Transcript Role and Powers of Congress

CHAPTER 5
Role and Powers of Congress
Section 1: Role of Congress
Section 2: Houses and Members of Congress
Section 3: Powers of Congress
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Role and Power of Congress
Section 1:
Role of Congress
Objectives:
 What influences how members of Congress vote?
 What purpose do congressional investigations serve?
 Why is it important for members of Congress to serve
their constituents?
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Role and Power of Congress
Section 1
Congress is the ________________ branch of
the federal government
Framers of the Constitution outlined the
legislative branch’s power in much more detail
than the other two branches
Congress has three key roles
 _____________________________________________
 _______________ the performance of gov’t agencies
 Provides services to the people its members ____________
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Role and Power of Congress
Section 1:
Role of Congress
Influences on the voting decisions of members of Congress:
 ___________________________________
 Members sometimes follow their own beliefs even when it goes against the
wishes of voters
 ___________________________________
 Members answer to the people of their locality
 ___________________________________
 People acting together to achieve shared political goals
 Provide info on issues, suggest legislation, and contribute to member’s campaign
through political action committees (PACs)
 ____________________________________
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 Members of the same party have increasingly shared more of the same political
beliefs and values.
Role and Power of Congress
Section 1:
Role of Congress
Purpose of congressional investigations:
 to examine the ____________ and ______________
of government agencies
 It does this through _______________________________
 Involves conducting investigations of agency actions and programs
 Focus on ____________ and _________ in federal
agencies
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Role and Power of Congress
Section 1:
Role of Congress
Reasons members of Congress should serve their
constituents:
 ___________________________________________
___________________________________________
 Such patterns may signal a problem with a gov’t program
or a change in constituents’ general attitudes.
 ___________________________________________
 Individual Requests
 Most constituent mail involves issues such as obtaining info. or
expressing views about legislation, requesting help with finding a
gov’t job, or asking for assistance with gov’t services such as
Social Security
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Role and Power of Congress
Section 2:
Houses and Members of Congress
Objectives:
 How do the houses of Congress differ in their
structure and membership?
 How are congressional districts drawn?
 What is the typical profile of a U.S. congressmember?
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Role and Power of Congress
Section 2
________________________________
 The Constitution’s framers intended the House to be closer
to the people than would be the Senate. Their expectation
was that the House would attract ordinary citizens serving
for a brief period.
_______________________
 The framers of the Constitution intended for the Senate to
differ from the House. They thought that the Senate should
attract an older, more experienced group of people who
would serve longer terms as the nation’s senior leaders.
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Role and Power of Congress
Section 2:
Houses and Members of Congress
Differences in the structure and membership of Congress:
 House of Representatives




____________ members
____________ term
representation determined by ____________________
members required to be at least ________ years old, U.S. citizens for at least
_____________ years, and legal _____________ of the states they represent
 ________________
 ______________ members, or __________ members from each state
 _____________ term
 members required to be at least __________ years old, U.S. citizens for at least
___________ years, and legal residents of the _____________ they represent
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Role and Power of Congress
Section 2:
Houses and Members of Congress
Congressional ____________ are drawn
according to the population distribution as
indicated by each official _________ every 10
years.
 After each census, Congress uses the new population to
count to ____________, or distribute, the _________ seats
among the states.
 Thus, the legislature of a state that holds nine seats in the
House must divide the state into nine congressional
districts.
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Role and Power of Congress
Section 2:
Houses and Members of Congress
Typical profile of a U.S. congress member:
 has at least a ___________ degree
 is a __________ male over ___________ years old
 Minority groups and women generally are not represented
in Congress in _________________ to their numbers in the
U.S. population
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Role and Power of Congress
Section 3:
Powers of Congress
Objectives:
 To what main areas of governing do Congress’s
expressed powers apply?
 What special powers does Congress hold?
 What are the implied powers of Congress?
 What constitutional limits exist on congressional
powers?
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Role and Power of Congress
Section 3:
Powers of Congress
Congress’s expressed powers: (Page 105)
 government _________________
 regulation of _________________
 ____________________________
 ____________________________
 national sovereignty
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Role and Power of Congress
Section 3:
Powers of Congress
Congress’s ______________ powers:
 ____________ federal officers
 Definition: formally accuse and bring to trial
 Charges must be drawn up in the
__________________________
 Trials held in _____________ (acts as jury) with VP as
the judge
 If president is on trial, the chief justice presides
 Approve treaties and presidential appointments
 Need _____________ vote by Senate
 Decide __________________ under certain circumstances
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Role and Power of Congress
Section 3:
Powers of Congress
Congress’s __________________ powers:
As provided by the _______________
Clause, Congress can expand its expressed
powers in order to respond to situations
___________________ by the framers of
the Constitution.
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Role and Power of Congress
Section 3:
Limits on ______________________ powers:
 ________________ review
 Supreme Court can use this power to determine when Congress has
reached beyond the powers granted to it by the Constitution
 the _________________ Amendment
 It declares that the states or the people shall keep all the powers not
specifically granted to the national government.
 Article _____, Section __________ of the Constitution
 Some Examples
 ________________________
 A law that applies to an action that took place before the law was passed
 ____________________________________
 A law that punishes a person who has not been convicted in a court of law
 Congress cannot suspend the ________________________________
 A court order requiring police to bring people accused of a crime to court and
show sufficient reason to keep them in jail.
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