United states government Tuesday, september 19, 2017

Warm-up: can congress do that?? For each of the following actions, decide whether the U.S. Congress has the power to do it or not. Explain why or why not: Congress passes a law which requires businesses in Maryland to pay a 5% tax on any goods that they sell in Virginia. Congress passes a law that repeals Washington, DC’s Marijuana Legalization Act – from this point on, it will be illegal to possess marijuana in the District, and violators will be subject to mandatory jail time. Congress passes a law making it illegal for men to have beards, and makes the law retroactive to January 1, 2017. Anyone who had a beard after that date is subject to a $50 fine.

Powers of Congress

Powers of Congress Declare war Establish the military and National guard Make rules and allot funds for the military and National guard Punish pirates Run Washington D.C. and all federal property **Elastic clause- implied power Enact taxes Borrow money Regulate foreign and interstate commerce Set laws for Naturalization and Bankruptcy Coin Money Punish counterfeiting Establish Post offices and Post Roads Copyrights and patents Establish lower federal courts

Implied Powers The “necessary and proper clause” gives Congress the power to make laws “necessary and proper” to carry out the enumerated powers Also known as the ‘elastic clause’ it stretches the power given Congress

Powers Denied to Congress Congress could not make laws concerning the slave trade until 1808 Cannot suspend the writ of Habeas Corpus: government must show cause for holding a suspect except in wartime No ex post facto law- cannot punish a person for an act committed before there was a law against it. No Bills of Attainder No direct tax on individuals (changed by the 16th Amendment) No tax on exports All states must be treated the same Congress must approve all expenditures of the President through laws No titles of nobility

House of Rep’s: Special Powers & Procedures All money (appropriations) bills start here Selects the President in the absence of an Electoral College majority Write the articles of impeachment against high ranking officials Procedures: The majority party has more power in the House than in the Senate, due mainly to the lower chamber’s procedures: Rules are more formal Rules set by the Rules Committee (controlled by the majority party; does not exist in the Senate) Absence of the filibuster (more on this later)

Senate: Special Powers & Procedures Approves all treaties Approves all Presidential appointees Chooses the Vice President in the absence of an Electoral College majority Acts as the jury in all trials of Impeachment Special Procedure: The Filibuster Senate has a reputation as “the world’s greatest deliberative body” Debate on legislation may go on indefinitely In order to force an end to debate, Senate may vote for cloture—which requires 60 votes Filibusters used to require Senators objecting to legislation to actually speak (“debate”) continuously on the Senate floor Today, the filibuster has become mainly procedural Effect: Senate essentially requires a super-majority (60 votes) to pass any major legislation

Activity: small group reading *Read the New York Times Op-Ed at your table *Discuss and answer the Reading Questions as you read *Discuss any unfamiliar vocabulary; Underline words/phrasing that are unclear *We will discuss the article as a whole group towards the end of class *MEANWHILE*… *Mastery Check #2 Conferences

Exit ticket #1: practice mcq Which of the following is NOT one of Congress’ enumerated powers under Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution?   Negotiate with foreign leaders Raise and collect taxes C. Borrow money D. Declare war

Exit Ticket: MCQ Which of the following does NOT accurately state a difference between the House of Representatives and the Senate? A. In the House, representation is proportional to states’ populations, while in the Senate each state is represented equally. B. To be eligible for election to the House, a person must be at least 25 years old and a citizen for 7 years; to be eligible for the Senate, a person must be at least 30 years old and a citizen for 9 years. C. The Vice President is the top official in the House of Representatives, while the Senate is led by the Speaker of the Senate. D. The Senate is generally considered the more prestigious of the two chambers.

homework Research Question: Who are your representatives in Congress? (Answers will vary depending on where you live…)