Senate Filibusters

There are a few methods or committees that play a part in the lawmaking process; a senate filibuster, House Rules Committee, the Conference Committee, oversight on federal bureaucracy, and casework. Each of these play an integral role in the lawmaking process for a variety of reasons. A senate filibuster allows a senator to prevent or delay action on a bill or other business. The House Rules Committee schedules or manages the flow of legislation, making it easier or more difficult to pass a bill, as well as make the legislative process more efficient. Also, the Conference Committee settles differences in the House and Senate versions of a bill. Additionally, Congress can exercise oversight on a federal bureau by means of funding, and lastly, casework can affect a member 's attention to legislation based on the ideologies of his or her constituents, as well as how time consuming it is. A senate filibuster can allow a senator who opposes a bill to prevent or delay its passing. The opposing senator can debate indefinitely, even if what he or she is saying has nothing to do with the bill. This usually will prevent a bill from being passed, even if it has a enough votes to pass, as it is difficult to stop a filibuster because of the 60 vote

One of these methods is “power of the purse”, or Congress’s ability to control the flow of money to a federal bureau. This allows Congress to control the productivity of specific branches of the federal bureaucracy, as well as its existence. If Congress does not approve of a bureau’s management, it can cut its funding, effectively causing the bureau to adhere more to Congress’s will. Just like Congress can cut funding to a branch of the federal bureaucracy, it can also increase funding, if it approves of what the bureau is achieving. This power illustrates Congress’s ability to control how individual bureaus conduct their