Bell Ringer  On a separate sheet of paper, define the following key terms  Bicameral legislature  Reapportionment  Census  Redistrict  Gerrymander  Incumbent  Constituent

THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH An Introduction to Article I

Congressional Sessions  Each term of Congress starts on January 3 rd of odd numbered years  The current Congress is the 111 th Congress  The 112 th term of Congress will start January 3 rd 2011 Those that are elected in November 2010  Each term has 2 year long sessions with scheduled breaks

US House of Representatives  435 members  Number from each state is determined by population  Does anyone remember which plan at the Constitutional Convention called for Representation determined by population? Virginia Plan  How do we determine the population of each state? Census  Reapportionment and Gerrymandering

How does redistricting work?  Every 10 years we take a head count of the population (the census). We then take that information and see what percentage of the population a state has. That state then gets that percentage of the 435 House seats (roughly). Every state is guaranteed at least one seat  So Texas’ population is about 25.3 million and the US population is about 300 million, which is about 8.5%. Texas should have 37 members in the US House of Representatives. We only have 32 because every state gets at least one.  States with less than 3 million people would otherwise not get a Rep. (WY, VT, ND, AK, SD, DE, MT – each have 1)

And then…  After we know how many votes we get, each state legislature (House and Senate) get to determine how the districts will look. They can do this anyway they want and often carve it to benefit the political party in power. Only two things required: Must be contiguous and must be equal.  This is called gerrymandering  The word gerrymander was coined by a newspaper editor in reaction to a redrawing of Massachusetts electoral boundaries under the then governor Elbridge Gerry that included one sprawling supposedly salamander-shaped constituency.

 DeSoto is in the 30 th Congressional district and is represented in Congress by Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D. TX)

More on the House  Qualifications:  At least 25  Citizen of the US for last 7 years  Legal resident of the state they are elected from  Terms:  2 years (They are elected every November of even numbered years) This means that every 2 years, the ENTIRE US House of Representatives is up for election 90% of incumbents get re-elected

John Boehner, Speaker of the House Eric Cantor House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, House Majority Whip

Nancy Pelosi, House Minority Leader Steny Hoyer, House Minority Whip

US Senate  100 members  2 from each state  Which plan from the Constitutional Convention was this?  New Jersey Plan  Much less complex than the House – every state gets two US Senators and they both represent the entire state

V.P. Joe Biden, President of the Senate Daniel Inouye, President Pro Tem Harry Reid, Senate Majority Leader Richard Durbin, Senate Majority Whip

Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader Jon Kyl, Senate Minority Whip

Texas Senators  Kay Bailey Hutchison  Elected originally in 1993  Resigning in 2012  John Cornyn  Elected originally in 2002  Up for re-election in 2014

More on the Senate  Qualifications:  30 years old  Citizen of the US for last 9 years  Legal resident of the state they are elected from  Terms:  6 years  Also elected in even numbered years

Salary and Benefits  $174,000 Leaders get more (will talk about that later) Who thinks this is too much money to pay public officials? Why do you think they get paid this much?  Congress persons are eligible for lifetime benefits after serving for five years, including a pension, health benefits, and social security benefits (figured differently for the two houses)  27 th Amendment – Congress can’t give themselves a pay raise

Other Privileges  Cannot be arrested except for felonies or treason  Cannot be sued for speeches made during sessions  May Censure, or formally disapprove, of an action

me.htm The House Standards of Official Conduct Committee (commonly called the House Ethics Committee) is officially a "standing committee" but does not have a profile here, as it deals solely with reviewing the behavior of House members and does not have jurisdiction over any industries or interest groups. censures-charlie-rangel

So who is in Congress  graphics.tt?catid=all graphics.tt?catid=all  Comparison on page 135 of other country’s Legislatures

Why do incumbents win  Easier to raise money  Represent gerrymandered districts  Name recognition  Use position to help voters