Congress is Action112th Congress

When does Congress work?• January 3rd of every odd-numbered

year• Member of the House must be sworn

in the first day…all 435• The choose a Speaker of the House-

must be long-standing member of Majority Party

Senate• Only 1/3 need to be sworn in

because the Senate is a continuous body

• Newly elected and reelected members are sworn in on the first day

State of the Union• Delivered to joint session of Congress

annually• Required by the constitution• Attended by: members of both

chambers, members of the Cabinet, justices of the Supreme Court, foreign diplomats, and other dignitaries

• Televised for the American people

Cont..• President discusses the “state of the

union” as he sees it, in both domestically and foreign policy terms

• The rest of the world watches• He will discuss legislative

recommendations• Very political in nature for members

of Congress

State of the Union CustomsMembers stand and applaud the President when they agree with him

Customs cont…

Members remain seated when they disagree with the President and do not applaud

Speaker of the House

•Representative John Boehner (from Ohio, pronounced BayNer)

elected to Congress in 1990•Speaker is leader of House and the leader of the majority party

Roles of the Speaker• To preside in a fair and judicious

manner• Help his political party and its

legislative goals• To preside and keep order• No member can speak until they are

recognized • Appoints members of select

committees

Roles cont…• Selects members of conference

committees• Signs all bills and resolutions passed

by the House• Does not often vote on bills• Must vote to break a tie• Follows the Vice President in

succession

President of the Senate

Vice President Joe Biden• Elected as 47th VP in 2008•Senator from Delaware for 36

years

President of Senate cont…• Not a member of the Senate• Assigned by the Constitution• Not always a member of the majority

party in the Senate• Cannot speak or debate and may

only vote to break a tie

President Pro TemporeSenator Daniel Inouye (Hawaii)•Highest ranking Asian-American in political history•Serves in the VPs absence•Elected by the Senate•Leader of the Majority party•Follows the Speaker of the House in succession

Party Politics• Party Caucus- closed meeting of

party members in each chamber• Caucuses determine party

organization, floor leaders and committee members

Floor Leaders• Most important positions behind the

Speaker of the House• Not official positions• Chosen by party colleagues• Considered Legislative Strategists

• Republican Leadership Democratic Leadership• Rep. Eric Cantor Rep. Nancy Pelosi• Represents Republicans Represents Democrats

on the House floor. On the floor

Floor Leaders=Spokesman

V.

WHIPS• Assist the floor leaders• Chosen by party caucus• Liaison between leadership and rank

and file members• Calculate votes for floor leaders• Verify attendance of party members

for important votes

WHIPS• Majority Whip• Rep. Kevin McCarthy (CA)• Assists leadership in

managing party's legislative program

• Democratic Whip• Rep. Steny Hoyer

(Maryland)• Assists leadership in

managing party's legislative program.

Seniority Rule• Unwritten custom• Most important posts in Congress will

be held by party members with the longest records

• Especially applied to committee chairmen

• Criticized for ignoring ability

Committee Chairmen• Most Congressional work is done in a

committee• Each committee chairman is chosen

from the majority party/party caucus• Chairmen decide when committee

will meet, if they will hold public hearings, and what witnesses will be called

• Chairmen manages debate in bills

Committees• Standing Committee- permanent panels in

each chamber w/ responsibility for a particular area of public policy

• 19 in the House and 17 in the Senate• Each committee in the House has between

10-75 people• Each committee in the Senate has

between 14-28 people• Reps. are usually assigned to 2 standing

committees

Committee cont…• Senators are assigned to 3 or 4

standing committees• Most bills are thoroughly investigated

in committee• Reps. Usually respect

recommendations from committees• Standing committees are split into

sub-committees

House Rules Committee• Traffic cops of the House• Before a bill can reach the floor of the

House it must clear the Rules Committee

• Determines the speed or the delay of a House action

Select Committees• Also called Special Committees• Panels set up for a specific purpose and

for a limited time• Committee members are chosen by the

Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate

• Committees usually focus on investigative matters (Deficit Reduction)

Joint and Conference Committees

• Joint Committees include members from both Chambers

• Some Joint Committees are also Select Committees

• Conference Committees are temporary, and joint committees created to produce a compromise bill that both chambers will pass