US Government: Legislative Branch

National Government

• Legislative branch (Congress)• Executive Branch (President, Cabinet, Cabinet

departments)• Judicial branch (Supreme Court)• Checks & balances: ability of each branch to

keep the others “in check”• Separation of powers: so no one branch gets

too powerful

Legislative Structure

• Bicameral (2 houses): House of Representatives & Senate, mostly white men, middle-aged, lawyers, businessmen, bankers

• House: 435 members, represents the common man, based on population based on census every 10 yrs, represent “districts”, elected every 2 years in even # yrs

• Must be 25 years old, naturalized citizen for 7 years, legal resident of state you represent

Representation

• Constituents: the people they represent• Reapportionment: chg in # of reps based on

change in census #s• Redistricting: setting up new district lines

after reapportionment• Gerrymandering: one party draws the district

boundaries to benefit their party (illegal)• 113th Congress: 232 Reps, 200 Dems, 3 vacant

seats (Republicans hold majority)

House Leadership:

• Speaker of the House: John Boehner [R]--Ohio• Majority Leader: Eric Cantor [R]--Virginia• Majority Whip: Kevin McCarthy [R]—California• Minority Leader: Nancy Pelosi [D]--California• Minority Whip: Steny Hoyer [D]—Maryland

Boehner Pelosi

Cantor McCarthy Hoyer

Law-making in the House

• Bill is dropped in the “hopper”—gets HR#• Goes to committee—only about 10-20% come

out of committee• Goes on calendar• Rules Committee decides which bill go to the

floor for debate & voting• Must have a quorum (majority) present to vote

(218 members)• If passed, goes to Senate

Senate

• 2 per state (100 today)• Must be at least 30 yrs old, naturalized citizen

for 9 yrs, legal resident of state represented “at-large”

• 1/3 elected every 6 yrs, even # years• 27th amendment: can’t vote pay raise during

current session• Can exclude or censure a member

Senate

• More informal than the House• Usually debate is unlimited• Vice-Pres. Breaks tie: Joe Biden• President pro tempore: presides—

usually majority party’s most senior member

• Current pres pro tem: Patrick Leahy [D]--Vermont

Other Senate Leadership

• Democrats have current majority: 53 Dems, 45 Republicans, 4 independents

• Majority Leader: Harry Reid• Majority Whip: Dick Durbin• Minority Leader: Mitch McConnell• Minority Whip: John Comyn

Bills in the Senate• Calendar of General Orders lists the bills• Vote to bring bills to the floor—given S #• Goes to committee• Unlimited debate on floor• Can filibuster (speak to stall the voting process)

—longest ever was Strom Thurmond [SC]—24 hours, 18 mins

• Can stop a filibuster by voting for cloture—limits speaking to one hour

• If passes, goes to House

Committees• Standing: permanent• Subcommittees: subcategories of other committees• Select: temporary, usually to study one issue• Joint: members from both Houses• Conference: temporary, set up when different versions

of a bill have been passed by both houses• Extremely important to be on committees—MUCH

power! Usually done by seniority• Chair is very powerful: decides everything (when they

meet, bills to be considered, who speaks, etc.)• Most important committees: Rules, Ways & Means,

Appropriations (controls the $$$)

Congressional Support

• Staffers & secretaries do much of the research, answer calls, make calls & write legislation for members of Congress

• Personal & committee staffers, adminstrative & legislative assistants, caseworkers

• Library of Congress• Congressional Budget Office• General Accounting Office• Government Printing Office

Legislative Powers

• Expressed (enumerated): 18 powers• Implied: uses “necessary & proper clause”—

can make any laws necessary to carry out expressed powers

• Denied powers: can’t suspend writ of habeas corpus, no bills of attainder (conviction w/out trials), no ex post facto laws (making something illegal that you did when it was legal)

Powers

• Tax, borrow, coin $, punish counterfeiters• Regulate commerce/trade• Declare war• Raise/support an army/navy/national guard• Punish acts committed on international waters &

against other nations• Naturalization laws, post office,

copyrights/patents, create courts, govern DC, necessary & proper laws as needed

Other powers

• Power to choose a President if there is no majority in the electoral college (only twice: 1800 & 1824)

• Settle Presidential succession issues (Nixon’s resignation, Kennedy’s assassination)

• Impeachment• Confirmation power (Senate): appointments• Ratification power: treaties• Amendment power: 2/3rds vote

Still other powers!

• Investigative: investigations, hold hearings, subpoena witnesses

• Oversees executive agencies• Can limit those agencies—cut purse strings!• Can limit President’s power to declare

national emergency• Controls the budget• Override Presidential veto

Law-making• Bills that pass both the House & Senate but

are different go to Conference Committee• If passed, goes back to both for final vote• Then goes to President• Sign, veto, pocket veto• Can override, but hard to do—rare• Any bill that doesn’t passdies• “pigeonholing”: bill dies in committee• Line-item veto: ruled unconstitutional

How can you influence Congress?• Write, call or email your Senator or

Representative—they all have websites!• Reps. for 30252: Paul Broun [R], Hank Johnson

[D], Lynn Westmoreland [R], David Scott [D]• http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/• GA Senators: Saxby Chambliss [R] & Johnny

Isakson [R]• Join a political party• Join an interest group (lobbying)• Join a Political Action Committee: raise $

How can they help you?

• Call, write or email their caseworker with your problem, question or request

• They try to get bills passed that bring $/jobs to your state/district (sometimes “pork”)

• Try to get grants & contracts (especially Defense contracts) for their states…Ga has LOTS of military bases thanks to former Senator Sam Nunn!