Chp. 12: Congress in Action
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action
97
Objectives about Powers of Congress
The student will demonstrate knowledge of the organization and powers of the
national government by
a) examining the legislative branch
Essential Understandings about Powers of Congress
1. The legislative branch is a bicameral body with committees playing a major role in
the legislative process.
2. The Constitution of the United States of America grants both expressed and implied
powers to the legislative branch.
Essential Questions about Powers of Congress
1. What are the expressed and implied powers?
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action
98
Section 1: Congress Organizes; The Presiding Officers
Speaker of
the House
1. the 1)Speaker of the House is the presiding officer member of the House: John Boehner
(R-OH)
2. member of the 2)majority party
3. no member may speak until he/she is 3)recognized by the Speaker
4. he also 4)interprets and applies the rules
5. 5)refers bills to the standing committees
6. puts motions 6)to a vote
7. names the members of all 7)select and 8)conference committees
8. the Speaker does not often vote, but he must vote 9)to break a tie
9. the Speaker follows the
President of
the Senate
10)
Vice President in the line of succession to the presidency
1. President of the Senate is the 11)Vice President of the United States: Joe Biden (D-DE)
2. the President of the Senate is a
12)
much less powerful chair than the Speaker’s
3. may 13)recognize Senators for debate
4. puts questions 14)to a vote
5. may vote 15)only to break a tie
6.
16)
President Pro Tempore serves in the absence of the Vice President:
17)
Patrick Leahy (D-
VT)
a. elected by the Senate and is a leading from the
18)
majority party
b. follows the Speaker in the line of presidential succession
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action
99
Directions: Fill in the titles and names of the officers that make up the leadership in the House of
Representatives and the Senate. Then answer the questions at the bottom of the page.
House
Presiding Officers
Party Officers
Senate
Presiding Officers
Party Officers
1.
What are the functions of the Speaker of the House?
2
What are the functions of the president of the Senate?
3
What are the functions of the floor leaders and whips in both chambers?
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action 100
Section 1: Congress Organizes; Party Officers
Floor Leaders
(not an official
position)
1. they are party officers picked for their posts by 21)their party colleagues
2. the floor leaders are 22)legislative strategists
3.
23)
steer floor action to their parties’ benefit
4. majority floor leader is 24)more powerful
a. has 25)more seats
b. largely controls the 26)order of business on the floor in his chamber
5. House Leaders
a. majority leader –
27)
b. minority leader –
28)
Eric Cantor (R-VA)
Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)
6. Senate Leaders
a. majority floor leader – 29)Harry Reid (D-NV)
b. minority floor leader –
Whips
30)
Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
1. whips are the floor leaders top assistants
31)
2. tell the floor leader
which members, and how many votes, can be counted on in
any particular matter
3. see that all members of the party are present for
32)
important votes
4. persuades their parties’ members to vote with the 33)party leadership
5. House Whips
a majority whip –
34)
b. minority whip –
35)
Kevin McCarthy (R-CA)
Steny Hoyer (D-MD)
6. Senate Whips
Chairpeople
a majority whip –
36)
b. minority whip –
37)
Richard Durbin (D-IL)
John Cornyn (R-TX)
1. chosen from the 38)majority party
2. decide 39)when their committees will meet, decide
whether they will hold
41)
40)
which bills they will take up, decide
public hearings
3. usually 42)manages the debate on the floor and controls the committee 43)budget
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action 101
DIRTy Definitions
1) Term
4) Illustration
2) Def
4) Illustration
2) Def
4) Illustration
2) Def
4) Illustration
2) Def
president pro tempore
3) Reminding Word(s)
1) Term
party caucus
3) Reminding Word(s)
1) Term
whip
3) Reminding Word(s)
1) Term
seniority rule
3) Reminding Word(s)
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action 102
Section 1: Congress Organizes; Party Officers
Seniority Rule
1. the most important posts are held by those with the 44)longest records of service in
Congress
2. criticisms
a. ignores 45)ability and discourages 46)young members
b. no
47)
fresh and conflicting ideas results in the chairman being out of touch with
current public opinion
3. benefits
a. ensures that a 48)powerful and experienced member will chair a committee
b. rule is 49)easy to apply and eliminates the possibility of 50)fights within the party
Section 2: Committees in Congress
Standing
Committees
1.
