oct 29 – gov – congress
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Oct 29 – Gov – Congress . Agenda: How a bill becomes a law Mock Congress Goals Homework: Brainstorm an idea for a Bill. Take out: Pen/Pencil Notebook. Adapted from Kids in the House http://clerkkids.house.gov/laws/. Objectives of Mock Congress:. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Oct 29 – Gov – Congress
Agenda:• How a bill becomes a
law• Mock Congress Goals
Homework:• Brainstorm an idea for
a Bill
Take out:• Pen/Pencil• Notebook
Adapted from Kids in the Househttp://clerkkids.house.gov/laws/
Objectives of Mock Congress:
• Describe the legislative process and how a bill becomes a law. Anticipate obstacles in a bill becoming a law.
• Analyze the roles and relationships of Congressional leaders, committees, and the function of party leadership in policymaking
• Understand the organizational and power differences between the House and the Senate
• Analyze the complexity of what it takes to pass a bill in terms of congressional negotiations, committee role, and the process of amending.
• Participate in basic parliamentary procedure• Develop communication skills through debate and
speech• Write their own bill following proper format• Learn about and discuss contemporary issues
Senate vs. House• Senate—
– More naturally decentralized and informal• Fewer members, fewer rules• Lack of Speaker• Lack of strong Rules Committee• 17th Amendment• Filibusters—3/5 vote to kill
• House– More naturally centralized—opposite of
above!!• Strong Speaker—Rules Committee
Congressional LeadershipWho is the boss??
Balance of Power• Senate
– 51 Democrats – 47 Republicans – 2 Independents
• House– 242 Republicans – 192 Democrats – 0 Independents – 1 Vacancy
Ok…so if the Democrats are the majority in the Senate, what does it mean to be the Majority Party? They control every single leadership position in their chamber. The chair of each committee is a Democrat and there are more Democrats than Republicans on each committee. The Dems had nearly uninterrupted control of Congress from 1932-1994…the Republicans took over with the Contract With America under President Clinton…and in 2006 the government returned to a tentative majority for the Democrats.
The “Bosses”• House
– Speaker• Presides over HOR, appoints committees, appoints Rules
Committee members• Assigns bills to committees, third in line for Pres.
– Majority / Minority Leaders• Partisan positions chosen by party members; floor leaders
and strategists– Majority / Minority Whips
• Assistant floor leaders, keep mood of HOR, nose count on important votes, liaison between rank and file and leadership
House Leadership
Majority Whip Minority Whip
These people are sometimes called
floor leaders
These people are sometimes called ass’t floor leaders
House Minority LeaderNancy Pelosi (D-CA)
House Majority LeaderEric Cantor (R-VI)
Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-OH)
Washington Congressional Districts
1. Jay Inslee2. Rick Larsen3. Brian Baird 4. Doc Hastings5. Cathy Rodgers 6. Norm Dicks7. Jim McDermott8. Dave Reichert9. Adam Smith
The “Bosses”• Senate—
– Vice President:• President of Senate, presides over the Senate, votes in case
of a tie, ceremonial job– President Pro Tempore:
• Ceremonial, presides in absence of VP, fourth in line for presidency
– Majority Leader:• True leader in Senate, recognized for all debates, influences
committee assignments and agenda (along with Minority Leader)
– Minority Leader and party Whips: (same as House)
SenateLeadership
Majority WhipRichard Durbin (D-IL)
Minority WhipJohn Kyl (R-AZ)
Pres. of the SenateJoseph R. Biden, Jr. (U.S. Vice President)
Sen. Majority LeaderHarry Reid (D-NV)
Sen. Minority LeaderMitch McConnell (R-KY)
Pres. Pro TemporeDaniel K. Inouye (D-AK)
The Committee System
The important work horses of Congress
Who Does The Work?• Real work in Congress is done thru the
Committee System, not on the floor;– A bill will never reach the floor unless it has
gotten out of committee• Functions of the Committee:
– Analyze Legislation, conduct investigations of the executive branch, conduct oversight of executive branch;
How Does One. . . • Get on a committee?
– Importance of getting on the right committee—one where you can do the most for your constituents;
– Assigned by either Committee on Committees or by Steering committee
– Whoever has the majority, has the committee• Who leads committees?
– Generally seniority system• Advantages? Disadvantages?
Standing Committees• Important standing committees—
– Are the permanent committees of Congress– They have legislative, investigative and
oversight functions• HOR—Rules—most powerful of all; Ways and
Means—deals with tax bills; Appropriations - spending
• Senate—Finance—deals with taxes; Appropriations—deals with spending bills; Foreign Relations—Perhaps most prestigious; Judiciary—screens judicial nominations
Conference Committees• Temporary committees of members from
both houses• Develop compromise language on a bill
when the House and Senate disagree– Once it has been decided—goes back to each
house, no amendments are allowed, and a vote is taken;
– Often called the “third house” of Congress
Directions for Party Caucuses
• Republicans and Democrats will hold separate caucuses.
• Until party leaders are elected, the caucus will be chaired by the oldest person in the party. – He or she should take nominations for majority or minority
leaders, wait for the nominations to be seconded. • Is there anyone who would like to speak for or against the candidates?
– Then, hold a vote. – Party leaders should be respected members of Congress. – Typically they have served at least one full term. – The Presiding Officer needs to be able to handle organization
and be able to lead the class through the simulation.– Their selection should be confirmed by a two-thirds vote of the
party’s caucus.