1. Why is our Constitution considered a “Living Document”? 2. What compromise created the Legislative Branch?

Legislative Congress Bicameral Census Constituents Gerrymander Standing committees Seniority Impeachment President Pro Tempore Expressed Powers Implied powers Elastic clause Bills of attainder Commerce Writ of Habeas Corpus Ex Posto Facto Laws Franking privilege Lobbyists Casework Pork-barrel projects Joint resolutions Special-interest groups Riders Filibuster Cloture Voice vote Roll-call vote Veto Pocket veto

Article I

Our Congress is Bicameral…meaning: It is divided into 2 houses: Senate and House of Representatives What is their main job? Make and change laws for the nation.

SenateHouse of Rep. Size100 members435 Term6 yrs.2 yrs. LeaderVP and/or President Pro Tempore Speaker of the House Based onEqual RepresentationPopulation  Each representative comes from a district in a state  NC has 13 districts  According to the representative we are his/her constituent  Apportionment-all districts must have equal representation…1 man=1 vote

How frequently do the numbers for the House of Representatives change? Every 10 years the Census Bureau conducts a census, or population count, which might adjust the number of representatives given to each state.

Each states is divided into one or more congressional districts, or areas, with one representative elected from each district. State legislatures must draw the boundaries so that the districts include roughly the same number of constituents, or people represented. Sometimes states abuse this process by gerrymandering. A gerrymander is an oddly shaped district designed to increase the voting strength of a particular group. For example, if most of a state’s representatives are Republican, they might draw the lines so that as many districts as possible have more Republican than Democratic voters.

Each house of Congress is made up of committees. There are 4 different kinds of committees. The permanent committees that continue their work from session to session are called standing committees. The Senate has 17 standing committees and the House has 19 standing committees covering areas such as education, veterans affairs and commerce. In addition to standing committees, both houses of Congress also have select committees that are created to do a specific job for a limited period. For example, in 1976 a committee was created to investigate the assassination of JFK.

The House and Senate have also formed four joint committees, which included members of both houses. For example, the Joint Economic Committee reviews economic conditions and recommends improvements in economic policy. The other 3 joint committees are the Joint Committee on Taxation, Joint Committee on the Library of Congress and the Joint Committee on Printing. A fourth type of committee is a temporary committee, the conference committee, which helps the House and Senate agree on details of a proposed law.

Expressed Powers: These are listed in the Constitution. 1. Declare War 2. Create and maintain military 3. Borrow and spend $ 4. Collect Taxes 5. Regulate Commerce- Interstate and Foreign Trade

Implied Powers: Powers not listed in the Constitution (necessary & proper/elastic clause) “stretches” 1. Power to impeach. (House of Rep: charges you, Senate: jury 2. Approve/Reject presidential nominations 3. Chooses Prez. If Electoral College doesn’t produce victor 4. Proposes Amendments (2/3rds Congress)

According to Article 1 of the Constitution, Congress may not favor one state over another, tax interstate commerce or tax exports.

1. Congress cannot suspend the Writ of Habeas Corpus Court order that requires police to bring someone to court to explain why they’re holding that person 2. Congress is prohibited from passing Bills of attainder Laws that punish you without jury trial 3. Congress may not pass Ex Posto Facto Laws Laws that make an act illegal after its been committed

SenateHouse of Rep Must be 30 yrs old25 yrs old US citizen for 9 yrsUS citizen for 7 yrs Live in state Common Background College Degree ½ Lawyers Active in gov’t early Held prior offices

1. Majority Leader elected leader of the majority party 2. Minority Leader elected leader of the minority party Who is the man in this picture?? John Boehner – Speaker of the House of Representatives (Republican Party)

Patrick Leahy President Pro-Tempore (Chairperson of the Senate) The presiding officer of the Senate is technically the VP, but since he rarely attends Senate debates, a chairperson is voted in. Pro-Tem literally means for the time being””

1. Starts out as an idea and a Bill is written 2. Sent to committee The committee is lead by a committee chairperson chosen by the seniority system The committee can pass the bill, makes changes, ignore it and let it die, and then recommend for approval or kill it 3. Sent to the floor of house it originated for debate and vote 4. Sent to other house for debate and vote

5. Sent to president If he signs it the bill becomes a law If he vetoes the bill it is sent back to Congress 6. Congress can override veto with 2/3 majority…Bill then becomes law.