US government 10,11,12
Senators are supposed to be less concerned with the interests of a specific small locality and more focused on the
"big picture" of the national interest.
The Constitution directs Congress to reapportion or redistribute the seats in the House every
10 years, after each census.
How many total senators
100
There are 2 senators for each state and a total of
100 senators in the senate
The average senators and representatives are paid
174,000 per year.
The Constitution made members of Senate chosen by the State legislatures. However, after the
17th Amendment, senators are elected by voters.
How many senators for each state
2
A term for Congress is
2 years
How long Congress meets (how long is the 118th congress)
2 years
How long is the house of representatives term
2 years
How many special sessions have ever been held?
28 times
What are the three constitutional qualifications for a senator?
30 years old, 9 years citizen, Live in the state they represent
Size of House of Representatives (matching)
435
The size of the House of Representatives is
435 and it is set by .
A senator's term is
6 years.
Seniority rule
An unwritten tradition that the most important posts are held by the people with the longest membership in congress
A schedule of the order in which a bill will be taken up on the floor
Calendar
People and interests that the senators represent
Constituents
Senator's term are staggered making it a what
Continuous body
Party in power splits up voters to support opposing party and result in minority party winning fewer seats (matching)
Cracking
Agents of the people who elected them (matching)
Delegate
Enables members to force a bill that has remained in a committee
Discharge petition
Inherent power to use private property for public use
Eminent domain
A Joint Committee is one composed of members of both houses
Examples of joint committees include the Joint Committee, the Joint Committee on Printing, and the Joint Committee on the Library of Congress
Name the two real limits on the level of congressional pay
Fear of voter fallout, President's veto power
Because of their short term, representatives should pay close attention to
Folks back home
Districts drawn to the advantage of the political party that controls the state's legislature (matching)
Gerrymandering
Who was the last president to call a special session?
Harry Truman, 1948
Congress can propose an amendment to the constitution by a two thirds vote in each house
Has happened 33 times
Minority Leader
He does the same things as the majority leader, He doesn't have as much power over the floor because his party doesn't have the majority members
President of the Senate
He recognizes members, pulls questions to vote, etc., He may only vote to break a tie, He is the Vice President, He can't debate
President pro tempore
He serves as the leader of the senate in the V.P.'s absence, Majority Leader, He plans the order of business on the floor, He carries out the decisions of his party's caucuses and steers floor action to the benefit of his party
Your state's Senators
Indiana: Mike Braun, Todd Young, Illinois: Tammy Duckworth, Dick Durban
Each session begins on
January 3 of odd-numbered years.
A trip as an official or legislative committee paid with public funds to obtain information
Junket
President of Senate
Kamala Harris
List two nonsalary compensations that members of Congress receive
Large pension, Tax breaks, travel/office funds, Free flyers and surveys, Free haircuts, Cheap healthcare
How a bill becomes a law
Laws originate from ideas from a Representative or a citizen. The Representatives research and write them into bills. Once a bill has a sponsor and some support, it is ready to be introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill is assigned a number and read to all Representatives, who then send it to one of the House standing committees. The committee members review, research, and revise the bill before voting on whether to send it back to the House floor. If the committee members need more information, the bill is sent to a subcommittee for further examination and expert opinions. Once approved by the committee, the bill is sent to the House floor for debate. Representatives discuss the bill and recommend changes, and when all changes have been made, the bill is ready for voting. There are three methods for voting: Viva Voce (voice vote), Division (supporting and opposing), and Recorded (recorded). If a majority of Representatives votes yes, the bill passes in the U.S. Hous
List five duties/jobs/roles that a member of Congress has
Legislators, Committee members, Representatives of the people, Servants of the people, Politicians
What is required for Congress to adjourn?
Making a motion, seconding it, and voting
Speaker of House
Mike Johnson
Who became the first woman Speaker of the House?
