Andrew Johnson 1868 Bill Clinton Executive Powers

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1 Nonlegislative Powers of Congress Constitutional amendments: propose by 2/3 agreements of both houses Electoral duties o if no President, the House decides if no one receive a majority of the electoral vote the House decides from among the three highest contenders, each state gets one vote and the winner is the one who receives the majority of votes. This has only been done 2 times, in 1801 for Thomas Jefferson and in 18u25 for John Quincy Adams. o if no VP, the Senate decides this vote is by individual Senators and election is by a majority of Senators. This had been done 1 time in 1837 to elect Richard M. Johnson to be V.P. Impeachment o House has sole power to impeach, to accuse the President or other civil officer of impeachable offenses be removed from Office on Impeachment for and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors. o Senate tries the case Executive Powers Andrew Johnson 1868 Bill Clinton 1998 o Appointments Senate approves cabinet positions, judges, US attorneys, federal marshals o Treaties must be approved by the Senate Investigatory power o Investigate to gather information, oversee various branches, focus attention on a particular subject, expose questionable activities of public officials, promote particular interests of members of Congress

2 Members of Congress Jobs of Members of Congress 1. legislators 2. representatives of their constituents some vote as they think the people back home would want, some vote along party lines we call this partisan voting, ex the stimulus package voting. 3. committee members each house has various committees that screen the bills and decide which ones will actually go to the floor. These committees also serve an oversight function that checks on the various agencies in the Executive branch to make sure they are working effectively and within the policies set within the laws. 4. servants of their constituents trying to help people that have problems having to do with the government. 5. Politicians Compensation $174,000, they just received an annual raise of $4,700. Benefits: healthcare, travel/office allowances, retirement and pension plan, free postage Congressional Pay, current bill to freeze the automatic pay raise that Congress gets each year. This bill has been proposed every year since 1995 but has not passed.

3 What do you know about how Congress is organized? Leaders? Chapter 12 Congress in Action Section 1: Congress Organizes January 3, even numbered years State of the Union required by the Constitution Presiding officers Speaker of the House (elected presiding officer of majority party, 3 rd in line o Preside over House and keep order, Nancy Pelosi (D CA) President of the Senate o Vice president of US Joe Biden President pro tempore Robert Byrd (D, WV) o In charge when President of the Senate is gone. (elected of majority party, 4 th in line) Other presiding officers o Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) Majority Whip Richard Durbin (D-IL) Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) Minority Whip John Kyl (R-AZ) o House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) Majority Whip James Clyburn (D SC) Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA)

4 Seniority rule, unwritten custom, the most important positions will be held by the person who s been in Congress the longest. This rule is strictly applied when considering who will be chairman of a committee. Critics say that this does not allow for younger members to be involved in important committees. Committees heads also usually come from districts where there has been stable representation for a long time. Defenders of the practice say that it allows for an experienced member of the committee to run it smoothly. Section 2: Committees in Congress Standing Committees permanent committees to deal with policy matters (agriculture, veterans affairs, appropriations) The majority party will hold a majority of the seats in each committee, however the minority party will be well represented. Select Committees called for a special purpose and limited time Joint Committees committee of both the house and senate, some are select, some are permanent Economic, the Library of Congress, Printing, Taxation. Conference Committee sole purpose is to work out differences in a bill (made up of members from House and Senate House Rules Committee traffic cop for bills in the House, decides when House bills are discussed. Most bills dies in the committee they are sent to. The House Rules committee decides which bills will be reported out of committee and schedules those bills to go to the Floor and under what circumstances they will go to the floor. In the Senate this process is not a rigid, the majority leader controls which bills go to the floor. OVERHEADS TO FOLLOW

5 Nonlegislative Powers of Congress Constitutional amendments Electoral duties o if no President, the House o if no VP, the Senate decides Impeachment o House has sole power to impeach, to accuse the President or other civil officer of impeachable offenses o Senate tries the case Andrew Johnson 1868 Bill Clinton 1998 Executive Powers o Appointments Senate approves cabinet positions, judges, US attorneys, federal marshals o Treaties must be approved by the Senate Investigatory power o Investigate to gather information, oversee various branches, focus attention on a particular subject, expose questionable activities of public officials, promote particular interests of members of Congress

6 Members of Congress Jobs of Members of Congress 6. legislators 7. representatives of their constituents 8. committee members 9. servants of their constituents 10. Politicians Compensation $174,000, they just received an annual raise of $4,700. Benefits: healthcare, travel/office allowances, retirement and pension plan, free postage Congressional Pay, current bill to freeze the automatic pay raise that Congress gets each year. This bill has been proposed every year since 1995 but has not passed.

7 Chapter 12 Congress in Action Section 1: Congress Organizes January 3, even numbered years State of the Union required by the Constitution Presiding officers Speaker of the House (elected presiding officer of majority party, 3 rd in line o Preside over House and keep order, Nancy Pelosi (D CA) President of the Senate o Vice president of US Joe Biden President pro tempore Robert Byrd (D, WV) o In charge when President of the Senate is gone. (elected of majority party, 4 th in line) Other presiding officers o Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) Majority Whip Richard Durbin (D-IL) Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) Minority Whip John Kyl (R-AZ) o House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) Majority Whip James Clyburn (D SC) Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA) Seniority rule, unwritten custom, the most important positions will be held by the person who s been in Congress the longest.

8 Section 2: Committees in Congress Standing Committees permanent committees to deal with policy matters (agriculture, veterans affairs, appropriations) Select Committees called for a special purpose and limited time Joint Committees committee of both the house and senate, some are select, some are permanent Conference Committee sole purpose is to work out differences in a bill (made up of members from House and Senate House Rules Committee traffic cop for bills in the House, decides when House bills are discussed.