaid…

    • 2086 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    The purpose of this paper is intended to summarize my views on what has influenced my understanding of politics and government prior to taking this class, and how my understanding is now since completing this course.…

    • 1136 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    This paper will discuss what interest groups are and the role that interest groups play in American politics and why it is important. Another thing that this paper will discuss is how interest groups have influenced American elections. American elections have been influenced with direct and indirect strategies to get a candidate elected. They have also been influenced wit the use of information. The direct strategies used where more in your face and out for everyone else to know about and where very effective. While the indirect strategies used may have been hidden and in the shadows they were also effective. The use of information was helpful to put things out into the world and it was also there to help the candidate that was being supported by the interest group gain popularity and/or publicity. Towards the end of the paper the role of interest groups and how they have influenced American elections should be understood.…

    • 1006 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays