Mock Congress: Day 1 - Elections

1. Mock Congress: Day 1 - Elections Chapter 15 - Government for and by the People

2. Please throw your gum in the garbage before class begins. Bell Activity • Your word is “democratic”. (Hint: Democrat, the political party, will not work!) • Find the word on your blue study guide and complete the following information for the word. • Find the definition using a glossary. • Use your own knowledge and experience to complete the rest of the definition. • When you are finished, take out a piece of paper and put your name on it. • Where should your backpack be?

3. Does your work look something like this?

4. History Objective – We will simulate anelection by voting forclass political partiesand officers for ourMock Congress. Behavior Objective – Courtesy and Respect: Although politics can be very rude, we will be respectful of each other and all the candidates. Language Objective - We will listen as the candidates present their positions, and vote on the best people for these positions. Today we will learn…

5. Campaign Poster (10 min.) • Create a name for your party (one word, simple, easy to say and remember). • Choose a mascot (animal symbol) that represents your strengths. • Make a poster explaining why others should vote for your candidate. • Candidates for governor should use this time to write a short speech explaining why their party should be elected to office.

6. Speeches (3-5 min.) • Each candidate for governor will give a one minute speech to convince the rest of the students to vote for them and their political party. • Then the class will vote for officers. • The winners will be announced tomorrow. • Note: All students will have a job to do in the Mock Congress whether they are elected or not.

7. Please throw your gum in the garbage before class begins. Bell Activity • Take out a piece of paper and your yellow-orange paper from yesterday. • Brainstorm ideas for bills for the Mock Legislature. These ideas should make class better, easier, fix problems or help people. List as many ideas as you can think of. • You can choose your seat today as long as you don’t cause problems for anyone else, including yourself!! • Where should your backpack be?

8. Mock Congress: Day 2 - Writing bills and how they become laws. Chapter 15 - Government for and by the People

9. No gum in class. Throw it in the garbage before class begins! Bell Activity • Get out your paper from yesterday. • If you finish your vocabulary early, work on your bill. • Your word is “legislature” • Find the word on your blue study guide and complete the following information for the word. • Find the definition using a glossary. • Use your own knowledge and experience to complete the rest of the definition. • Where should your backpack be?

10. Does your work looksomething like this?

11. Does your work looksomething like this?

12. History Objective – We will be able to describe how a bill becomes a law, and begin to construct our own laws. Behavior Objective – Work Ethic: We will stay on task during the presentation and the bill writing. Language Objective - We will listen to how a bill becomes a law, how it needs to be written, and then we will write our own bill for the Mock Congress. Today we will learn…

13. Welcome to Congress • Over the rest of the week the MLMS Mock Congress will be in session. • Our next job is to understand how to a bill becomes a law.

14. Creating a New Law • Part of the job of the legislative branch is to create laws that benefit the people they represent. • The other branches of government also have a role to play.

15. The Bill Begins • Laws begin as ideas. The ideas may come from legislators or citizens. • Citizens with ideas for laws should write a letter to their Representatives. • If the Representatives agree that the idea should become a law, they research the ideas and write them into bills.

16. The Bill is Proposed • A citizen proposing a bill needs to find a sponsor in the House of Representatives or the Senate who wants to propose their bill. • The Representative talks with other Representatives about the bill in hopes of getting their support for it. • When a Representative has written a bill, the bill needs support. • Representatives usually sponsor bills
 that are important to their constituents (people who live in their district). • Once a bill has a sponsor and the support of some of the Representatives, it is ready to be introduced.

17. The Bill's Introduction • A bill can be introduced whenever Congress is in session. • Bills are officially introduced in the House of Reps once put in the hopper, a special box that holds the bills that are waiting to be introduced. • In the Senate, a bill is introduced by placing it on the presiding officer's desk or
 it can also be formally introduced on the Senate Floor.

18. The Bill's Introduction • In the house, there is a bill
clerk who assigns numbers to the bills. • House bills begin with "H.R.", Resolutions
 begin with "H. Res.," "H. Con. Res.," or "H. J. Res," depending what type they are,
 and Senate bills being with "S". • Then the bill is first read on the floor, and is then
 referred to a committee where it is marked up (revised or changed).

19. The Bill's Committee • When the bill reaches committee, the committee members—groups of Representatives who are experts on topics such as agriculture, education, or international relations—review, research, and revise the bill before voting on whether or not to send the bill back to the House floor. • The bill is then debated on and then edited, or "marked up" where changes could be made to the bill, or not made to the bill. • If they don’t like the bill or think it is a good idea, the bill may not pass the committee. • The bill is then said to have “died”.

20. The Bill is Reported • When the committee has approved a bill, it is sent—or reported—to the House floor. Once reported, a bill is ready to be debated by the House of Representatives.

21. The Bill is Considered or Debated by the House • When a bill is debated. The Representatives discuss the bill and explain why they agree or disagree with it. • Then, a reading clerk can read the bill section by section and the Representatives can recommend changes. • When all changes have been made and debate has wrapped up, the bill is ready to be voted on.

22. The Bill is Voted On • There are three methods for voting on a bill in the House of Representatives: • Viva Voce (voice vote): The Speaker of the House asks the Representatives who support the bill to say “yes” and those that oppose it say “no”. • Division: The Speaker of the House asks those Representatives who support the bill to stand up and be counted, and then those who oppose the bill to stand up and be counted. • Recorded: Representatives record their vote using the electronic voting system. Representatives can vote yes, no, or present (if they don’t want to vote on the bill). • If a majority of the Representatives say or select yes, the bill passes in the House of Representatives. The bill is then certified by the Clerk of the House and delivered to the Senate.

