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Chapter 10 Congress
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The National Legislature
Bicameral Congress Historical: British Parliament Practical: all states get equal representation regardless of size Theoretical: one house could check the other
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Congressional Terms Each term lasts two years Election in November
Term begins in January
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Congressional Session
Period of time when Congress meets and conducts business Two Sessions One session per year
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Special Sessions A meeting to deal with an emergency
Only the president can call a special session
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The House of Representatives
Size 435 members Based on state population Each state gets at least one Terms Two years
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Reapportionment Redistribute seats after every census (every 10 years)
A Growing Nation As the population grew, the size of the House grew The Reapportionment Act of 1929 Automatic reapportionment Set number of 435 State proportions are set after each census
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Congressional Elections
Date Same in every state Tuesday following the first Monday in November each even numbered year Off-Year Elections Occur in even years when there is no presidential election
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Congressional Elections
Districts States are responsible for drawing district lines In 2001, Mississippi lost one of its votes in Congress and had to redraw district lines. We have 4 representatives Gerrymandering Cause odd shaped districts
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Qualifications for House Members
Formal 25 years old Citizen of the U.S. for 7 years Live in the state from which he/she is elected Informal Vote-getting abilities Party identification Name familiarity Ethnic characteristics Political experience
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The Senate Size Election Two from each state 100
17th amendment states that the voters choose senators, not members of the state legislature
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The Senate Terms Qualifications Serve 6 year terms
Unlimited amount of terms Qualifications At least 30 years old Citizen of U.S. for 9 years Live in the state represented
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The Members of Congress
Average member is a white male in his early 50s Number of minority members is growing Mostly protestant (60%) Many were lawyers Almost all went to college
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The Job-Five Major Roles of Congress
Legislators-make laws Representatives of the people Trustees: vote on the merit of the issue Delegates:vote the way they think their constituents would Partisans: vote the way their party would Politicos:combination of all three
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The Job-Five Major Roles of Congress
Committee Members-decide if a proposal makes it onto the floors of the Senate and the House to be considered for law Servants-help out constituents who have problems with the federal bureaucracy (paperwork, chain of command, etc.) Politicians- try to keep their seat
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Compensation Salary Non-salary compensation $174,000 a year
Special tax deduction Travel allowances Low healthcare costs Retirement plan Some can retire with a salary of $150,000 a year Offices with a staff
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Membership Privileges
Cannot be arrested unless they have committed treason, a felony, or breach of the peace Cannot be sued for anything they say in session
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