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Government Chapter Five

Government Chapter Five. Unit 2: The Legislative Branch. Chapter 5: The Organization of Congress . 5.1 Congressional Membership 5.2 House of Representatives 5.3 The Senate 5.4 Committees and Agencies. 5.1 Congressional Membership. Sessions House of Representatives Representation

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Government Chapter Five

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  1. Government Chapter Five Unit 2: The Legislative Branch

  2. Chapter 5: The Organization of Congress • 5.1 Congressional Membership • 5.2 House of Representatives • 5.3 The Senate • 5.4 Committees and Agencies

  3. 5.1 Congressional Membership • Sessions • House of Representatives • Representation • Redistricting • Gerrymandering • Senate • Characteristics

  4. Sessions • Each term of Congress has two sessions. • Each session lasts one year. • When Congress is not in session, the President may call a special session.

  5. House of Representatives • The House has 435 members. • A representative must be • at least 25 years old, • an American citizen for at least seven years • and a legal resident of the state he or she represents. • Representatives serve two-year terms.

  6. Extra-Credit Question • Who represents Evergreen in the U.S. House of Representatives? • Write your answer down. • Turn it in on your way INTO class tomorrow. • Do not share your research with others.

  7. House of Representatives • Every two years all 435 members are up for election. • The House also has four other members who can introduce legislation but cannot vote. • They are from D.C., Guam, American Samoa, and the Virgin Islands.

  8. Representation • The Census Bureau takes a census every ten years. • The number of representatives from a state depends on its population. • Congress passed the Reapportionment Act of 1929 which limited the number of representatives to 435 members. • Each census determines how the seats in Congress will be distributed among the states. www.census.gov

  9. Redistricting • After the census, each state legislature draws new districts. • The number of districts represent the new number of representatives. • Each representative serves in the district that he or she lives. • The power of redistricting is sometimes abused through unequal districts and gerrymandering. www.house.gov

  10. Gerrymandering • Gerrymandering is the process of redrawing district boundaries to gain an advantage in elections for the controlling political party. • Massachusetts governor Elbridge Gerry approved a redistricting plan that gave the Democratic-republicans an advantage over the Federalists.

  11. Gerrymandering • One of the districts was shaped like a salamander. • Gilbert Stuart drew a head, wings, and claws for a political cartoon. • The papers called it a “Gerrymander” after Elbridge Gerry instead of a salamander.

  12. Gerrymandering • The two methods of gerrymandering are packing and cracking. • Packing places as many of the opposing party’s voters in one district. • This makes it safe for the majority party in the other districts. • Cracking divides the opposing party’s voters among many districts to weaken them. • The Supreme Court has ruled that gerrymandering is unconstitutional.

  13. Senate • Senators must be • at least 30 years old, • citizens for at least nine years, • and legal residents of the state he or she represents. • Senators serve 6-year terms. • Only 1/3 of the Senate is up for reelection at a time.

  14. Senate • Senators enjoy many benefits including • stationary, • free postage for official business, • a medical clinic, • a gym, • allowances for business expenses, • tax deductions, • and a retirement plan.

  15. Senate • Senators cannot be arrested any crimes except “treason, felony, and breach of peace” when Congress is in session.

  16. Characteristics • Nearly half of the members of Congress are lawyers. • Most are white men over 50 years old.

  17. Characteristics • Incumbents usually have the advantage over challengers. • Fundraisers are easier for incumbents. • Gerrymandering still gives some incumbents advantages. • Incumbents have name recognition. • Incumbents use their position to establish experience. • The majority of voters believe their incumbent represents their views best.