23. The Bill is Referred to the Senate • The Senate must also approve of the bill once the House has passed the bill in order to
 become a law. • The two houses of Congress make up the bicameral legislature, part of a system of checks and balances that ensures that the laws are created democratically.
 • Discuss some of the reasons why having the bill examined by both houses of Congress is a good thing.

24. The Bill is Referred to the Senate • When a bill reaches the Senate, it goes through many of the same steps it went through in the House of Representatives. The bill is discussed in a Senate committee and then reported to the Senate floor to be voted on. • Senators vote by voice. Those who support the bill say yea, and those who oppose it say nay. If a majority of the Senators say yea, the bill passes in the Senate and is ready to go to the Governor.

25. The Bill is Sent to the Governor • Once both Senate and House agree on the bill it is sent to the Governor in order for it to be signed (this process is calling being enrolled).
 • The Governor can take one of several possible actions:
 • The Governor may sign the bill, and the bill becomes law.
 • The Governor can make no action. • If Congress is in session, the bill then automatically becomes law after a ten day period. • If Congress in not in session, the bill dies or is given a pocket veto. • The Governor may decide that the bill is unwise or unnecessary and veto the bill.

26. If The Bill is Vetoed • If the Governor does not agree with the bill or thinks it is unwise or unnecessary 
then the Governor does not have to sign the law, but makes an announcement of an 
official veto. • The house where the bill was originally brought up is given the bill back where objections to the veto are announced and discussed on the house floor. • With enough objections the House may then vote on a "veto override", however if not then the bill is "stalled"
and does not become a law.

27. The Veto is Overridden • If enough Members do not agree with the veto then they vote to override it. • More than two-thirds majority of a vote from both houses is needed to overturn the veto, if this process happens then the bill becomes a law. • If two-thirds of the
vote is not reached then the bill then dies, and does not become a law.

28. The Bill Is a Law • If a bill has passed in both the House of Representatives and the Senate and has been approved by the Governor, or if a veto has been overridden, the bill becomes a law and is enforced by the government. GOVERNOR

29. Judicial Review • If people (representatives, citizens, etc.) think that the bill is wrong in some way, it can be challenged through the judicial branch of the government. • It would be part of a law suit that could make its way through the court system. • Then it can be heard by the Supreme Court of a state or by the federal Supreme Court, who determine if a law in constitutional or unconstitional.

30. Ballot – 1st Hour Voting: 1 governor 4 for the Senate 1 attorney general 8 for the House

31. Ballot – 2nd Hour Voting: 1 governor 1 attorney general 4 for the Senate 8 for the House

32. Ballot – 5th Hour Voting: 1 governor 4 for the Senate 1 attorney general 8 for the House

33. Ballot – 6th Hour Voting: 1 governor 4 for the Senate 1 attorney general 8 for the House

34. Ballot – 7th Hour Voting for: 1 governor 1 attorney general 4 for the Senate 8 for the House

35. Ballot – 8th Hour Voting: 1 governor 4 for the Senate 1 attorney general 8 for the House

36. Law Writing 101 • Now we will attempt to write our own bills for the mock congress. • Look at this sample bill…

37. Mock Congress: Day 3 – The Simulation Chapter 15 - Government for and by the People

38. History Objective – We will learn about the legislative processby simulating how thelegislature passes lawsin our Mock Congress. Behavior Objective – Courtesy and Respect: Follow the rules of the simulations. Remember you can’t talk unless given permission by the Speaker of the House or the President of the Senate. Language Objective – We will discuss the bills that are proposed, debate what is good and bad about them, and try to only pass well thought-out laws. Today we will learn…

39. Welcome to the Legislature! • There is a lot to know about the rules of lawmaking before we begin the simulation. • Everyone needs to read the instructions for their office. Let’s take three minutes to silently read about our different jobs.

40. Welcome to the Legislature! • First, for those not in the Senate or the House, you need to find a sponsor in one of those two groups. Have them sign the correct line of your bill then leave the bill with them.

41. Welcome to the Legislature! • Now, we need to turn in our bills to the Clerks. If you are in the House, give your bill(s) to the Clerk in the House. If you are in the Senate, give your bill(s) to the Senate Clerk. • Listen as we go through a sample bill and figure out

42. Mock Congress: Day 4 – The Simulation Chapter 15 - Government for and by the People

43. Bell Activity • This is the last day we will be working in the Legislature. Any laws not passed by the end of the hour will ‘die’. Put away any folders, books, or papers. You won’t need them. • Secretaries, Governor, and Attorney General must pick up their ‘docket’ from the box for your hour. Secretaries need to write the docket on the board! • Be ready to start when the bell rings.

44. Only people who have permission from the Speaker or the President can speak! You lose points for breaking the rule! The Legislative Process • Your class will get points for passing good laws, but will lose them for bad laws. • Remember all the steps for passing a law. • Read the bill • Research the bill – Are there any parts that violate school rules? You can ask for the Attorney Gen for advice. • Debate the bill – Talk about all the good and bad in the bill • Amend the bill (if necessary) – Make changes to improve the law. Remember that amendments have to be voted on!! • Take a final Vote – More than 50% is needed to pass. Don’t vote for bills you don’t like!