Legislative branch
 As
citizens of the United States we live in
what is known as a representative
democracy.
 Congress serves as a representation of the
will of the people.
 Congress does this by transforming the will
and the needs of the American public into
law and policy.
 Congress
is split up into houses known as the
House of Representatives and the Senate
 A bicameral legislature has been in practice
since the 1300’s in Britain
 The Senate consists of two representatives
from each state while the number of
representatives in the House is determined
by a state’s population
 Each
term in congress lasts for two years
 Each term consists of two sessions, one in
each year
 Neither of the two houses may adjourn for
the year without the consent of the other
 If congress is out of session, the President
can convene a special session if need be to
deal with an unexpected or pressing issue
A House Rep. must be 25 yrs old, a citizen for at
least 10 years, and live in the state which they
represent.
 The House is made up of 435 members who were
apportioned based on the populations of the
states
 The house has power over its members and
members elect in regards to qualifications and
actions of its own members It has the power to
punish and even expel its own members for
disorderly behavior
 Each state is guaranteed at least one seat in the
House
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House member terms are two years long and
there is no limit on the number of terms a
representative can serve
 The reapportionment act of 1929 set the
permanent size of the house at 435, and stated
that the seats would be reapportioned every ten
years after the census
 The house is made up of representatives from
single member districts within a state
 State legislatures are responsible for drawing up
congressional districts that are contiguous,
populated equally, and compact In many cases
state congressional districts fell victim to
Gerrymandering
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What is gerrymandering?
 Gerrymandering is a term that describes the
deliberate rearrangement of the boundaries of
congressional districts to influence the outcome of
elections.
 Where did gerrymandering come from?
 The original gerrymander was created in 1812 by
Massachusetts governor Elbridge Gerry, who crafted a
district for political purposes that looked like a
salamander.
 What is the purpose of gerrymandering?
 The purpose of gerrymandering is to either
concentrate opposition votes into a few districts to
gain more seats for the majority in surrounding
districts (called packing), or to diffuse minority
strength across many districts (called dilution).
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 How
has Congress regulated redistricting? In
1967, Congress passed a law requiring all
U.S. representatives to be elected from
single member districts system we use today.
Congress in 1982 amended the Voting Rights
Act to protect the voting rights of protected
racial minorities in redistricting. Within those
laws, states have great leeway to draw
districts, which often leads to
gerrymandering.
 The
Senate is made up of 100 members, two
from each state
 Originally Senators were chosen by the state
legislature, however after the 17th
amendment now gives the power to choose
Senators to the general population
 A Senator serves a six year term with no limit
on number of terms served
 The Senate is a continuous body Senators are
traditionally less affected by the pressures of
their local constituents
 Often more concerned with national interests
 Senators
are considered to be of a higher
status inside Washington and their respective
political parties
 Senators must be at least 30 yrs old, a
citizen for a minimum of nine years, and
reside in the state which they represent Like
the house, the senate has power over its
members behavior
 Congress
is not an accurate representation of
the American public
 However in recent years both houses have
become slightly more diverse
 Most members are married, ¾ are from
Judeo Christian backgrounds
 They often come from careers in politics,
business, and law
 Members
of Congress serve multiple roles
and functions
 They are legislators, committee members,
representatives of their constituents,
servants of their constituents, and politicians
 As committee members they serve in the
processes of creating and proposing
legislation and they exercise oversight
function
 Oversight
function is the process of checking
on various agencies in the executive branch
to make sure they properly operating
 The primary responsibility of a congressman
is to vote on laws Voting options: Trustee,
Delegate, Partisan, Politico Congressman are
also generously paid and enjoy a large
variety of fringe benefits
 The
Constitution places certain limits on the
power of Congress Congress derives power
from the constitution in three different
ways: expressed powers, implied powers,
inherent powers There are two different
schools of thought in regards to the powers
given to congress by the constitution Strict
Constructionists: led by Thomas Jefferson,
they believed that Congress should be
limited to its expressed powers and the
implied powers that are absolutely necessary

Liberal Constructionists: led by Alexander
Hamilton, they believed that the constitution
gave congress a broader scope of national
power A more liberal view of congress’s
power is what has led to the power that they
enjoy today Events such as wars, economic
crisis and national emergencies have
validated congress’s view of their expansive
power
Much of Congress’s expressed power can be seen in
how they use their power and how the courts rule
on the constitutionality of their actions
 This process is still taking place today
 One of Congress’s primary functions is the power
to tax
 Taxation is levied for a variety of different
reasons that include: to raise money for the public
good, protect domestic industry, and for public
safety reasons
 The power to tax does have its limits
 Different types of taxation: direct tax, indirect
tax.
 Congress also has the power to borrow money on
behalf of the country
 Commerce Power is Congress’s power to regulate
interstate and foreign trade

