Explain how the congressional budget process works, including Congress' role in discretionary and mandatory spending decisions. In your explanation, assess the ways in which the budget process centralizes power in the hands of a small number of members and the ways in which it decentralizes power in Congress. What were the goals of budget reform in 1974? To what extent have these goals been achieved? Include an assessment of Congress' use of "must pass" budget legislation, including appropriations bills and increasing the debt limit.