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Congress in

Ch. 12. Action!. Congress in. 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 her in private meetings before session. Congress Gets Organized!. The First Day in the House

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Congress in

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  1. Ch. 12 Action! Congress in

  2. 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 her in private meetings before session

  3. 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

  4. 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

  5. House Leadership • Speaker of the House • Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)

  6. House Leadership • Speaker of the House • Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) • Presides over House session

  7. House Leadership • Speaker of the House • Refers bills to relevant committee • Appoints members of the Rules committee

  8. House Leadership • House Majority Leader • Steny Hoyer (D-MD) • Helps Speaker to plan party strategy

  9. Lessons in Congressional Leadership with former Majority Leader Tom Delay

  10. House Leadership • House Majority Whip • Jim Clyburn (D-SC) • Right hand man of Maj. Leader

  11. House Leadership • Link between leadership and “rank and file” • Check who plans to vote and how • Persuade “defectors” to vote with the party

  12. House Leadership • House Minority Leader • John Boehner (R-OH) • Plans minority party strategy to take power back • Expected to become Speaker if they win

  13. House Leadership • House Minority Whip • Eric Cantor (R-VA)

  14. Senate Leadership • President of the Senate • = Vice President of the U.S. • Joe Biden

  15. Senate Leadership • Presides over the Senate • Powerless and thankless job • V.P. has better things to do • Can only vote to break a tie

  16. Senate Leadership • President Pro-Tempore of the Senate • Robert Byrd (D-WV) • Presides in place of the VP

  17. Senate Leadership • President Pro-Tempore of the Senate • Longest serving member of the majority party • Also doesn’t want to do it, passes the job off on junior members

  18. Senate Leadership • Senate Majority Leader • Harry Reid (D-NV)

  19. Senate Leadership • Senate Majority Leader • Harry Reid (D-NV) • Plans party strategy

  20. Senate Leadership • Places bills on the calendar for voting • May speak first on any bill • Refers bill to relevant committee

  21. Senate Leadership • Senate Majority Whip • Richard “Dick” Durbin (D-IL)

  22. Senate Leadership • Senate Minority Leader • Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

  23. Senate Leadership • Senate Minority Whip • Jon Kyl (R-AZ)

  24. 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

  25. Types of Committees • Standing Committee – permanent committees that remain from session to session

  26. Agriculture Appropriations Armed Services Budget Education and the Workforce Energy and Commerce Financial Services Government Reform House Administration International Relations Judiciary Resources Rules Science Small Business Standards of Official Conduct Transportation and Infrastructure Veterans Affairs Ways and Means Current Standing Committees in the House of Representatives

  27. 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 Finance Foreign Relations Governmental Affairs Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Indian Affairs Judiciary Rules and Administration Small Business Veterans Affairs Current Standing Committees in the Senate

  28. 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

  29. Types of Committees • Joint Committees – have members of both the House and Senate • Conference Committees – compromise different versions of bills between House and Senate

  30. How a Bill Becomes a Law • For a brief overview, let’s watch a short documentary on the process

  31. 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

  32. 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

  33. 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

  34. 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

  35. How a Bill Becomes a Law Oh, no!! • 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

  36. 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

  37. How a Bill Becomes a Law Oh, no!! • 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…

  38. 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

  39. How a Bill Becomes a Law • Step 8 – The House • Whole House Votes • Majority vote passes, sends bill to the Senate

  40. 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

  41. 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

  42. 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

  43. This leads to… Pork Barrel Spending

  44. In 2008 Taxpayers Paid For… • $148,950 for the Montana Sheep Institute • $211,508 for olive fruit fly research in Paris, France • $1,117,125 to suppress Mormon crickets • $1,950,000 for the Charles B. Rangel Center for Public Service (Rangel is the Congressman who got this money spent) • $98,000 to develop a walking tour of Boydton, Virginia

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