Congress

After being put up for re-argument because the first trial had no clear majority, the Court ruled that the reapportionment of state legislative districts is not a political question, and should therefore be done by federal courts. This ruling came as a result of a disagreement in Tennessee because the districts didn’t have equal amounts of people, even though the census is supposed to make the districts change every ten years. They ruled in favor of Baker because he felt the districts should be reapportioned because they hadn’t in 60 years, while Carr tried to say the making of the districts is a political question.
 * Baker v. Carr (1962)**

This case involved re-districting because of race. It started in North Carolina, where the Department of Justice felt that a mainly black district could be redrawn to better help the members of the black community. The Court ruled that redistricting based on race must be held to strict scrutiny because of the equal protection clause, and people doing the redistricting have to be conscious of race to ensure compliance with the Voting Rights Act.
 * Shaw v. Reno (1993)**

__**ROLE OF THE COMMITTEES IN CONGRESS - TYPES OF - IMPORTANCE OF...

CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT BOUNDARIES? GERRYMANDERING?

FRANKING PRIVILEGES?

-**Powers of Congress** Declare war Borrowing Money Raise and support a military and make rules for their governance To create courts inferior to that of the Supreme Court Coin money, set its value, and punish counterfeiting -**The Evolution of Congress** The founding fathers did not want to have all powers concentrated in a single governmental institution The states would not consent to a national constitution if it did not protect their interests and strike a reasonable balance between the states. The powerful house during the first three administrations leadership in congress was often supplied by the president or his cabinet officers. Congress began to assert its independence and the house overshadowed the senate. The Divided house-The house was shattered by the issue of slavery, the civil war left the house weak The Speaker rules-The speaker of the house gained much power, however depending on the year power was shifted throughout the house The House revolts- the house revolted against the speaker and strip his right to appoint chairman and to remove him from the Rules committee. Powers lost flowed to party caucuses Need to be a member of Congress to draft a bill Don't need to be a member to introduce legislation Get referred to standing committees depending on content and in accordance with detailed rules and procedures that differ somewhat between the house and senate. Once reviewed by a subcommittee the bill gets on their priority list. Not every bill gets action If the committee fails to act then the bill is dead The staff edits or amends the bill After this they can decide to recommend the bill to full committee or just let it go Conduct analysis and hold more meetings and vote for recommendation to be sent to the house and senate Reports describe the nature and purpose of the bill Bill scheduled for date of review Both houses need to approve the bill If the president signs the bill the it becomes a law Pocket Veto could occur Or he could just plan veto the bill The bill can still become a law if two-thirds of the members vote for it
 * Congress**
 * How a bill becomes a law**
 * Introduction-Draft and Introduce**
 * Refer to Committee**
 * Committee Action-Get Committee action**
 * Go to Mark up**
 * Order the bill**
 * Publish a report**
 * Floor action and Conference-Get a date**
 * Win two Chambers**
 * President-Get Presidents signature**
 * Override Presidents veto**

-Vocabulary
 * Bicameral Legislature**-A lawmaking body made up of two chambers or parts.
 * filibuste**r-An attempt to defeat a bill in the Senate but talking for a long period of time.
 * Marginal Districts**-Political districts in which candidates elected to the House of Representatives win in close elections by less than 55% of the vote.
 * Safe Districts**-Incumbents win by more than 55%.
 * Conservative Coalition**-An alliance between Republican and conservative Democrats
 * Majority Leader**-A leader in Congress who holds the most seats in the House or the Senate.
 * Minority Leader**-A leader in Congress who holds the least amount of seats in the House or th Senate.
 * Whip**-A Senator or representative who helps party leaders stay informed about what party members are thinking.
 * Party Polarization**-A vote in which a majority of Democratic legislators oppose a majority of Republican legislators.
 * Caucus**-An association of congress members created to advance a political ideology or a regional, ethnic, or economic interest.\
 * Standing Committees**-Permanently established legislative committees that consider and are responsible for legislation within a certain subject area.
 * Select Committees**-A congressional committee elected for a limited time and purpose
 * Joint Committees**-Committees on which both senators and representatives serve.
 * Conference Committees**-A joint committee appointed to resolve differences in the Senate and House versions of the same bill.
 * Public Bill**-A legislative bill that deals with a large group of people
 * Private Bill**-A bill that deals only with a specific group, organization or personal matter
 * Simple Resolution**-An expression of opinion in congress to help settle a procedural matters
 * Concurrent Resolution**-An expression of opinion without the force of law that requires the approval of both the house and the senate.
 * Joint Expression-**A formal expression of opinion that must be approved by both houses of congress and by the president.
 * Multiple referral-**A congressional process whereby a bill may be referred to several committees.
 * Sequential Referral-**A congressional procedure by which a speaker may send a bill to a second committee after the first is finished.
 * Discharge Petition-**A device by which members of the house, after a committee has had the bill for thirty days, may petition to have it brought to the floor.
 * closed rule-**An order from the house rules committee that sets a time limit on debate; forbids a bill from being amended on the floor
 * open rule**-An order from the house rules committee that permits a bill to be amended on the floor.
 * restrictive rule**-A order from the House rules committee that permits certain kinds of amendments but not others to be made into a bill on a floor
 * quorum**-The minimum number of member who must be present for business to be conducted in congress.
 * quorum call**-A roll call in either house of Congress to see whether the minimum number of representatives required to conduct business is present.
 * Cloture rule**-A rule by the senate to end or limit debate.
 * Double-tracking**-A procedure to keep the Senate going during a filibuster in which the disputed bill is shelved temporarily so that the senate can get on with other business.
 * voice vote**-A congressional voting procedure in which members shout "yea" in approval or "nay" in disapproval.
 * Division vote**- A congressional voting procedure in which members stand and are counted.
 * Teller Vote**-A congressional voting procedure in which members pass between two tellers, the "yea" first and "nay" second.
 * Roll-call vote**-A congressional procedure that consists of members answering "yea" or "nay" to there names.
 * Pork-barrel legislation**-Legislation that gives tangible benefits to constituents in several districts of states in the hope of winning their votes in return.
 * Franking Privilege**-The ability of members to mail letters to their constituents free of charge b substituting their facsimile signature for postage.