1. Congress
The People’s Branch

2. Congressional Elections
There is only one Congress in the Constitution
435 House members
Two-year terms
25 years old
A citizen for seven years
100 Senators
Six-year terms
30 years old
A citizen for nine years

3. Congressional Elections
Drawing District Lines
House of Representatives
Seats serve districts within their states
State population determines the number of districts
Reapportionment: The process of changing the number of seats
When the number of districts changes, the states control the redistricting process
Gerrymandering: The drawing of legislative district boundaries to benefit a party, group, or incumbent
Senate
Every state has two U.S. Senators

4. Congressional Elections
Advantages of Incumbency
Incumbent: the current holder of an elected office
Do not have to pay postage on any mail to their district, except during the last 90 days before an election
Are allowed to send bulk s
Have greater access to the media
Can raise campaign money more easily then challengers
Often help constituents solve problems with government and take credit for federal spending in their districts or state

5. The Structure and Powers of Congress
A two-house legislature remains the most important organizational feature of the U.S. Congress
Each chamber has offices on separate ends of the Capitol Building
Each chamber has its own rules for considering legislation

6. The Structure and Powers of Congress
House of Representatives
Senate
Two-year term
435 members
Elected by Districts
Fewer personal staff
Tighter rules
Decision to act by majority
Tax bills must come from the house
Less media coverage
Less prestige
More powerful committee leaders
Riders not allowed
Terms of debate set by Rules Committee
Limited debate
Some bills permit no floor amendments
No filibuster allowed
Six-year terms
100 members
Elected by states
More personal staff
Looser rules
Decision to act made by unanimous decision
Foreign treaties must be ratified by the Senate
More media coverage
More prestige
More equal distribution of power
Riders not allowed
Senate as a whole sets terms of debate
Extended debate
Amendments generally allowed
Filibuster allowed

7. Congressional Leadership and Rules
Leading the House of Representatives
The Speaker Of The House
The presiding officer in the House of Representatives
formally elected by the House but actually selected by the majority party
Majority leader
Selected by the majority party and helps plan party strategy, confers with other party leaders, and tries to keep members of the party in line
Minority leader
Selected by the minority party as spokesman for the opposition

8. Congressional Leadership and Rules
Leading the House of Representatives(cont.)
Whip
Party leader who is the liaison between the leadership and the rank-and-file in the legislature
The House Rules Committee
The most powerful committee in either chamber
Decides the rules governing the length of the floor debate on any legislative issue and sets limits on the number and kinds of floor amendments that will be allowed

9. Congressional Leadership and Rules
Leading the Senate
President of the Senate
(The vice president of the United States) can only vote in the case of a tie
President pro tempore
Usually the most senior member from the majority party who acts as chair in the absence of the vice president
Majority Leader
Similar to The House of Representatives
Minority Leader

10. Congressional Leadership and Rules
Leading the Senate(Cont.)
Filibuster
A procedural practice in the Senate whereby a senator refuses to relinquish the floor and thereby delays proceedings and prevents a vote on a controversial issue
Cloture
A procedure for terminating debate, especially filibusters, in the Senate

11. Congressional Leadership and Rules
Congressional Committees
Standing committee
A permanent committee established in a legislature, usually focusing on a policy area
Special or select committee
A congressional committee created for a specific purpose, sometimes to conduct an investigation
Joint committee
A committee composed of members of both the House of Representatives and the Senate; such committees oversee the Library of Congress and conduct investigations

12. Congressional Leadership and Rules
Congressional Committees
Authorizing committees
Pass the laws that tell government what to do
Responsible for oversight of the federal bureaucracy
Appropriations committees
Makes decisions about how much money government will spend on its programs and operations
Rules and Administration committees
In both chambers, determines the basic operations of their chambers
Revenue and Budget committees
Deals with raising the money that appropriating committees spend while setting the broad targets that shape the federal budget

13. Congressional Leadership and Rules
Choosing committee members
Each political party controls the selection of standing committee members
The chair and a majority of each committee come from the majority party
The minority party is represented on each committee roughly in proportion to its membership in the entire chamber

14. Congressional Leadership and Rules
Choosing committee members(Cont.)
The House and Senate choose committee members in different ways
House Republicans choose committee members through their Committee on Committees
House Democrats choose committee members through the Steering and Policy Committee
Both parties in the Senate have small Steering Committees that make committee assignments
The Role of Seniority
Most committee chairs are selected on the basis of the seniority rule from the majority party