51)
permanent panels in either the House and the Senate
2. the fate of 52)most bills is decided in the various standing committees, not on the
floor
3. More Prominent and Influential Committees
a. House – Rules, Ways and Means, Appropriations, Armed Services, Judiciary
b. Senate – Foreign Relations, Appropriations, Finance, Armed Services, Judiciary
4. members of each standing committee are 53)formally elected by a floor vote at the
beginning of each term of Congress
a.
54)
seniority rule is closely applied
5. the 55)majority party always holds a majority of the seats on each standing committee
The House
Rules
Committee
1. after a bill clears the committee to which it was referred in the House, it goes to
the 56)Rules Committee
2. normally a bill gets to the floor only if it’s been granted a rule (57)scheduled for
floor consideration) by the Rules Committee
3. can 58)speed, delay or even prevent House action on an issue
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action 103
Directions: Using your notes, fill in the graphic organizer on committees. In each box, write the definition of
the committee and what the committee does.
Standing Committees
Select Committees
1. Definition:
1. Definition:
2. What are the committee’s functions:
2. What are the committee’s functions:
Types of Congressional Committees
Joint Committees
Conference Committees
1. Definition:
1. Definition:
2. What are the committee’s functions:
2. What are the committee’s functions:
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action 104
Section 2: Committees in Congress
Select
Committees
1. panels set up for some 59)specific purpose and for a limited time
2. most are formed to investigate a 60)current matter
a. Senate’s Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (Watergate)
Joint
Committees
1. composed of members of
61)
both houses
2. most joint are 62)permanent groups that serve on a regular basis
3. act as 63)study groups which report back to the two chambers of Congress
Conference
Committees
1. before a bill may be sent to the President, each house must pass it 64)in identical
form
2. if they pass differing versions of a bill, a 65)conference committee is formed
3. a temporary, joint body created to produce a 66)compromise bill that both houses
will accept
Section 3: How a Bill Becomes a Law: The House
Bills and
Resolutions
1. a bill is a 67)proposed law presented in the House or Senate
2. most bills originate with the 68)executive branch, but anyone can propose a bill
3. all bills for
69)
raising revenue originate in the House of Representatives
a. bills dealing with
70)
any other matter may be introduced in either chamber
4.
71)
5.
72)
private bills – apply to certain persons or places rather than to the entire nation
6.
73)
resolutions deal with matters in either house alone and are taken up only by that house
public bills – apply to the nation as a whole
a. usually used for
7.
75)
74)
rules and procedures in one of the houses
riders are unrelated provisions that usually do not have a chance of passing on their own,
but are added to important bills so that they will ride through the legislative process on the
strength of the main issue
Step One
1. only 76)members can introduce bills in the House, done by dropping them into the 77)hopper –
a box on the clerk’s desk
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action 105
DIRTy Definitions
1) Term
4) Illustration
2) Def
4) Illustration
2) Def
4) Illustration
2) Def
4) Illustration
2) Def
4) Illustration
2) Def
bill
3) Reminding Word(s)
1) Term
resolution
3) Reminding Word(s)
1) Term
rider
3) Reminding Word(s)
1) Term
pigeonhole
3) Reminding Word(s)
1) Term
quorum
3) Reminding Word(s)
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action 106
Section 3: How a Bill Becomes a Law: The House
Step One
…continued
StepTwo:
Committee
Action
1. the clerk
78)
numbers and
79)
titles each bill introduced in the House
2. the Speaker then refers the bill the appropriate standing committee
1. the standing committee 80)rejects most bills (90%)
2. most bills are 81)pigeonholed – simply put away and never acted upon
3. Gathering Information – usually through several
82)
subcommittees – divisions of
existing committees to address specific issues
4. public hearings are held on important or controversial bills
5. Several Different Committee Actions
1. report the bill
2.
