1. The Organization of Congress
Institutions of Government #2

2. Organization of Senate by Party
Vice President of the United States
Vice President of the United States
Symbolic “President” of the Senate. Only votes in case of tie.
President Pro Tempore
President Pro Tempore
Called the President Pro Temp. Really only starts and ends meetings. No real power. Most senior member of the majority party
Senate Majority Leader
Senate Majority Leader
Elected by their fellow party members. Schedules Senate business, often in consultation with Minority Leader. A skilled bargainer may have influence over the outcome of Senate business as well
Senate Minority Leader
Elected by their fellow party members. Is the leader of the party and keeps them focused on the agenda set by the party.
Senate Minority Leader
Senate Majority Whip
Elected by their fellow party members. Charged with keeping count of votes and influencing members.
Senate Majority Whip
Senate Minority Whip
Senate Minority Whip
Elected by their fellow party members. Charged with keeping count of votes and influencing members.
Democratic Steering Committee
Committee in charge of organizing committee assignments
Republican Committee on Committees
Committee in charge of organizing committee assignments

3. Current Senate Leadership

4. Organization of the House by Party
Speaker of the House
Speaker of the House
Elected by the majority party. Has much more control over the House than the Senate leadership has.
Decides who gets a chance to speak on the floor
Rules on motions made from the floor
Influences which Committee a bill is referred to
Influences the calendar and which bills are voted upon
Appoints members of special and select committees
House Majority Leader
House Majority Leader
Elected by their fellow party members. Has less power than the same position in the Senate due to Speaker’s role
House Minority Leader
Elected by their fellow party members. Is the leader of the party and keeps them focused on the agenda set by the party. Takes blame for defeats in the House
House Minority Leader
House Majority Whip
House Majority Whip
Elected by their fellow party members. Charged with keeping count of votes and influencing members.
House Minority Whip
Elected by their fellow party members. Charged with keeping count of votes and influencing members.
House Minority Whip
Republican Committee on Committees
Committee in charge of organizing committee assignments
Republican Committee on Committees
Democratic Steering and Policy Committee
Chaired by party leadership. In charge of setting legislative agenda and committee assignments
Republican Policy Committee
Sets legislative agenda and schedules.

5. Current House Leadership

6. Party Voting
Measured by how often legislative votes fall along “party lines.”
More evident since the 1990s than the 1960s-1980s.
Now more partisan for a different reason than pre-1960s
Then it was due to the greater influence of party leaders who focused on winning elections, keeping power, and dispensing patronage
Now it is due to the ideological splits between representatives.

7. Why so divided? Congressional Districts
Since the districts are drawn to favor a political party the general elections often don’t matter
In primary elections the more ideological voters turnout to vote.
In addition voters may take cues now from representatives and become more partisan

8. The Committee System
Take into account all the areas the Legislative Branch must act on…..
Would it be possible for a person to have the depth of knowledge to make reasonable, intelligent decisions on all of these areas?
Due to this the Legislative Branch has organized itself into Committees that specialize in different areas of policy
Committees are mixed between both parties, with the majority party in the Legislative body having more members per committee

9. Roles of Committees Consider Bills/Legislative Proposals
Before bills are debated by the full body, they are studied and “marked up” in committee. The committee “reports” it out to the full House or Senate for a vote.
94% of all bills DIE in committee
Conduct Investigations
They look into areas of “concern” that fall under their area of expertise (MLB Steroid Hearings)
Oversight of Executive Branch
They investigate the operations and actions of Executive Branch Agencies (“Fast and Furious”, “9/11 commission”)

10. Types of Committees
Standing Committees: Committees that are permanent parts of Congress.
Select Committees: Committees assembled for a specific period of time to accomplish a specific task (Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming)
Joint Committees: Committees put together that consist of members of both the House and Senate
* Conference Committee: A special joint committee put together to hammer out differences between bills passed by the House and the Senate

11. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)
House Committee
Chairperson
Ranking Member
Agriculture
Frank Lucas (R-OK)
Collin C. Peterson (D-MN)
Appropriations
Hal Rogers (R-KY)
Nita Lowey (D-NY)
Armed Services
Buck McKeon (R-CA)
Adam Smith (D-WA)
Budget
Paul Ryan (R-WI)
Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)
Education and the Workforce
John Kline (R-MN)
George Miller (D-CA)
Energy and Commerce
Fred Upton (R-MI)
Henry Waxman (D-CA)
Ethics
Michael Conaway (R-TX)
Linda Sánchez (D-CA)
Financial Services
Jeb Hensarling (R-TX)
Maxine Waters (D-CA)
Foreign Affairs
Ed Royce (R-CA)
Eliot Engel (D-NY)
Homeland Security
Michael McCaul (R-TX)
Bennie Thompson (D-MS)
House Administration
Candice Miller (R-MI)
Bob Brady (D-PA)
Judiciary
Bob Goodlatte (R-VA)
John Conyers (D-MI)
Natural Resources
Doc Hastings (R-WA)
Peter DeFazio (D-OR)

12. Louise Slaughter (D-NY)
House Committee
Chairperson
Ranking Member
Oversight and Government Reform
Darrell Issa (R-CA)
Elijah Cummings (D-MD)
Rules
Pete Sessions (R-TX)
Louise Slaughter (D-NY)
Science, Space and Technology
Lamar Smith (R-TX)
Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX)
Small Business
Sam Graves (R-MO)
Nydia Velazquez (D-NY)
Transportation and Infrastructure
Bill Shuster (R-PA)
Nick Rahall (D-WV)
Veterans' Affairs
Jeff Miller (R-FL)
Michael Michaud (D-ME)
Ways and Means
Dave Camp (R-MI)
Sander Levin (D-MI)

13. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD)
Senate Committee
Chairperson
Ranking Member
Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry (5)
Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)
Thad Cochran (R-MS)
Appropriations (12)
Barbara Mikulski (D-MD)
Richard Shelby (R-AL)
Armed Services (6)
Carl Levin (D-MI)
Jim Inhofe (R-OK)
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs (5)
Tim Johnson (D-SD)
Mike Crapo (R-ID)
Budget
Patty Murray (D-WA)
Jeff Sessions (R-AL)
Commerce, Science, and Transportation (7)
Jay Rockefeller (D-WV)
John Thune (R-SD)
Energy and Natural Resources (4)
Ron Wyden (D-OR)
Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)
Environment and Public Works (6)
Barbara Boxer (D-CA)
David Vitter (R-LA)
Finance (6)
Max Baucus (D-MT)
Orrin Hatch (R-UT)
Foreign Relations (7)
Robert Menendez (D-NJ)
Bob Corker (R-TN)
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (3)
Tom Harkin (D-IA)
Lamar Alexander (R-TN)
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs (4)
Tom Carper {D-DE)
Tom Coburn (R-OK)
Judiciary (7)
Patrick Leahy (D-VT)
Chuck Grassley (R-IA)
Rules and Administration
Chuck Schumer (D-NY)
Pat Roberts (R-KS)
Small Business and Entrepreneurship
Mary Landrieu (D-LA)
Jim Risch (R-ID)
Veterans' Affairs
Bernie Sanders (I-VT)
Richard Burr (R-NC)

14. Committee Practices
Majority party has majority of seats on the committee and names the chair
Assignments
House members serve of two standing committees or one exclusive committee
Senators serve on two “major” committees and one “minor” committee
Chairs are elected
Usually the most senior member is elected by the majority party but not always

15. Committee Practices Changes in Rules over time 1970s 1995
House committee chairs are elected by secret ballot in the party caucus
No House member or Senator may chair more than one committee
Committee meeting open to public unless a vote was taken to close them
1995
House gave Chairs ability to select staff members, banned proxy voting, and established term limits
Senate imposed term limits and chairmen to be selected by secret ballot.

16. Organization of Staff and Specialized Offices
Jobs of Congressional Staffers
Constituency Service
About 1/3 of Staff Members work in the district
All members have one full time district office
Legislative Functions
Devising proposals
Negotiating Agreements
Organizing Hearings
Meeting with Lobbyists
Serve as advocates for the Congress member
Results of Larger staff
More legislative work in the chamber
More individualistic Congress

17. Specialized Offices
Work for Congress as a whole to provide specialized knowledge
Congressional Research Service (CRS)
General Accounting Office (GAO)
Congressional Budget Office (CBO)