Daily Question: 11/2/15
1. What is
gerrymandering?
Daily Question: 11/9/15
Name one implied power of
Congress.
Essential Q.: How is Congress
run and how does a bill
become a law?
Congress Gets Organized!
 The
First Day in the House
 All members are sworn in
 House elects the Speaker
Always a member of the
majority party – they have
picked him in private meetings
before session
Congress Gets Organized!

The First Day in the House
 Members are put into committees
Also prearranged
Majority party gets a majority in
every committee
Seniority Rule – longest serving
members get the first pick,
become chairperson
Congress Gets Organized!
 First
Day in the Senate
 1/3 of the members are sworn
in (only 1/3 coming off of
election)
 Vacant committee seats are
filled
House Leadership
 Speaker
of the
House
 John Boehner
(R-OH)
 Presides over
House session
House Leadership

Speaker of the
House
 Refers bills to
relevant
committee
 Appoints
members of
the Rules
committee
House Leadership
 House
Majority
Leader
 Kevin
McCarthy (RVA)
 Helps Speaker
to plan party
strategy
House Leadership
 House
Majority
Whip
 Steve Scalise
(R-CA)
 Right hand man
of Maj. Leader
House Leadership
 Link
between
leadership and
“rank and file”
 Check who plans
to vote and how
 Persuade
“defectors” to vote
with the party
House Leadership

House Minority
Leader
 Nancy Pelosi
(D-CA)
 Plans minority
party strategy to
take power back
 Expected to
become Speaker
if they win
House Leadership
 House
Minority
Whip
 Steny Hoyer
(D-MD)
Senate Leadership
 President
of
the Senate
 = Vice
President of
the U.S.
 Joe Biden
Senate Leadership
Presides over the
Senate
 Powerless and
thankless job
 V.P. has better
things to do
 Can only vote to
break a tie

Senate Leadership
 President
ProTempore of the
Senate
 Orrin Hatch –
(R-UT)
 Presides in
place of the VP
Senate Leadership

President ProTempore of the
Senate
 Longest serving
member of the
majority party
 Also doesn’t want
to do it, passes
the job off on
junior members
Senate Leadership

Senate Majority
Leader
 Mitch McConnell
(R-KY)
 Plans party
strategy
Senate Leadership
 Places
bills on
the calendar for
voting
 May speak first
on any bill
 Refers bill to
relevant
committee
Senate Leadership
 Senate
Majority
Whip
 John Cornin
(R-IL)
Senate Leadership
 Senate
Minority
Leader
 Harry Reid
(D-NV)
Senate Leadership
 Senate
Minority
Whip
 Dick Durbin
(D-TX)
Committees
 Committee
– expert groups of
Congressmen who decide what
bills will go to the whole house for
a vote
 Most work in Congress is done in
committees
Types of Committees
 Standing
Committee – permanent
committees that remain from
session to session
 Where
the real power of a
congressman comes from
Current Standing Committees in the
House of Representatives
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Agriculture
Appropriations
Armed Services
Budget
Education and the
Workforce
Energy and Commerce
Financial Services
Government Reform
House Administration
International Relations
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Judiciary
Resources
Rules
Science
Small Business
Standards of Official
Conduct
Transportation and
Infrastructure
Veterans Affairs
Ways and Means
Current Standing Committees in the
Senate
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Agriculture, Nutrition, and
Forestry
Appropriations
Armed Services
Banking, Housing, and
Urban Affairs
Budget
Commerce, Science, and
Transportation
Energy and Natural
Resources
Environment and Public
Works
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Finance
Foreign Relations
Governmental Affairs
Health, Education, Labor,
and Pensions
Indian Affairs
Judiciary
Rules and Administration
Small Business
Veterans Affairs
Types of Committees
 Select
or Special Committees –
Temporary committee to
investigate wrongdoing or
research a special matter
 Examples: Senate Watergate
Committee, Select Committee
on Aging
Types of Committees
 Joint
Committees – have
members of both the House and
Senate
 Conference Committees –
compromise different versions
of bills between House and
Senate
How a Bill Becomes a Law
 Step
1 – The House
 Bill is introduced
Can only be introduced by a
member of the House
Bill is read to the entire
chamber
How a Bill Becomes a Law
 Step
2 – The House
 Referred to a standing
committee
Speaker of the House chooses
the committee
Full committee decides
whether to consider it, or
“pidgeonhole” it
How a Bill Becomes a Law

