CONGRESS

BICAMERAL CONGRESS Congress is bicameral, it is made up of Two houses – The Senate and the House of Representatives This was modeled after the British Bicameral System of Government Connecticut Compromise – To resolve a dispute between large and small states, it was decided the House would be based on population, but each state would get equal representation in the Senate (2 senators/state) A bicameral legislature is another way of fragmenting power, which adds another layer of checks and balances A bicameral legislature means the lawmaking process is slowed, this encourages compromise.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 435 people 2 year terms Must be 25 years old Must be a citizen for 9 years Must be a resident from the state elected from The House were initially the only part of government directed directly by the people, and are still the closest branch to the people because we elect them so frequently, and they each represent small districts.

SENATE 100 members 6 year terms Must be 30 years old Must be a citizen for 9 years Must be a resident from the state where they were elected.

ELECTIONS The House is elected by the people within their district, and the senators are elected by the people of their state. In the beginning Senators were chosen by state legislatures. The 17 th Amendment provided for the direct election of Senators.

SPECIAL POWERS House initiates revenue bills can impeach the president breaks the tie in the electoral college. Senate Ratifies treaties Judges/try impeachments Confirms appointments both judicial and executive.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Every ten years a census is taken. This is used to determine how many seats in the House each state gets. The Reapportionment Act of 1929 set the maximum number of people in the House to 435. Population shifts to the south and west, have led to an increase in the number of representatives in those states.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES All districts in the U.S. are single member. This means only one person is elected to congress/district. This hurts third parties because they almost never get win, so they almost never make it to congress. Gerrymandering – redistricting after a census is done to ensure that all districts have about 700,000 people in them, however legislatures will intently try to redraw the districts to give one political party the edge. This is gerrymandering. Wesberry v. Sanders – Said that districts must be equally populated: “one person, one vote.” Baker v. Carr also gives people the ability to sue if their districts aren’t balanced.

Incumbency is the single most important factor in predicting the outcome of an election. Between 75-90% of congressmen are reelected. Advantages of Incumbents: Money – PACs trust incumbents because they have proven themselves, and are more likely to give them money. Visibility – Incumbents are better known Constituent Service/Credit Claiming – Incumbents have accomplishments Franking Privilege – Incumbents can freely mail letters to the members of their districts. Gerrymandering – Districts have sometimes been gerrymandered to help them win.

POLITICAL PARTIES IN CONGRESS The party that controls congress can: Hold all committee chairs Choose the Speaker of the House Control the Rules Committee Hold the majority in every committee Set the legislative agenda

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES The House is larger than the Senate, therefore it has more rules. The Speaker presides over the house The Minority/Majority Leaders help their political parties get legislation passed. The Whips keep members of the house in line, by explaining how they should vote.

THE SENATE The Senate is far less organized The Vice President is the president of the senate, but he can only break a tie. The Majority leader is the most powerful person in the senate because he controls the parties agenda. The President Pro Tempore presides of the Senate when the Vice President is not around. He is the member of the majority party with the longest service in the Senate.

COMMITTEES All work is done in committees Standing Committees – Basic permanent committees Select Committees – Temporary committees usually created to investigate something Joint Committees – Committees made up of members of both the senate and house Conference Committee – Committee that is made up of both houses, but was created to resolve a dispute on a bill.

THE RULES COMMITTEE AND WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE The Rules Committee is only found in the House, and it is the most powerful committee in all of congress. The Rules Committee controls when bills will be voted on, and how long they will be allowed to debate them. The Ways and Means committee is in charge of taxes. They are a standing committee, but there in the Senate this committee is called the Finance Committee.

SENIORITY SYSTEM AND COMMITTEE CHAIRS Committee chairs control the committee They are usually chosen based on Seniority, but they are also elected to those positions.

HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW Very few bills becomes laws, most die in committee Only congressmen can introduce a bill, but most are written by other people. The Bill must pass both the House and the Senate. If it passes one and not the other, or two versions of the same bill are passed, it is sent to a conference committee to be fixed. In the senate, there is no time limit on debates. A senator can stall the lawmaking process by performing a filibuster. As long as he talks, no one can vote on the bill. A filibuster can be ended through cloture if 60 people vote to end it.

TRUSTEE/ATTITUDINAL VIEW VS REPRESENTATIVE VIEW Congressmen who believe in the Trustee model believe that they were elected because the voters like their beliefs and trust them to make decisions. Congressmen who follow the representative view believe they should vote according to the voters beliefs, and not their own.

OVERSIGHT Congress can investigate agencies, and set their budgets. This is called oversight, and it is an extra layer of checks and balances.

FOREIGN POLICY Congress can vote to declare war The Senate can ratify all treaties Power to wage war belongs to the president, and he also can negotiate treaties. War Powers Resolution – Passed in response to the Vietnam war, a president must notify congress within 48 hours of sending troops, and must bring them home after 60 days if congress has not declared war.