1. Congress

a. The House of Representatives - 435 members

    i). direct election, small constituencies, 2 year terms

          Result: Representatives have a short term, relatively parochial perspective

    ii). The House is more tightly run than the Senate,

    iii). What was the impact of the 2006 election?

Key House Committees in the 111th Congress (Chairs chosen by majority party)

Ways and Means (Chair: Charlie Rangel, New York City)
 Taxes, including Superfund; user fees at parks; trade (Nafta, etc.)

Appropriations  (David Obey, Northwestern Wisconsin)
 Spending  - Subcommittee on Agriculture (Rose DeLauro, Connecticut)
 Spending -  Subcommittee on Interior (Norman Dicks, Tacoma Washington)

Commerce (John Dingell, Detroit)
 Superfund, energy, nuclear waste, Clean Air Act

Natural Resources (Chair: Nick Rahall, West Virginia)
 Endandered species, national forests and parks, mining rights

Agriculture (Chair: Colin Peterson, Minnesota)
 Timber, grazing, pesticides

Transportation and Infrastructure  (James Oberstar, Minnesota)
 Highways and mass transit; flood control, pollution of navigable waters.

b. The Senate - 100 Members:

i) direct election, statewide constituencies, 6 year term

   Result: Longer term perspective, parochial in small states, broader in larger states

ii) Small states have disproportionate influence
 

iii) Many Senators aspire to higher office.

iv) For anything truly controversial, you need 60 out of 100 votes to stop a filibuster

       (As of February 11, there are 56 Democrats + 2 Democratic-leaning independents in the Senate)

Key Senate Committees in the 111th Congress (Chairs chosen by majority party)

Finance  (Chair: Max Baucus, Montana)
 Taxes, including Superfund; user fees at parks

Appropriations (Chair: Daniel Inouye, Hawaii)
Appropriation Subcommittees deal with spending  (including EPA, US Parks, Forest Service, etc.)

Energy and Natural Resources (Jeff Bingaman, New Mexico)
 Energy, nuclear waste, public lands

Environment and Public Works  (Chair: Barbara Boxer, California)
 Endandered species, Clean Air and Water Acts, Superfund

Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry (Chair: Tom Harkin, Iowa)
 Timber, pesticides, “biofuels”

Commerce, Science, and Transportation  (Chair: Jay Rockefeller, West Virginia)
 Highways and mass transit; flood control, pollution of navigable waters