Congress also has the ability to coin and assign value
to money
 Along with the power to make and assign value to
money, congress also makes laws that deal with
bankruptcy
 When the government determines that a person is
not able to pay their debts, bankruptcy proceedings
occur and the persons assets are distributed to
those who the debt is owed
 Congress has power over foreign relations in
regards to war and the power to regulate foreign
trade
 Some of congresses other powers consist of the
following: naturalization, the postal power,
copyrights and patents, weights and measures,
power of eminent domain, and judicial powers

 The
Necessary and Proper Clause gives
Congress the power to enforce the powers
given to them by the constitution
 This power has been a point of controversy
since its inception
 Some feel that the clause is interpreted in
to liberal of a fashion and that congress has
abused the power that it gives them
 No matter what the issue the foundation
for using the necessary and proper clause
must be found in the expressed powers of
congress
Congress also is charged with responsibilities and
powers that do not have to do with making laws
 Congress plays a key role in amending the
constitution
 Congress can propose an amendment to the
constitution with a 2/3 vote in both houses
 The House and The Senate can be called upon to
elect the President and Vice President if neither of
the possible candidates receive a majority of the
votes
 Impeachment: House votes for impeachment,
Senate sits as court for hearing
 Congress has executive approval on appointments
and treaties
 Lastly Congress has an investigatory power to
oversee the operations and activities of agencies and
individuals within the government
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Congress convenes on January 3rd of every odd
numbered year
There are a variety of important events that occur
on opening day in the Senate and the House such as
election of officers and the administration of oaths of
office
The presiding officer of the house is known as The
Speaker of the House
He is the most powerful man in the House of
Representatives
He is the elected presiding officer of the House and
the acknowledged leader of the majority party
His primary duties are to preside and keep order
during session He may not debate issues and
preside over the house at the same time
He follows the Vice President in the line of
succession to the Presidency
The Vice president is the leader of the Senate,
however he does not take as active a role in the
day to day operations of Congress as the Speaker
of the house
 Underneath the presiding officers in congress are
the party floor leaders and the whips
 These positions are meant to serve as tools for
the political parties to operate within the activities
of congressional session
 The party caucus is the meeting between
members of one of the two political parties to
discuss party organization
 One of the most important jobs of the majority
caucus is choose committee chairman
 Seniority Rule: That the senior members of the
party will take the ranking posts that are available
 Many critics believe that this system ignores
talent and ability and does not result in the best
possible person actually filling the post
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A standing committee is a permanent committee
that focuses its efforts on legislation in a specific
area ex: Agriculture, Budget, National Security
 The House Committee on Rules is the committee
that screens bills before they reach the floor, they
can speed, delay, or even prevent a bill from
reaching the floor
 Select committees are set up for a limited amount
of time to deal with a specific issue, often times
they are used to investigate a current issue that
congress needs information on
 Joint committees are made up of members of both
houses in order to not have committees in the house
and the senate that duplicate each others work
 A conference committee is set up to make sure
that a bill being voted on is uniform and agreeable
to both houses of congress
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Most bills begin as a need or request outside
the legislative branch
 Bills, both public and private are presented to
the House or Senate for enactment into law
 Joint resolutions are similar to bills, however
they deal with unusual or temporary matters
 Concurrent resolutions are put forth by both
houses but are not signed off on by the
President, hence forth not giving them the
strength of a law
 Resolutions are brought up in one house or the
other and often deal with matters exclusive to
the operation of the House or the Senate
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Many bills contain Riders, which are
provisions that are not likely to pass on their
own, so they are attached to something more
important with the hopes that it will be
pushed through
 Congressional committees are often so
bogged down with bills that they are split
into subcommittees to examine bills dealing
with specific issues
 There are a number of procedures and
rules that the House deals with in the
presentation, debate, and passing of a bill
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Bills are introduced by Senators who are formally recognized
for that purpose
Senatorial debate over legislation is often unrestrained and
can on for long periods of time
Some senators try to filibuster, or talk a bill to death in an
attempt to stall to the point where the bill is dropped
There is the rule of Cloture which attempts to stop
filibustering and limit debate, however it is so difficult to
invoke that it is largely ignored
The last step in making a bill into law is the approval of the
President
When a bill reaches his desk he has 4 options
He can sign it and it becomes law
He may veto it and it goes back to the Congress or dies
He may allow the bill to become law by not signing it within
10 days
He may use a pocket veto, if Congress adjourns within ten
days of presenting the bill and he does not sign it then it will
die
Veto literally translated means “ I Forbid”.