Chapter 11: Congress

Question 1

How many Congress members are there in: total, the Senate, and the House of Represenatives?

Answer 1

535 members
- 100 Senators
- 435 House of Representative members

Question 2

What do Congress members do?

Answer 2

make key decisions about important matters of public policy

Question 3

How many Senators does each state have?

Answer 3

2

Question 4

How are Senators elected?

Answer 4

through state-wide elections

Question 5

How many House members does each state have? What do House members represent?

Answer 5

• determined by state population
• represent individual districts within a state

Question 6

What do the delegates in the House represent? Can they participate in voting?

Answer 6

• represent U.S. territories and Washington, D.C.
• no

Question 7

Incumbent

Answer 7

those already holding office

Question 8

How competitive are elections for House members? In Senate?

Answer 8

• incumbents win with over 60% of vote, partisanship plays a major factor
• greater competition, for it includes entire state

Question 9

In terms of voting, what is the relation between party identification and House members?

Answer 9

most House members represent a district in which their party has a clear majority, 90% of voters vote for their party’s candidate

Question 10

How often does redistricting occur? Why does it occur? Who is in charge of redistricting?

Answer 10

• after every census
• ensures districts are roughly equal population
• carried out by the states

Question 11

Gerrymandering

Answer 11

manipulating legislative districts in an attempt to favor a particular candidate or party

Question 12

Bicameral Legislature

Answer 12

a legislature divided into two houses/chambers
- e.g. Congress divided into House of Representatives and Senate

Question 13

The House is centralized. What does this imply?

Answer 13

senority is important in the House
- one is able to do more the longer they stay, members seek re-election to be able to pass bills

Question 14

How long are terms in the House? Are there term limits?

Answer 14

• 2 year terms
• no term limits

Question 15

What are the requirements to become a member of the House, as stated by the Constitution?

Answer 15

• at least 25 years old
• American citizens for 7 years

Question 16

Speaker of the House (Speaker)

Answer 16

• leader of the House
• mandated by the Constitution
• chosen by the majority party, so Speaker is usually from the majority

Question 17

Majority and Minority Leaders

Answer 17

leaders of the majority and minority parties (in both chambers of Congress)

Question 18

Majority and Minority Whips

Answer 18

deputy leaders, ensure party loyalty (in both chambers of Congress)

Question 19

As the House is more divided than the Senate, what is common in voting?

Answer 19

party loyalty and party-line voting - all members of one party vote one way, as all members of the other party vote the other way

Question 20

What powers does the Senate have?

Answer 20

• ratify treaties
• confirm important presidential nominations
• try to impeach officials

Question 20

The Senate is decentralized. What does this imply?

Answer 20

most of its members are equal in power, senority does not matter as much as in the House

Question 20

President of the Senate

Answer 20

• the Vice President, their only constitutionally defined job
• casts tie-breaking vote when Senate is 50/50

Question 20

How long are terms in the Senate? Are there term limits?

Answer 20

• 6 year terms
• no term limits

Question 21

President Pro Tempore

Answer 21

the most senior member of the Senate’s majority party, presides over the Senate when the Vice President cannot

Question 21

What are the duties of the Speaker of the House?

Answer 21

- preside over the House when it is in session - make committee assignments - control which bills get assigned to which committees

Question 22

How Speakers of the House have there been?

Answer 22

56

Question 23

How many Vice Presidents have there been?

Answer 23

50

Question 24

Standing Committees

Answer 24

handle bills in different policy areas, each house of Congress has its own standing committees

Question 25

Joint Committees

Answer 25

cover only a few policy areas, membership comes from both the Senate and the House

Question 26

Conference Committees

Answer 26

only formed when the Senate and the House pass different versions of the same bill, work out differences to make a compromise bill

Question 27

Select Committees

Answer 27

temporary or permanent committees that usually have a focused responsibility

Question 28

What is leading a committee based on?

Answer 28

senority, which is more impactful in the House

Question 29

How do members choose their committees?

Answer 29

- choose committees based on their background or relevant to the district they represent - seek committees that will help them advance their political goals

Question 30

Bill

Answer 30

a proposed law, drafted in legal language

Question 31

How does a bill become a law?

Answer 31

1. Bill introduction - introduced by a member and assigned to a committee (committees do not have to take a bill) 2. Committee action - subcommittee and then full committee both make revisions on the bill 3. Committee finishes the bill - - House - Rules Committee sends the bill to the full House - Senate - leaders of both parties schedule Senate debate on the bill 4. Floor action - Full House and Full Senate debates and vote on bill 5. If the House and the Senate pass different versions, it is sent to a Conference Committee. If they pass the same bill, it is sent to the President. 6. President signs bill into law or vetoes bill.