  18. Characteristics • Television and the internet have changed how politicians campaign (ex: You tube).

  19. Extra-Credit Answer • Who represents Evergreen in the U.S. House of Representatives? • Representative Martha Roby

  20. 5.2 The House of Representatives • Committees • Speaker of the House • Majority Leader • Whips • Minority leadership • Bills in the House • The House Rules Committee John Boehner

  21. Committees • Each representative serves on various committees. • Most work in congress happens in committees. • Committees determine whether or not bills should be voted on. • They can also amend the bills before the House votes on them. • The chairpersons of the committees are members of the majority party. House Ways and Means Committee

  22. Speaker of the House • The Speaker is the presiding officer and the most powerful person in the House. • The majority party picks the Speaker of the House through a caucus. • The Speaker schedules which bills will be debated and voted on. John Boehner

  23. Majority Leader • The majority leader is the Speaker’s top assistant. • He or she is elected by the majority party. • The majority leader serves the majority party. Eric Cantor

  24. Whips • The majority and deputy whips assist the majority leader. • They help persuade representatives to support legislation that their party proposes. Kevin McCarthy

  25. Minority leadership • The minority party also elects a minority leader. • The minority leader is also assisted by whips from his or her own political party. • Minority leadership serve similar functions and the majority leadership. • It does not have scheduling powers like the majority party. Nancy Pelosi

  26. Bills in the House • Representatives put bills into the hopper. • The Speaker sends them to the right committees. • Approved bills are put on the proper calendar for debate.

  27. The House Rules Committee • This committee is one of the most powerful ones in the House. • It receives all bills approved by the other committees in the House. • It determines if and when bills will be voted on by the full House. • It settles disputes between other committees.

  28. The House Rules Committee • A regular session requires a quorum of 218 members. • The House may sit as a Committee of the Whole. • Only 100 members are needed for a quorum. • It speeds the process for debating and amending a bill for important matters.

  29. Discussion Question: • Why is so much of the work of Congress done in committees? • Committees divide up the tasks and make them more manageable.

  30. 5.3 Senate • The Basics • Senate Leadership • Bills • Filibuster

  31. The Basics • The Senate is smaller and more informal than the House. • The Vice President is the president of the Senate. • The VP can only vote if there is a tie. • The VP has much less power in the Senate than the Speaker does in the House. • The president pro tempore (president pro tem) presides over the Senate in the absence of the VP. • Pro tem means “for the time being.” • The president pro tem is selected by the Senate.

  32. Senate Leadership • The Senate majority leader guides bills through the Senate. • The Senate minority leader develops criticism for majority party bills. • Majority and minority whips pressure party members how to vote. Harry Reid

  33. Bills • Senate leadership sends bills to committees. • Approved bills are placed on the Calendar of General Orders. • Treaties and nominations are put on the Executive Calendar. • The majority party controls the flow of legislation.

  34. Filibuster • To filibuster is means to stall the legislative procedure to prevent a vote. • Other senators can stop a filibuster only through a 3/5 vote for cloture. Strom Thurmond during filibuster

  35. Discussion question: • Why does the committee system have a less important role in the Senate than in the House of Representatives? • More discussion takes place on the floor of the Senate because there are fewer senators.

  36. 5.4 Committees and Agencies* • Purposes of Committees • Kinds of Committees • Committee Members • Support Agencies *5.4 and 5.5 combined from textbook

  37. Purposes of Committees • Committees divide up work and makes it more manageable. • They allow members to specialize on key issues. • They select the most important bills for the whole Congress to consider. • They hold public hearings to inform the public on key issues.

  38. Kinds of Committees • Standing committees deal with issues that continue from one Congress to the next. • The majority party in each house controls the standing committees. • It also assigns committee membership to its advantage. • Subcommittees handle special subcategories of standing committees. • Subcommittees continue from one Congress to the next. • Select committees address temporary issues for the House or Senate. • They usually last for one term. • They research issues and report their findings.

  39. Kinds of Committees • Joint committees are made up of Representatives and Senators. • They act as study groups. • They may be permanent or temporary. • Conference committees are temporary committees that resolve differences in House and Senate versions of the same bill so each house can accept or reject the same bill.

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