Why Do Congress Vote

Congress is a powerful entity of the United State government, but what influences their voting behaviour, and why are they so powerful? There are many factors which sway how the members of congress vote. These factors include party affiliation, reelection, as well as individual political beliefs. As for the source behind Congress’s power; Committees. Congress’s individual members have several influences which play a role on how they vote. First and foremost of the factors is their party affiliation. Party affiliation plays a major impact when dealing with the internal politics of the congress. This is primarily because of similar interests between party members as well as political tensions between party members in power. This trend can be

While it would be comical to imagine 535 representatives verbally arguing their case day in, day out, this is not how Congress functions. Instead, Congress divides it’s members into committees. While the Senate and House have separate committees, they share similar purposes, such as dividing labor and specializing in certain fields. The House, being a body of 435 individuals, functions primarily because of these committees, as most debates and bill planning are within these local, specialized groups. For example, the Jurisdiction of the House’s Science, Space and Technology committee authorizes it’s members with complete control over the House’s actions regarding “all energy research, development, and demonstration, and projects therefor, and all federally owned or operated non-military energy laboratories; astronautical research and development, including resources, personnel, equipment, and facilities...” (science.house.gov). This authority ensures that a committee focuses on their designated area as opposed to a tangent which is marginally related to their expertise. The House is also unique in that it has a Rules committee, which essentially regulates how the House conducts it’s affairs. On the other hand, the Senate use committees in a similar fashion, to allow delegates to share their expertise in specialized fields, and gives authority to member’s of said committee regarding that field. However, instead of a rules committee, “[the Senate] has its own guidelines, within which each committee adopts its own rules.” (senate.gov). This is likely due to the fact that the Senate has 100 members, which is more manageable than the House’s 435. Congress’s power is within committees. Without this seemingly simple feature, the House would be chaos, and the Senate would bicker with little knowledge of the bill in question. As for how members of congress vote. Their party,