CONGRESSChapter 10 in a Nutshell!

THE NATIONAL LEGISLATURE

Chapter 10 Section 1

A BICAMERAL CONGRESS There are three primary reasons why

the United States created a bicameral legislature.Historical ReasonsPractical ReasonsTheoretical Reasons

BICAMERAL LEGISLATURE: HISTORICAL REASONS The British Parliament had consisted of

two Houses since the 1300’s. All but two of the states had bicameral

legislatures by 1787.Those states were Georgia and

Pennsylvania Georgia became bicameral in 1789 Pennsylvania became bicameral in 1790

Only one state has a unicameral legislature today: Nebraska

BICAMERAL LEGISLATURE: PRACTICAL REASONS The Connecticut Compromise had to

settle the differences between the New Jersey and Virginia Plans.

It reflects the ideas of federalism.

BICAMERAL LEGISLATURE: THEORETICAL REASONS It might diffuse the power of Congress

and prevent it from becoming too powerful.

States must be represented as co-equal members.

TERMS AND SESSIONS Terms

A period of two years. Each term is numbered consecutively. The first term started March 4, 1789 and ended

March 4, 1791. The 20th Amendment changed the start date in

1933 to noon of January 3rd of every odd numbered year.

SessionsA period of time during a year in which

Congress meets to conduct business. There are two sessions each term, one each

year.

ENDING A TERM OR SESSION There are two ways to end a term or

session: Adjourn or Prorogue.

To Adjourn To end or suspend a session until the next

session begins. Neither house may adjourn sin die, without the

other consenting. To Prorogue

Article 2 Section 3 allows the President to end a session when the two chambers disagree on a date to Adjourn.

No President has used this power.

SPECIAL SESSIONS The President may also call Congress

into a Special Session:A meeting to deal with an emergency

situation.Only 26 have been called.

The most recent was by Truman in 1948 to consider anti-inflationary policies after WWII.

The President may call one or both houses into a special session The Senate has been called into 46 special

sessions to consider Treaties or Appointments, but not since 1933

The House has never been called into a special session.

THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Chapter 10 Section 2

SOME POINTS TO REMEMBER The House has 435 members They are apportioned (distributed)

amongst the states by population, with each state guaranteed one representative.

They serve two year terms. There are no term limits.

It has been proposed as recently as the 90s as an amendment.

Many amendments recommend limiting a person to 3-4 terms in the house and 2 in the senate.

REAPPORTIONMENT The Constitution calls for

reapportionment (redistribution) of each seat after each Census.Until the 1st census there were 65 seats.After the first senate, the number of seats

rose to 106. The size of the House was permanently

set to 435 under the reapportionment act of 1929.See p. 268 for the 4 steps congress must

take to change the number of seats apportioned to each state.

CONGRESSIONAL ELECTIONS Since 1872, Congress has set the date

of its elections to be on the “Tuesday following the first Monday in November of each even-numbered year.”Alaska has the option to hold their elections

in October, but to date, have not. Under that same law, elections must be

chosen by written or printed ballots.Voting machines were approved in 1899.

OFF-YEAR ELECTIONS These are elections that happen in

nonpresidential year. Typically the party in power loses seats

in off-year elections. Is that true for the most recent elections?

DISTRICTS There are 7 states that have only one

representative. These states only have one district.

In the other 43 states, there are 428 Congressional districts.Many states have single-member districts

where the voters select one of the candidates from a field.

Some had at-large fields where the whole state voted for all of their representatives.

FORMAL QUALIFICATIONS To be in the house you must meet the

following qualifications:25 years of ageCitizen of the United States for at least 7

years.Be an inhabitant of the state from which

he/she is elected.

INFORMAL QUALIFICATIONS Vote getting abilities. Party identification. Political experience Ethnic/gender/religious qualities.

THE SENATEChapter 10 Section 3

SIZE There are 100 Members

During the first session there were only 26 members. Why?

The number increased each time a new state was added to the union.

The framers hoped that the senate would be smaller and more enlightened than the house.

Senators represent larger proportions of the population, and therefore represent a wider variety of interests

ELECTIONS Originally, under the constitution,

senators were chosen by state legislatures.Changed in 1913 by the 17th Amendment.They are selected during the November

elections.Each Senator is elected from the State at-

large.

TERMS Senators serve 6 year terms

Three times the length of a house term.There are no term limits.The current record is held by Strom

Thurmond who was elected to 9 senate terms.

The Senate is known as a continuous bodyMeaning only 1/3 of the senate is up for

reelection at a time.This gives the senators a sense of “job

security”

Strom Thurmond served as a South Carolina Senator from 1954-2003.

Though he finally retired at age 100, by the timeof his retirement, he was known to frequently doze off during Congressional sessions.

QUALIFICATIONS To be eligible for election in the Senate,

one must:Be 30 years of ageBe a citizen of the U.S. for 9 yearsBe an inhabitant of the state from which

he/she is elected. Like the house the senate may exclude

a member by majority vote:This has happened 15 times:

Once in 1794 Fourteen times during the civil war.

MEMBERS OF CONGRESS

Chapter 10 Section 4

THE JOB Members of Congress play 5 major

roles:LegislatorsRepresentatives of their constituentsCommittee MembersServants of their constituentsPoliticians

AS REPRESENTATIVES OF THE PEOPLE As a representative of the people,

members of congress typically play one of three roles:TrusteesDelegatesPartisansPoliticos

TRUSTEES These are individuals that believe each

question/issue must be decided on its own merits.They use conscience and independent

judgment as their guides.They vote regardless of the way their

constituents see issues or how outside influences may try to influence them.

DELEGATES These people believe that they are the

servants of those who elected them. They think they should vote the way the

folks back home want.

PARTISANS These are individuals that owe their first

allegiance to their political party first.Many feel duty bound to tie their votes to

their party leadership or their political platform.

Partisans are typically the most common role played by representatives.

POLITICOS These individuals attempt to combine

the elements of the of the delegate, trustee, and partisan.

IN COMMITTEES We will talk about the role of

committees in more depth in chapter 12.

However, the largest role of a member of a committee is to utilize the oversight function.This is the process by which congress

checks to see if the various executive agencies are working effectively.

COMPENSATION Congressional representatives earn

$162,000 per year.The speaker of the house makes $208,100The President Pro Tem and the majority and

minority floor leaders earn $180,100 There are other non-salary benefits:

Tax deductions for maintaining two residences

Travel allowancesSmall costs for health insurance and/or

medical care.$150,000 pension.

MORE COMPENSATION The Franking Privilege. Free printing Low TV/radio production costs Free parking around the capitol and

airports.