Nancy Pelosi
Elections that take place in non presidential election years
Off-year elections
State legislatures put as many votes from the opposing party into a single as possible to make other districts safe for their party (matching)
Packing
Owe their first alliance to their political party (matching)
Partisan
A bill that is buried and dies in committee
Pigeon-holed
Balancing view of constituents, his own views, and those of his parties (matching)
Politico
Number of seats in house is based on (matching)
Population
Bills that are measures that apply to certain persons rather than the entire nation
Private bills
A majority of the full membership
Quorum
Committee actions to a bill
Report the bill favorably, Refuse to report the bill, Report the bill in amended form, Report the bill with unfavorable recommendation, Report a committee bill
Matters concerning either house alone, only taken up by that house
Resolution
Provision not likely to pass on its own merit that is attached to an important measure that is certain to pass
Rider
Period of time congress assembles and does business
Session
How long is a senator's term
Six years
Congressional meeting to deal with some emergency situation
Special session
When district lines are redrawn to make minorities win as many districts as possible (matching)
Stacking
Constitution directs congress to reapportion each seat every __ years
Ten
A bill is placed into one of five calendars before going to the floor for consideration
The Calendar of the Committee of the Whole House on the Senate of the Union, The House Calendar, The Calendar of the committee of the Whole House, The Consent Calendar, The Discharge Calendar, Before most measure can be taken from a calendar, the Rule Committee must approve that step and set at time for its appearance on the floor
Rules committee
The Rule Committee decides whether and under what conditions the full House will consider a measure. This places great power in the Rules Committee, as it can speed, delay, or even prevent House action on a measure
True
The Supreme Court in Wesberry v. Sanders ruled that States draw congressional districts of substantially equal populations
Speaker of the House
The most powerful leader of the house, Presides over meetings, Chooses who to call on during meetings, Appoints members to committees, Schedules bills for debate refers bills to the proper committee, Follows vice president in the line of succession to the presidency
The President's State of the Union Address
The president recommends the consideration of the Congress on things that he views as necessary and expedient, including legislation. He reports on the nation as he sees it and lays out a general summary of his administration's policies, and what he will do as president.
Majority and minority whips
They are assistant floor leaders., They check with party members and give the floor leaders advice on how many votes they will get on an issue, They check to make sure that the lacking votes of absent members on an issue can be canceled out by the other party
Committee Chairmen
They head the standing committees in each chamber, They are chosen by the majority party, They decide when their committees will meet, which bills they will take up, whether to hold public hearings, and what witnesses should be called, He manages the debate over a committee's bill
Indirect tax
a tax paid first by one person but then passed to another
Direct Tax
a tax that must be paid by the person on whom it is imposed, And income tax must be a direct tax, All indirect taxes must be levied at the same rate in all parts of the country
A Conference Committee
a temporary, joint body, is created to iron out the differences between bills passed by the House and Senate before they are sent to the president
Delegate
agents of the people who elected them
State legislatures have petitioned Congress in behalf of amendments that would require Congress balance the federal budget each year,
allow prayers in public schools, and outlaw abortions.
Politico
balancing the views of his constituents, his own views, and those of his party
Proposed laws are called
bills
The people and interests the senators represent are called
constituents.
Senators' terms are staggered so that all of its seats are never up at the same time, making it a
continuous body.
Gerrymandering
districts drawn to the advantage of the political party that controls the state's legislature
Trustee
each question they face must be decided on its merits
A session
is a period of time that Congress assembles and does business
A bicameral legislature
is made up of two houses.
What are three qualifications that the constitution says a member of the house must have?
live in area you represent, U.S. citizen for 7 years, at least 25
Congressional elections that occur in nonpresidential years are called
off-year elections.
Partisan
owe their first allegiance to their political party
The fact that the House member's term is only 2 years makes them
pay close attention to folks back home
The President is the only person that may call a
special session
Congress can call a national convention to propose an amendment, but it may only do so if
that step was requested by at least two thirds of the State legislatures. No conventions have been called this way.
True
the Constitution says that a representative must live in the district he or she represents
Congress consists of two houses,
the House of Representatives and the Senate.
These two houses were a compromise between
the New Jersey Plan and the Virginia Plan
True
the Reapportionment act of 1929 made the size of the House "permanent"
The number of seats in the House of Representatives is apportioned among
the States on the basis of population
False
the election date for Congressional elections is the Tuesday following the first Monday in November of odd-numbered years
Eminent domain
the inherent power to take private property for public use, Power to admit new states, war powers, President's treaty-making power, Any sovereign state may acquire unclaimed territory by discovery
Cracking
the party in power splits up the voters who support the opposing party and results in the minority party winning fewer seats.
The oversight function is
the process by which Congress checks to see that the executive branch agencies are carrying out the policies that Congress has set by law.
Packing
the state legislators put as many voters from the opposing party into a single district as possible to make other districts safe for the party in power
False
there is a constitutional limit on the number of terms any member of Congress may serve
Some don't like it because then the posts aren't always held by people who have the abilities for it, and younger members are then discouraged
they say the people are held out of touch with public opinion. Others say that it ensures well trained and experienced leaders, that the rule is easy to apply and prevents fights within the party
Each question they face must be decided on its merit
use conscience (matching) - Trustee
Stacking
when the district lines are redrawn to make minorities win as many districts as possible
The "average" member of congress is a
white male in their late 50's.
The most vigorous push for conventions are pushed by those
who favor an amendment to limit the number of terms a person might serve in either house of Congress.
