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Legislative
Branch
Congressional Structure
Congress
HOUSE
435
%Pop
2 Yrs
Total people
# of Reps for state
Length of terms
SENATE
100 (2*50)
2 Per state
6 Yrs
Qualifications
25 Yrs
Age
30 Yrs
7 Yrs
Citizen of US
9 Yrs
Must reside in the State that they represent
Terms and Sessions
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Congressional Term for 2 yrs
Session- 2 sessions Jan 3rd – Dec. generally
Work day: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday.
Working time: Noon to 5 – 6 o’clock.
Recess = temporary break
Special Session= Outside of regular hours
Joint Session= Both House and Senate
“State of the Union” Called by president
Determining Representatives
• Census=Every 10 years to determine population
• Reapportion=Divide between states
• Redistrict=when apportionment changes, state
legislatures redraw the lines
• Gerrymander= drawing district lines based on
some characteristic other than just population
– a) Discriminatory gerrymandering
– b) Misrepresentation
Congress
Senate
Upper House
House of Representatives
Lower House
President of Senate
VP of USA
Speaker of House
President Pro Tempore
Majority Leader
Senior Ranking Member Of the Majority Party
Senate Majority
Leader
Senate Minority
Leader
House Majority
Floor Leader
House Minority
Leader
Senate Majority
Whip
Senate Minority
Whip
House Majority
Whip
House Minority
Whip
100 Senators
2 from each State
435 Representatives
Elected by Population
Congressional
Leadership
Leadership in the
House of Representatives
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE
Selected by the majority party
Job:
Presiding Officer of
the House
Power:
Decides which
committee a bill
goes to.
John A. Boehner (R-OH)
Elected 2011
Leadership in the
House of Representatives
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE
Selected by the majority party
Majority Leader
Leads the majority party
Job: Shepherds legislation
Minority Leader
Leads the minority party
Job: Leads Opposition
Nancy Pelosi (D-Ca)
Kevin McCarthy R-CA
Leadership in the
House of Representatives
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE
Selected by the majority party
Majority Leader
Minority Leader
Majority Whip
Job:Assists the leader, rounds up
votes, heads large group of deputy
and assistant whips.
Minority Whip
Job: Assists the leader, rounds up
votes, heads large group of deputy
and assistant whips.
Steve
Scalise
Steny
Hoyer
R- LA
D-MD
Georgia’s Representation
• Georgia currently has
14 congressional
districts.
• Wheeler’s current
congressional district
is the 6th represented
by:
• Republican:
• http://tomprice.house.
gov/about/committees-
Congressman Tom
Price
Leadership in the
United States Senate
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
The Vice President of the United States
Vice President Joe
Biden
Elected in 2008
Job:
Presiding Officer of the
Senate
Power:
Breaks tie in legislation.
Otherwise does not
vote.
Leadership in the
United States Senate
Leadership in the
United States Senate
Majority Leader
Minority Leader
Leads the majority party
Job: Shepherds legislation
Leads the minority party
Job: Leads Opposition
Also plans the senate work
schedule, assigns bills and
senators to committees
Harry Reid (D-NV)
Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
Leadership in the
United States Senate
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
The Vice President of the United States
Job:
Presides over the Senate
when the Vice President
is absent.
Orrin Hatch
R-UT
PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE
Selected by majority party. Usually
most senior member of the Senate
majority party
Leadership in the
United States Senate
Majority Whip
Minority Whip
Assist the Minority Leader
Assist the Majority Leader
Job: Makes sure legislators
are present for key votes
Job: Makes sure legislators
are present for key votes
Richard Durbin D-IL
John Cornyn R-TX
Georgia’s Representation
Senator David Perdue
AND
Senator Johnny
Isakson
Congressional Rules and
Benefits
Privileges and Penalties
• Congressional Immunity
• Freedom of Expression in
Congressional Records
• Expel Members with 2/3rd vote.
• Censure Members
• Codes of Ethic.
Section 4:Committees: Purpose
• Divides the work load and allows
congressmen to specialize.
• Sort thru the thousands of bills; compromise
on some and kill others
• Create public awareness.
Kinds of Committees
• Standing- last from one session to the next
• Subcommittees- focus on certain areas of standing
committees
• Select- temporary, members from one house,
focus on a particular issue
• Joint- temporary or permanent, study a certain
issue and report findings back to each house.
• Conference- have temporary members of both
houses to work out differences b/n different house
versions of bills
Chapter 6: Congressional Powers
• The House: “all bills for raising Revenue
shall originate in the House of
Representatives” but such bills must pass
both houses.
• The House: sole power of impeachment
• The House: if no presidential candidate has
a majority, the House chooses the president.
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sl4Pb5Y
pbho
Senate Powers
• “Advise and Consent” for presidential
appointments.
• Conduct the trial in cases of impeachment,
and remove a government official with 2/3
vote.
• Ratify treatise with other countries with a
2/3 vote.
•
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCJiHzE3zJY Clinton impeachment.
http://abcnews.go.com/Archives/video/bill-clinton-impeachment-acquitted9396061 clinton trial.
Select Committee Hearings
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07buRR
J6s4k
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XY5YB
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