Organization -Great Compromise of 1787 3 branches of government Bicameral legislature -House Lower house -Senate Upper house The House of Representatives is based on population The Senate is based on equal representation, with two Senators from every state (today)
House of Representatives -representation based on each state s population -3 requirements (for members) 25 years old Live in state they represent U.S. citizen for 7 years
House Terms -2 year terms Elected every two years -unlimited terms Can be elected as many times as possible term limitations??? -Idea that legislators should only be allowed a maximum number of years in office in order to encourage more involvement in government -435 total members (fixed total) Total number of representatives divided between 50 states and Washington, D.C. Why do you think that some people do not want Congressmen to be able to serve unlimited numbers of terms? What is a citizen legislator? According to this picture, why should we have citizen legislators rather than career politicians?
House Membership -census determines the number from each state -apportionment-- Term that refers to the number of representatives assigned to a state based upon its population Divide members by states -gerrymandering-- Drawing a district s boundaries in an odd shaped manner in order to benefit one political party over another A gerrymander is an oddly-shaped district drawn to increase the voting power of one specific group of people. Why do people think this should be illegal? Who would it benefit? Who would it hurt? Strengthens one group s voting power -each member represents one certain district closer to the people -represents constituents (citizens)
North Carolina Congressional districts following the Census of 2000. Which district do we live in? Who is our district Representative in the House of Representatives? How are those people closer to the people?
Constituents: House vs. Senate
Senate -based on every state being equal -3 requirements 30 years old Live in state they represent U.S. citizen for 9 years
Senate Terms -6 year terms Staggered elections (1/3 elected every two years) every 2 years One Senator serves 6 years -unlimited terms Can be elected as many times as possible South Carolina Senator Strom Thurmond served 8 terms in the U.S. Senate for a total of 48 years, many of which he served as the ceremonial leader in the Senate. Why might people have disagreed with his ability to be in the Senate for so long? term limitations??? -100 members
An incumbent is a person who is already in office when an election comes. During the election, the incumbent will run to keep the same position. What do you think this political cartoon is trying to say about term limitations?
Senate Membership -100 members -2 from each state -each represents the whole state Represent more people than in the House of Representatives North Carolina Senator Richard Burr is a Republican and Kay Hagan is a Democrat. Who does each represent? Kay Hagan was elected in 2008. When will she be up for re-election? Richard Burr was elected in 2006. When will he be up for re-election?
Congressional Benefits -salary Approx. $150,000 a year -budgets for their staff -office space at Capital -franking privileges-- Right of a Congressmen to send job-related mail without postage -limited immunity Why do you think the franking privilege is a benefit to U.S. Congressmen? Legal protection to speak freely while in Congress -Limitations -expulsion-removed from Congress -censure--formal vote of disapproval of a legislator s conduct
Congressional Sessions -each Congress serves two years and is given a number Entire Congress is elected every two years -Congress meets from Jan. to Nov/Dec 20 th Amendment In session -can be called into special sessions by President Whenever he feels necessary Every two years an entirely new Congress is sworn in during the month of January. The current Congress, the 109 th Congress, began in a unique way. For the first time, a woman (Nancy Pelosi) became the leader of the House of Representatives, and she swore in the new members.
Limited Government -Article One How Congress will work -Congress is given certain powers -defined in Article 1 of the Constitution Enumerated powers (listed) Implied powers ( necessary and proper clause) -Congress is denied certain powers -defined in Article 1 Told what they can and cannot do When the founders created our federal government, they wanted a limited government. How did they achieve this when they drafted the plan for the Legislative Branch? What sorts of things should Congress be able to control? What sorts of things should they NOT be allowed to control?
Expressed Powers -Expressed, Delegated, Enumerated, Exclusive the same Congress and federal gov. only -Powers given to Congress in Article One -Examples: Declare war and form army Coin/make money Why do you think things like declaring war, making money, and regulating trade (both inside and outside the United States) are left ONLY to the federal government? What sorts of problems might we run into if these powers were reserved? What about if they were concurrent? Regulate foreign trade Regulate interstate commerce
Implied Powers -Powers given to Congress by the Necessary and Proper Clause Elastic clause - Congress can stretch powers to meet needs -Interpretation of the Constitution Loose interpretation Examples: Creating an air force Bailout plan
Additional Powers -Power to Investigate Reviews laws, government activities, special investigations -Power to Propose Amendments By a 2/3 vote of BOTH houses -Power to Impeach Can charge (poss. remove) federal official with wrongdoing in office President/Vice President/judge
Powers of the House -Must start all Appropriation Bills - power of the purse -- Power of the House whereby all revenue producing bills must be introduced in the House of Representatives Closer to the people -Picks President if no winner in Electoral College Closer to the people -Begins the Impeachment Process Investigates and charges an official with misconduct in office How is having the power of the purse an influential power of the House of Representatives? Why do they have it? What do they use it for? How does that give them more power?
