ABSTRACT
This chapter shows how conflicting views about the core functions of Congress affect perceptions of its role in American government and assesses the process by which members of Congress are elected and how it shapes the way Congress works. Congress should delegate to the president a great deal of flexibility in administering laws and programs, and should avoid overly scrutinizing executive branch actions. The political party is the only institution that tries to counteract this natural tendency toward fragmentation and decentralization in Congress. There are three different conceptions of the role of Congress as an institution: One view makes Congress the most important institution, the second has the president as the leader and primary lawmaker, and the third advocates majority party rule. The most important institution in Congress is the committee system, the primary means by which Congress organizes itself to do its work.
