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Background to the House and Senate

Background to the House and Senate. A Short Story. I. Rules for Lawmaking . A.) Each house of Congress has rules to help members conduct business B.) Congress carries most of it work by committees (because of its large membership/more so than in the Senate)

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Background to the House and Senate

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  1. Background to the House and Senate A Short Story

  2. I. Rules for Lawmaking • A.) Each house of Congress has rules to help members conduct business • B.) Congress carries most of it work by committees (because of its large membership/more so than in the Senate) • C.) Party membership guides Congress in its work. • D.) The majority party in each house of Congress organizes the committees, appoints committee heads and controls the flow of legislation (proposed bills to become laws)

  3. II. House Leadership • A.) The Speaker of the House is leader of the majority party and has great power • B.) Floor leaders of both the majority and minority parties are party leaders who help steer bills through committees • C.) Party whips assist the floor leaders in persuading party members to support laws the party favors

  4. III. Lawmaking in the House • A.) Members attend House floor sessions to vote on bills (legislation) • B.) All laws begin as bills introduced in the House->go to committee. If approved, they are put on the calendar (order of bills considered) • C.) The House Rules Committee receives all bills approved by committees • D.) The Rules Committee determines which bills will be considered

  5. I. The Senate at Work • A.) The Senate has fewer rules than the House. Senators have more freedom to express their views and are less subject to party discipline than representatives • B.) The VP presides over the Senate but has much less power than the Speaker of the House; the pro tempore often presides • C.) The Senate majority floor leader is responsible for guiding bills through the Senate; the minority floor leader develops criticisms of majority party bills and tries to keep the opposition party members working together • D.) Majority and minority floor whips assist their floor leaders in making sure members are present for key votes • E.) Senate leaders control the flow of bills to committees and to the floor for debate; there is no committee similar to the House Rules. • F.) The Senate has two calendars: one for bills and one for treaties and nominations • G.) A filibuster-a stalling of the legislative procedure to prevent a vote-can be ended only by a 3/5 vote-cloture

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