Impeachment, charging a federal official of misconduct or wrongdoing while in office, is a two-part process. The first part of impeachment happens in the House of Representatives. The House acts as a grand jury, surveying the evidence to decide if there is enough to officially charge the official with committing something illegal. If the house finds enough evidence, they will officially charge the official. That is the impeachment. The second part of the process happens in the Senate. The Senate will hold a trial for the federal official to determine whether or not that official will be removed from office and potentially serve time in jail. The Senate, then, acts as the jury in the process. Therefore, it is possible for a President to be impeached but not removed from office. We have had two Presidents impeached, but we have never removed a President from office.
Powers of the Senate -Approves Presidential Appointments Supreme Court justices, federal judges, ambassadors - checks and balances The most recent major Presidential appointment was that of John Roberts as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. As with all Presidential appointments, John Roberts had to gain approval from the Senate. Why is it important for the Senate to approve all Presidential appointments and treaties? -Approves all Treaties -Acts as jury in Impeachment cases The impeachment trial occurs in the Senate
Other Limits -10 th Amendment Reserved powers for the states Congress cannot interfere with reserved powers -Checks and Balances System Judicial can declare laws unconstitutional President can veto laws -Two Party System No real power for 3 rd party groups Why is it important to put limits on the laws Congress is able to pass? What is the President s role in checking Congressional power?
Congressional Rules -Developed to help Congress operate Everyone has a different opinion and different goals -House has more rules than Senate why??? More people in one space -Parliamentary Procedures both Houses of Congress use a formal system of debate which keeps the debate orderly What do you think Congress would be like, and achieve, if there were not rules?
House Leaders Leaders from majority party -Speaker of the House -basically runs the House of Representatives 3 rd in line to be President -sets up the calendar and schedules bills for debate Speaker of the House John Boehner -Vice President Senate Leaders -official leader but only votes in a tie and is rarely present -President Pro-Tempore -mostly symbolic position given to the longest serving Senator from the majority party Vice President Joe Biden is the official leader of the U.S. Senate. However, he rarely attends and only votes in a tie. Therefore, the President Pro Tempore, the day-to-day leader of the Senate, is Senator Daniel Inouye.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer House Minority Leader John Boehner House Majority Whip James Clyburn Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell Senate Democratic Whip Richard Durbin Congressional Leadership -Majority Leader -each House chooses a leader of the majority party to be floor leader Party with most representation -Minority Leader -each House picks a minority party member to its floor leader Party with least representation -Party Whip -each party in each House has a Party Whip to keep track of voting on important issues Get party members to vote with the rest of the political party
Congressional Leadership House of Representatives Senate Speaker of the House Always from MAJORITY party Majority Leader Majority Party Whip Majority Whip Team House Committee Chairpersons ALWAYS from majority party Minority Leader Minority Party Whip Minority Whip Team Vice President Rarely attends and only votes in a tie President Pro Tempore Always from MAJORITY party, day-to-day leader Majority Leader Majority Party Whip Majority Whip Team Minority Leader Minority Party Whip Minority Whip Team Senate Committee Chairpersons ALWAYS from majority party
The Library of Congress is an essential tool for Congressional operations. In researching new bills (also called legislation ), the Library of Congress helps to gather historical facts, arguments, and old related bills for the discussion on the new bill. Staff Support -personal staff of each member of Congress Run home and D.C. offices -Committee staff who function as experts in the committee s area Gather information for speeches and meetings -Library of Congress Congressional Research Office gathers facts/arguments for bills -General Accounting Office investigates and reports on gov t spending Looks for ways to improve government spending -Government Budget Office -predicts costs of gov t programs
Committee Government -developed committees to divide the work load of Congress Committee membership important to Representatives -standing committees-- Permanent committees of Congress who study, revise, and pass legislation Continue from session to session education, commerce -select committees-- committees which study more temporary problems in society -joint committees-- committees which involve members of both Houses of Congress meeting together Both houses of Congress operate in committee government as an attempt to divide the Congressional workload and achieve better and faster legislation.
Committee Membership -Based on seniority -Term that refers to how long a member has been in Congress and is important in assigning committee memberships -Party leaders make committee assignments From majority and minority -majority party of each house appoints the chairperson of each committee Decide when committees will meet, what bills will be studied, and forms subcommittees