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Legislative Branch

Legislative Branch. Chapters 11 and 12 pg 203 -237. Constituents. The person who lives in a given electoral district and is represented by a given elected official. What do I have to do to be a Senator?. 30 years old American citizen for 9 years Live in the state you want to represent.

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Legislative Branch

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  1. Legislative Branch Chapters 11 and 12 pg 203 -237

  2. Constituents • The person who lives in a given electoral district and is represented by a given elected official

  3. What do I have to do to be a Senator? • 30 years old • American citizen for 9 years • Live in the state you want to represent

  4. What do I have to do to be a Representative? • 25 years old • Citizen for 7 years • Live in the state you want to represent

  5. Is that all? • You must be electable • You must raise money • You must be skilled at the ‘political game’ • For reelection you must show that you cam bring back taxpayer-funded projects for your district • Do you agree with this list? Why?

  6. House Leadership • Speaker of the House: Nominated by the majority, voted on by whole house, most powerful member of Congress • Majority leader: Party with most members elected to manage legislation on the floor • Minority leader: Party with fewer members elected to manage legislation on the floor John Boehner Eric Cantor Nancy Pelosi

  7. House Leadership • Majority Whip/Minority Whip assist the floor leaders • responsible for keeping the leadership informed • Persuade party members to vote party lines Kevin McCarthy

  8. Senate Leadership • President of the Senate: Vice President • President Pro Tempore: Senior senator of the majority party • Majority leader: Spokesmen for majority party, works with other member to get things done • Minority Leader: helps devise strategies and shape party policy Vice President Joe Biden Daniel Inouye Harry Reid

  9. Senate Leadership • Majority/Minority Whips: assist floor leaders Richard Durbin Jon Kyl

  10. Congressional Committees • Standing Committees: permanent committees that handle most business • Subcommittees: review proposed legislation • Select/Special Committees: investigate specific problems • Joint Committees: members of both houses • Conference Committees: temporary joint committee to iron difference in each version of a specific bill

  11. How a bill becomes a LAw

  12. Step 1. IDEA: Congressperson Sponsors the bill

  13. Step 2: Sponsor introduces the Bill to his/her house

  14. Step 3: Bill is assigned a Subcommittee Committee Recommended Favorably killed

  15. Step 4: Bill is Placed on the calendar to be heard on the floor House: goes to the house Rules Committee to decide if the specifics of the bill are ready for debate

  16. Step 5: Debate

  17. VOTE 1. Voice 2. Standing 3. Teller 4. Roll Call Must be used to overturn a veto

  18. Step 6: Bill goes to the other house and repeats steps 2-5 House Senate All tax bills begin in the house

  19. Step 7: Bill goes to the Conference Committee Takes the bills from each house and combines them into one bill

  20. Step8: Bill Goes back to each house to OK the new version OK House Senate

  21. President Step9: VETO Doesn’t Sign Goes back to congress-- 2/3 can pass it SIGN IT 10 days Congress in session Congress not in session Pocket VETO LAW

  22. BILL IS A LAW

  23. Terms • Riders: an additional provision added to a bill or other measure under the consideration by a legislature, having little connection with the subject matter of the bill • Party Discipline: is the ability of a parliamentary group of a political party to get its members to support the policies of their party leadership. In liberal democracies, it usually refers to the control that party leaders have over its legislature

  24. Veto: power or right vested in one branch of a government to cancel or postpone the decisions, enactments, etc., of another branch, especially the right of a president, governor, or other chief executive to reject bills passed by the legislature • Pocket veto: a veto of a bill brought about by the president's failure to sign it within ten days of the adjournment of Congress • Veto Override: ides the veto by a two-thirds majority in each house, it becomes law without the President's signature.

  25. Function of Congress • Levying taxes • Appropriations (spending bills) • Joint resolutions • Amendments • Declaring of War

  26. Representative Funtions • Delegate: speaks or acts on behalf of Congress • Trustee: holds property, authority, or a position of trust • Partisan: a committed member of a political party • Casework: solving problems for constituents • Pork-barrel legislations: send money/projects back to home district • Logrolling: trading favors

  27. Oversite functions • Confirmation: approving of appointed positions of the president such as ambassadors, Secretary of Departments, Supreme Court Justices • Ratification: Approve Treaties • Impeachement • House of Representatives: formal accusations against federal officials including the president • Senate: conducts the trial and votes whether or not to remove from office

  28. How can I be a leader in Congress? • Committee Membership is proportional to congress membership • Most all house members serve on at least one, and usually 2 -3 committees • Senator (due to small numbers) serve on 5 – 6 • Committee seats are given with strings attached (you ask to be put on a committee you owe your party) • Chairs (leaderships role) is usually by seniority (who has been there the longest)

  29. Path of Committees • Hearing: Listening to testimonies, gathering information from interested people, and experts • Markup session: committee members determine the final language of a bill • Report: when the subcommittee tell the full House or Senate whether or not they recommend a bill

  30. Fillabuster • designate obstructionist tactics in legislative assemblies. It has particular reference to the U.S. Senate, where the tradition of unlimited debate is very strong

  31. Cloture: process aimed at bringing debate to a quick end • Riders: an additional provision added to a bill or other measure under the consideration by a legislature, having little connection with the subject matter of the bill

  32. Congressional Voting • Voice: members all together shout of aye or no • Standing: First supports stand, then opponents stand • Roll Call: Each member vote is officially registered by inserting their vote id in machine and voting yes, no or present

  33. Presidential option for a bill arriving at his desk • Sign the bill into law • Veto the bill • Take not action on the bill, at the end of 10 days the bill becomes law without the president's signature

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