Government 5.2

Electric boogaloo

Organization of the House

• Each chamber of Congress has a majority and a minority party

• The majority party selects chairpersons for the committees

• Majority can change every two years

Organization of the House cont.

• Leadership Positions– Both the majority and minority party selects leaders– Leaders are selected during a caucus (a closed meeting)Majority Party:

Speaker of the House - The presiding officer of the House. The position is appointed by the majority party and carries with it great power.

Majority Floor Leader - They coordinate party agendas and urge members to vote on key bills.

Majority Whip – assist floor leaders

Organization of the House cont.

• Leadership cont.– Minority Party• Minority Floor Leader - They also coordinate party

agendas and urge members to vote on key bills.• Minority Whip - assist floor leaders

Lawmaking in the House

• Bills: formally proposed legislation (law egg)• Bills are introduced in the House in the Hopper• The Speaker assigns bills to committee• The House Rules Committee (most powerful)

– They control the scheduling of bills on the calendar • When bills return to the floor they are debated

– There is a 5 minute time limit per congressman for debate• When bills reach the floor for a vote, a quorum is necessary

– Minimum number needed for a vote to be official– 218 in the House

Organization of the Senate

• Leadership– President of the Senate: Vice President

• Presiding officer , only votes in a tie, can not inroduce legislation or debate

– President Pro Tempore • Substitute for the vice president• Selected from the majority party• If three people die, they become president

– Majority Floor Leader –organizes party agenda– Majority Whip – assists the floor leader– Minority Floor Leader – mainly plays “defense”– Minority Whip - assists the floor leader

Lawmaking in the Senate

• Bills are introduced by Unanimous consent Agreement (voting)

• After committee, bills return to the floor for debatedebate is unlimited in the Senatecloture – if cloture is called then debate can be limited to 1 hour

Filibuster - A long speech given as a delay tactic to stall a vote

possible in the senate because there is no time limit

Committees

• Four Types of committees• 1. Standing Committees– permanent and deals with bills

• subcommittees

• 2. Select Committees– temporary and studies an issue (no bills)

• 3. Joint Committees– made up of members from both chambers.

• 4. Conference Committees– Type of joint congressional committee that is temporary and

is intended to compromise on a bill.

Congressional Support

• Congressmen have difficult jobs that demand a large amount of time and effort

• They are helped by – Staff and…– Support Agencies

Congressional Staff

• Personal Staff – hired by the congressmen personally– Administrative assistants

• Work in Washington, D.C.

– Legislative assistants• Work in Washington, D.C.

– Caseworkers• Work in the home state or district• handle the many requests for help from a member's

constituents

• Committee Staff – hired to work for the committees

Support Agencies

• Library of Congress (LOC)– Largest library in the World – Provides information and resources for Congress

• Government Printing Office (GPO)– Prints all government documents and bills

• Congressional Budget office (CBO)– Assists the congress with the budget