Legislative Branch Flashcards
(25 cards)
Who is the legislative branch and what is their job?
Congress. Job is to make laws.
Where does congress meet?
Washington D.C.
When does term for congress begin?
Jan 3rd of odd # years
How many members are in the house of representatives?
435
Number of members in HOR is based on?
Population
Term size for members of the House of Representatives
two year term
State legislatures divide districts with __ representative per district
1
How many members of senate?
100
How many members of Senate per state?
2
Senators represent ______?
Entire state
Term size for senate
6 years - no limits
Political parties choose _________
Their leaders
Each party has …..?
floor leaders and party
Speaker of the House is chosen by
majority political party
Things the speaker of the house can do?
-Most powerful leader in house
-Steers legislation through house
-In charge of floor leaders
-Influences house business
Who is the president of the senate?
Vice President of the U.S.
What are floor leaders/What do they do?
-Are the real leaders
-Try to make sure laws passed by congress are in the best interest of their political party
What do party whips do?
Keep track of where members stand & round up members for votes
Most of the work of congress is done in _________
Committees
Membership on committees is divided along _____
Party lines (majority party has more)
4 Types of committees
- Standing committee
- Select committee
- Joint committee
- Conference committee
Standing committee
-Permanent
-Subcommittees - where the real work is done
Select committee
-Special committees set up to look into certain problems
-Usually short term
Ex: Whitewater/ENRON
Joint committee
-Made up of members of both Senate and HOR
-Look at specific areas of govt.