15. Congressional Leadership and Rules
Investigations and Oversight
Two additional roles for committees
Power to investigate if legislation is needed, gather facts relevant to legislation, assess efficiency of executive agencies, build public support, expose corruption, enhance reputation of its members
The oversight power to question executive branch officials to see whether their agencies are complying with the wishes of the Congress

16. Congressional Leadership and Rules
The Special Role of Conference Committees
A special committee appointed by the presiding officers of each chamber to adjust differences on a particular bill passed by each in different form
Caucuses
Informal committees that allow individual members to promote shared legislative interests

17. The Job of the Legislator
Legislators as Representatives
A lawmaking institution that writes laws and makes policy for an entire nation
A representative assembly, made up of 535 elected officials who serve as links between their constituents and the national government

18. The Job of the Legislator
Making Legislative Choices
Many bills are introduced, only a few reach the floor
When members of Congress do take a vote, they can be influenced by a number of factors
Colleagues
Close friends in Congress
Congressional Staff
Staff workers that work in the state or district from which the Representative represents
Constituents
The residents of a congressional district or state

19. The Job of the Legislator
Making Legislative Choices(Cont.)
Convictions
Members of Congress are influenced by their own experiences and attitudes about the role of government
Interest Groups
Influence legislation by making contributions to congressional campaigns, testifying before committees, providing information to legislative staff, and building public pressure for or against their cause
Party
Members generally vote with their party
Presidents
Uses a variety of tools to influence Congress

20. The Legislative Obstacle Course
There are 23 ways in which a bill can die
The Speaker of the house can refuse to give the bill to a committee
The chair of the House authorizing subcommittee can refuse to forward a bill to a subcommittee
The House authorizing subcommittee as a whole can reject the bill
The chair of the House authorizing committee can refuse to schedule a hearing
The House authorizing committee as a whole can reject the bill
The House Rules Committee can refuse to send the bill to the floor
A majority of the House can reject the bill
The House appropriations subcommittee can refuse to provide money for the bill
The Senate majority leader can refuse to give the bill to a committee
The chair of the Senate authorizing subcommittee can reject the bill
The Senate authorizing subcommittee as a whole can reject the bill
The chair of the Senate authorizing committee can refuse to schedule a hearing

21. The Legislative Obstacle Course
There are 23 ways in which a bill can die(Cont.)
The Senate authorizing committee as a whole can reject the bill
The Senate appropriations committee can refuse to provide money for the bill
A Senator or Senators can place a hold on the bill or mount a filibuster
The majority of the Senate can reject the bill, or fail to gain enough votes to remove a hold or stop a filibuster
The floor leaders in either chamber can refuse to schedule the bill for debate
A majority in the Senate can reject the bill
A House-Senate conference committee can fail to resolve the differences between two versions of the bill
A majority of the House can reject the conference committee agreement
A majority of the Senate can reject the conference committee agreement
The President can refuse to sign the bill
The Senate or House can fail to override the president’s decision

22. The Legislative Obstacle Course
How Bills Become Laws
Introduction
Involves putting a formal proposal before the House or Senate
Committee review
Involves holding a hearing and “marking up” the bill
Floor debate and passage
Involves getting on the legislative calendar, passing once in each chamber, surviving a conference to iron out any differences between the House and Senate versions, and passing once again in each chamber

23. The Legislative Obstacle Course
How Bills Become Laws(cont.)
Presidential approval
Once a bill has passed both houses in identical form it is hand delivered to the president who may sign it into law or veto it.
If Congress is in session and the president waits ten days(not counting Sundays), the bill becomes a law without the president’s signature
If Congress has adjourned and the president waits ten days without signing, the bill is defeated by what is known as a pocket veto
After a pocket veto, the bill is dead
If the bill is vetoed, it is returned to Congress with a message explaining the reasons for the veto
Congress can vote to override a veto with two-thirds vote in each chamber

24. Congress Chapter Summary
Congress plays a crucial role in our system of shared powers
The most distinctive feature of Congress is its bicameralism
Congress performs these functions
Representation
lawmaking
Consensus building
Overseeing the bureaucracy
Policy clarification
Investigating
The Senate also confirms or denies presidential appointments and participates in the ratification of treaties

25. Congress Chapter Summary(cont.)
Congress manages its workload through a leadership system that is different in both chambers
Most of the work in Congress is done in committees and subcommittees
Congress must attempt to accomplish its tasks even as most of its members serve as delegates or trustees for their constituents
The members of Congress do an excellent job of representing the values and views of most of their constituents
Members of Congress are motivated by the desire to win reelection, and much of what congress does in in response to this motive
A bill becomes a law through a process that involves many opportunities for defeat
Individual members of Congress are more popular than the institution