84)
83)
favorably with a “do pass” recommendation
pigeonhole the bill
3. report the bill in 85)amended form
4. report the bill with an 86)unfavorable recommendation
5. report a 87)committee bill – an entirely new bill the committee has substituted for
one or several bills referred to it
Step Three:
Scheduling
Floor Debate
1. before a bill goes to the floor, it is placed on one of five calendars
a. calendar –
88)
schedule of the order in which the bill will be taken up on the floor
2. Rules
a. the 89)Rules Committee must approve when a bill can be taken from a calendar for its
appearance on the floor
b. by not granting a rule for bill, the Rules Committee can effectively 90)kill it
c. they can give a bill
Step Four:
Floor Debate
91)
privileged status so that it can be called up ahead of other bills
1. must have a 92)quorum (majority of the full House membership – 218) in order to do business;
no one member may speak for more than 93)one hour at a time
2. the Speaker has the power to force any member who strays from the subject to
94)
give up
the floor; at any time, any member may “95)move the previous question” – demand a vote on
the issue before the house
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action 107
DIRTy Definitions
1) Term
4) Illustration
2) Def
4) Illustration
2) Def
4) Illustration
2) Def
4) Illustration
2) Def
filibuster
3) Reminding Word(s)
1) Term
cloture
3) Reminding Word(s)
1) Term
veto
3) Reminding Word(s)
1) Term
pocket veto
3) Reminding Word(s)
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action 108
Section 3: How a Bill Becomes a Law: The House
Step Five:
Voting
1.
96)
voice votes used to be the most common
a. Speaker calls for the “ayes” and the “noes,” the members answer in chorus
2.
97)
standing votes – all in favor, and then all opposed, stand and are counted by the clerk
3. roll call vote or
98)
record vote which is done electronically
Section 4: The Bill in the Senate
Step One
1. introduced by a 99)senator
2. a measure is given a number and a short title
Step Two:
Committee
Action
1. same as in the House
Step Three:
Scheduling
Floor Debate
1.
Step Four:
Floor Debate
1. floor debate is strictly limited in the 101)House, but almost unrestrained in the 102)Senate
bills are called to the floor at the discretion of the
100)
majority floor leader
Types of Congressional Committees
a. senators may speak on the floor for
103)
as long as they please
b. has no rule that requires a senator to speak only 104)on the measure before the chamber
2. a filibuster is an attempt to “105)talk a bill to death”
a. the filibusterers’ try to so monopolize the Senate floor and its time that the
Senate must either
106)
drop the bill or change it in some manner acceptable to
the minority
b. Senator
107)
Strom Thurmond set the filibuster record – 24 hours and 18 minutes;
attempted to kill the Civil Rights Act of 1957
3. the 108)threat of a filibuster alone has resulted in the Senate’s failure to consider a number
of bills and the amending of many more
4. the Cloture Rule – provides for
109)
limiting debate
a. if three-fifths of the full Senate (60 senators) approve it, no more than another
110)
30
hours of floor time may be spent on the measure
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action 109
How a Bill Becomes a Law
House
House
Introduction
Introduction
Committee Action
Committee Action
Floor Action
Floor Action
Floor Action
Congressional Approval
Presidential Action
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action 110
Section 4: The Bill in the Senate
Step Five:
Voting
1. voting procedures in the Senate 111)are the same as in the House
2. uses 11)voice, standing, and roll-call votes, but does not use an electronic voting
process
Section 4: The Bill in the Senate; Executive Action
Conference
Committee
1. before a bill goes to the President, both houses of Congress must pass the same
The President
Acts
1. may 112)sign the bill and it then becomes law
version of the bill
2. may 113)veto – refuse to sign the bill
a. Congress can override the veto with a
3. may allow the bill to
115)
114)
become law without
2/3 vote of each house
116)
signing it
a. by not acting on it within 10 days, not counting Sundays
4.
117)
pocket veto – if Congress adjourns its session within 10 days of submitting a bill to
the President, and the President does act, the bill dies
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action
111
Notes
Chp. 12: Congress in Action 112