Step 3 – The House
 Referred to subcommittee
Chairman of the committee
decides which subcommittee
Subcommittee does the vast
majority of research and work on
the bill
90% of bills die in steps 2 and 3
How a Bill Becomes a Law

Step 4 – The House
 Committee/Subcommittee Hearings
Government officials, experts invited
to speak in favor or against bills
Congressmen may take “junkets,” or
trips to locations for further research
Meanwhile, they “markup,” or make
changes to the bill
How a Bill Becomes a Law

Step 5 – The House
 Sent back to full committee
Committee can either
Send the bill to step 6 with a
“do pass” recommendation
Or refuse to report the bill,
thus killing it
How a Bill Becomes a Law
 *If
the rest of Congress disagrees
with a committee’s decision to kill a
bill, there is one option*
 Discharge Petition – majority of the
House votes to pull a dead bill out
of committee
How a Bill Becomes a Law

Step 6 – The House
 Referred to Rules Committee
Places bill on the calendar
Sets the rules for time limits and
number of amendments allowed
If they refuse to put rules on it…
How a Bill Becomes a Law

Step 7 – The House
 Whole House Debates
During debate, members can
propose amendments to add onto
the bill
In the House, amendments must
be relevant to the subject of the
bill
How a Bill Becomes a Law
 Step
8 – The House
 Whole House Votes
Majority vote passes, sends
bill to the Senate
How a Bill Becomes a Law
 Step
9 – The Senate
 Introduced in the Senate
 Step 10 – The Senate
 Referred to a standing
committee
Senate Majority Leader
chooses which committee
How a Bill Becomes a Law
 Step
11-12 – The Senate
 Same as House – referred to
subcommittee, back to
committee, then out to floor for
debate
How a Bill Becomes a Law

Step 13 – The Senate
 Whole Senate Debates
No Rules Committee, so no limits
on time or amendments
Filibuster – talking at length to
stall action on a bill, can only
be ended by cloture (60 votes)
Riders – amendments that
have nothing to do with a bill
How a Bill Becomes a Law
Step 14 – The Senate
 Senate votes
 Step 15 – Conference Committee
 Members of both houses’
subcommittees that worked on the
bill compromise
 Both houses then vote again on the
compromise bill

How a Bill Becomes a Law

Step 16 – The
President
 President has 3
options (maybe
4):
 1. Sign the bill,
make it law
How a Bill Becomes a Law
 Step
16 – The President
 President has 4 options:
2. Veto the bill, explain why
Goes back to Congress, who
can override with 2/3 vote
in both houses
How a Bill Becomes a Law
3.
Wait 10 days and let it
become law without his
signature
4. (Maybe) Pocket Veto - If
Congress ends its session
before 10 days are up, bill
dies without a veto
In 2012 Taxpayers Paid For…

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$255,000,000 to upgrade the M1 Abrams
Tank, despite the military’s request to delay
upgrades until 2017
$3,000,000 for protection of the Jersey
Shore from erosion
$5,870,000 for the East-West Center in
Hawaii, to promote cooperation between the
U.S. and Asia. The U.S. State Department
has asked for this center to be closed.
Pork Barrel Spending

Generally occurs through a process called
“Earmarking”
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Setting aside money within an appropriations
bill and “earmarking” it for a specific purpose
For some reason, doesn’t go through typical
spending authorization procedures that other
spending proposals go through
Cost taxpayers approximately $17.1 billion in
2008
Pork Barrel Spending
 How
congressmen “bring home
the bacon”
 Shows constituents that their
congressman gets “stuff” for their
district or state
 Helps congressman win
reelection!
Check for Understanding

A filibuster is
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A. an attempt to stall action on a bill and “talk
it to death”
B. a vote against a bill
C. a unanimous approval of a bill
D. employed increasingly rarely
Check for Understanding
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Filibusters can be ended by
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A. declaration of the Majority Leader
B. any Senator who calls for a motion of “the
previous question”
C. a cloture vote of 60 Senators
D. the Speaker’s call for a vote
Check for Understanding

Bills in the Senate are referred to a
committee by
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A. the Speaker
B. the President of the Senate
C. the President Pro-Tempore
D. the Majority Leader
Check for Understanding

The President has ___ to sign or veto the
bill.
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A. 5 days
B. 10 days
C. 21 days
D. 3 months
Check for Understanding

If the President does not sign or veto the
bill within the time limit, and Congress
remains in session, the bill
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A. automatically becomes law
B. automatically fails
C. goes back to Congress for a 2/3 vote
D. must begin in committee again