Congressional Membership Essential Questions: What are the formal and informal qualifications for members of Congress? Who is in the 113th Congress? How are representatives apportioned in Congress?

Legislators and their Constituents Most members of Congress start out in local politics After they gain experience, they may run for either the House or Senate The people they serve are called Constituents The size of this group increases as they move up in politics

Formal Qualifications for Members of Congress Must be a resident of the state in which elected House members must be at least 25 years old and must have been a U.S. citizen for at least 7 years Senators must be at least 30 years old and a U.S. citizen for at least 9 years

Informal Qualifications for Members of Congress Members of Congress used to be all white, male, and middle to upper class This changed starting in 1960s: Now women and minority groups are somewhat included (but it is still mostly old white rich guys) Most have a college degree, many have advanced degrees Most have a background in business or law

Some Statistics on the 113th Congress (2013-2015) Party Composition in House *Republicans: 233 *Democrats: 199 *3 Seats are currently vacant Gender Composition in Congress *100 women

Stats Cont. Religious Affiliation Largest denomination: Catholic Racial Composition: 19% of House members are minorities, which includes: 43 African Americans (10%) 34 Hispanics (8%) 10 Asians (2%) 2 Native Americans (.5%) Average age of members of the House of Representatives is 57 Average age of members of the Senate is 62

Apportionment Senate=100 seats, 2 for each state House=435 seats, each represents 1 congressional district (approx. 650,000 people) House seats are assigned by state’s population (each state guaranteed at least 1) This is determined by the census, taken every 10 years. When states gain or lose population, sometimes House seats are reapportioned, and congressional districts change. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUCnb5_HZc0

Congressional Redistricting Redistricting – drawing up new district lines after reapportionment Gerrymandering is the process of re-drawing electoral district boundaries in order to create a political advantage for a particular party by manipulating geographic boundaries. Named after Elbridge Gerry, the governor of Massachusetts who redrew Massachusetts state election districts to benefit his Democratic-Republican party in 1812. Gerrymandering was outlawed in 1960 by the court case Gomillion v. Lightfoot. See: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/gerrymandering-how-drawing-jagged-lines-can-impact-an-election-christina-greer

Talk to your neighbor: What are the formal and informal qualifications for members of Congress? Who is in the 113th Congress? How are representatives apportioned?

The Organization of Congress Essential Questions: How do the leadership roles in the Senate and the House work? What is the purpose of the Congressional Committees?

Getting Elected House members run for re-election every 2 years Senators run every 6 years (1/3 up for re- election every 2 years) Number of terms is unlimited for both Incumbent=currently in office During elections, incumbents have the advantages of: name recognition campaign funds Solve voters issues John Dingell: D- Michigan

Leadership in the House Organization is based on the 2 major political parties Party with the most seats controls the agenda Speaker of the House: presides over the House Schedules bills for action Also, 2nd in line to assume the Presidency in an emergency John Boehner (R-OH)

Leadership in the House Majority Leader Manages legislation on the house floor Second in command of their party Minority Leader Helps manage legislation on the house floor (no power over agenda) First in command of their party Majority Whip Helps majority leader in house Persuades reps to vote w/ party Makes sure people are present to vote Minority Whip Has the same duties as the Majority Whip

Who currently holds these offices? House Majority Leader: Eric Cantor (R-Va) House Minority Leader: Nancy Pelosi (D-Ca)

Leadership in the Senate President of the Senate Vice President Official presiding officer President Pro Tempore Senior senator of majority party Fills in when VP isn’t there Majority Leader Steers party’s bills through senate Encourage members to attend Party support on bills Minority Leader Helps shape minority party policy Majority Whip Makes sure reps are present to vote Link between party members and majority leader Minority Whip Same as above

Who currently holds these offices? The Vice President Joe Biden (D-Delaware) President pro tempore Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont)

Who currently holds these offices? Senate Majority Leader: Harry Reid (D-NV) Senate Minority Leader: Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky)

Purpose of Congressional Committees Ease workload and divide work Select worthy bills Most bills never make it past committee stage Help public learn about bills

Types of Congressional Committees Standing- permanent committees that deal w/ specific policy area Select- temporary committees to study a specific issue Joint - made up of members of both chambers, permanent or temporary Conference- temporary committee to resolve issues over versions of a bill and create a compromised bill

Choosing Committee Members Membership extremely important for congressmen Each political party assigns members of Congress to standing committees Committee Chairperson Decide when the committee will meet How long they will discuss a bill Manage floor debate of bills from their committee

Congressional Powers expressed powers (enumerated powers): granted to Congress explicitly in the Constitution. Article 1 Section 8

Congressional Powers Elastic Clause: Constitution authorizes Congress to “make all laws which shall be necessary and proper.” Powers beyond those expressed in first 17 clauses Congress can stretch its listed powers to meet the needs of a growing nation These implied powers must be linked to specifically assigned powers

Congressional Powers Denied Powers Limits on Congressional Power: Bill of Rights Cannot pass Bill of Attainder: laws that punish people w/o allowing them a trial Ex post Facto laws: laws that make crimes of acts that were legal when committed

Non-Legislative Powers (Powers aside from lawmaking) The Power to choose a President in a tie Impeachment: House can formally accuse a federal official of wrongdoing, Senate then conducts a trial to decide whether to remove the official from office Confirmation: Senate approves officials appointed by the President Ratification: Senate must approve all treaties negotiated by President before become law Amendment: Both houses of Congress can vote to propose an amendment to the Constitution