Transcript Organization of Congress - Methacton School District

ORGANIZATION OF
CONGRESS
Chapter Five
CONGRESSIONAL
MEMBERSHIP
Chapter Five, Section I
Congress
• Bi-Cameral
Legislature
• House & Senate
• Terms
• January 3rd of odd
years
• Two year terms
• Term broken into two
sessions (one year
each)
THE HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES
Membership of the House
Membership of the House
• Qualifications
• 25 years old
• Citizens of the U.S. for at least 7 years
• Legal resident of the state that elects them
• Term of Office
• Two years
Membership of the House
• Representation & Reapportionment
• Based on census taken every 10 years
• Population of each state determines the amount of representatives
each state is entitled (reapportionment)
• House was limited to 435 members in 1929
• This means we have a constantly declining representation
• Why?
• 114th Congress
Membership of the House
• Redistricting
• One representative for
one district
• State legislatures set up
boundary lines for each
district (redistricting)
• League of Latin American
Voters v. Perry
• Gerrymandering
• Video
Membership of the House
THE SENATE
Membership of the Senate
Membership of the Senate
• Qualifications
• Must be at least 30 years old
• Citizen for at least 9 years
• Legal resident of the state you
represent
• Elections are state-wide
Membership of the Senate
• Term of Office
• Elections are November of
even numbered years (like
House)
• Senators serve 6 year terms
• One-third of Senators run for
re-election every two years
• Appointments or special
elections for vacated seats
Membership of the Senate
• Salary & Benefits
• $174,000 per year
• 27th amendment limits congress’ ability to vote itself pay raises
• Franking privilege (all postage for official business)
• Medical clinic
• Gymnasium
• Allowances for:
• staff and assistants
• Trips home
• Telephones, telegrams, newsletters
• Tax deduction to maintain two homes
• Pension that can top out at $150,000 per year FOR LIFE
Membership of the Senate
• Privilege of Members
• Free from arrest! (except for treason, felonies, or breach of peace)
• Free from lawsuits! (while speaking on the floor)
• Exclusion – refusal to seat a member (majority vote)
• Punish members (majority vote)
• Expel members (two-thirds vote)
• Censure – vote of formal disapproval of a members actions
MEMBERS OF CONGRESS
114th Congress
Members of Congress
• 535 voting members
• 100 senators
• 435 representatives
• Also one from DC, Guam,
American Samoa, and the
Virgin Islands, plus one
resident commissioner from
Puerto Rico who cannot
vote
• Most diverse congress
ever
Members of Congress
• Demographics of the 114th Congress:
• http://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R43869.pdf
Members of Congress
• Success of Incumbents:
• Between 1945 and 1990 –
90% were reelected
• Easier time raising money
• Gerrymandering
• Name recognition
• Working with many people
• Belief that incumbents
represent voters views
Representative Pat Meehan
• Constituent Services
• Visit’s to Washington
• Help with a Federal
Agency
• Flag Request
• Academy Nominations
• Internships
• Passports and Visas
• WEBSITE
Constituent Services
• First and foremost, members of Congress represent their constituents, the residents of their
district or state who vote them into office. Senators and representatives assist constituents
who have problems with Social Security payments, Medicare, veterans' pensions, or with
other federal programs and agencies. Constituent needs vary widely, depending on whether
a member represents a farming district or a densely populated city and depending on the
social, cultural, and political leanings of the people in that district or state. Members cast their
votes on national issues with an eye to how the legislation will affect their own constituents.
Constituent services offer members much visibility in their district or state. “I sent all
graduating high-school seniors in the Sixth District a certificate to mark their
commencement,” Bob Dole (Republican-Kansas) recalled of his service in the House. “No
bride walked down the aisle without a copy of The Congressional Cookbook.I once
mistakenly extended congratulations on the birth of a baby to a couple observing their golden
wedding anniversary.”
Members of Congress now maintain offices in their home state as well as in Washington.
Recesses of Congress are called “district work periods.” Members return home as often as
possible to gauge their constituents’ opinions on national issues and to determine their
needs. They employ caseworkers to handle mail and telephone requests from constituents.
“Some members devote nearly all of their personal energies to such matters and little or
none of their time to legislation beyond answering roll calls,” Representative Richard Bolling
(Democrat-Missouri) observed. But members of Congress can also use their staff to attend to
their constituents, freeing them to devote more of their time to legislation.
House Leadership
Speaker of the House
John Boehner (R) Ohio
Minority Leader
Nancy Pelosi (D) California
House Leadership
Majority Leader
Kevin McCarthy (R) California
Democratic House Whip
Steny Hoyer (D) Maryland
Senate Leadership
Minority Leader
Harry Reid (D) Nevada
Majority Leader
Mitch McConnell (R) Kentucky
Senate Leadership
President Pro Tempore
Orin Hatch (R) Utah
President of the Senate
Joe Biden (VP of the U.S.)