Congress Structure & Roles

2. The Organization of Congress The framers of the Constitution viewed Congress as "the first branch of government." In The Federalist No. 51, James Madison wrote, "In republican government, the legislative authority necessarily predominates." For that reason, the Constitution addresses the structure and powers of Congress first, ahead of the other two branches.

A Bicameral Legislature: The House and Senate The Constitution establishes Congress as a bicameral legislature, consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Although both chambers serve as lawmaking bodies, they are different in many respects.

The framers expected the House, with its larger size and more frequent elections, to act as the "people's body." It was meant to reflect the more volatile, democratic tendencies in American society. The Senate, whose members serve longer terms and were originally chosen by state legislatures, was meant to be a more elite chamber that would act as a steadying influence on Congress.

George Washington aptly described the Senate's role while dining with Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson wondered why the framers had added a second house to the legislative branch. Washington asked him, "Why did you pour that coffee into your saucer?"

"To cool it," Jefferson replied.

"Even so," Washington said, "we pour legislation into the senatorial saucer to cool it."

In 1913, with the ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment, the Senate became elected directly by voters instead of by state legislatures. Today, unlike the bicameral legislatures in most countries, the two houses of Congress are equal in power. Even so, the houses are clearly different, and the Senate still serves to "cool" legislation coming from the House.

Leadership Roles in the House Since the mid-1800s, Congress has based its organization on the two major political parties. In each house, the majority party—the one with the most seats—controls the agenda. Its members take the top leadership positions. The minority party, however, can have a significant impact in Congress, in part by choosing able leaders.

There are three leadership roles in the House: the speaker, the majority and minority leaders, and the whips.

Speaker of the House. The House speaker has more power and prestige than any other leader in Congress. The speaker is nominated by the majority party but wins the position through a vote of the entire House. The speaker presides over the House, assigns bills to committees, and appoints members to special committees and commissions. The speaker's most important function, however, may be deciding what bills will be debated by the full House and when. As former speaker Thomas P. (Tip) O'Neill said, "The power of the speaker of the House is the power of scheduling."

The Capitol building in Washington, D.C., houses the U.S. Congress. Construction on the Capitol began in 1793, but the building has been substantially remodeled and expanded since then. New wings for the House and Senate were completed in 1868, after the Civil War. The Capitol building in Washington, D.C., houses the U.S. Congress. Construction on the Capitol began in 1793, but the building has been substantially remodeled and expanded since then. New wings for the House and Senate were completed in 1868, after the Civil War.

Majority and minority leaders. In the House, the majority and minority leaders are elected by their respective parties. Their duty is to manage legislation on the House floor, the large chamber in the Capitol where House members debate and vote on bills. The majority leader is the majority party's second in command. The minority leader is the minority party's overall leader and main strategist. Both the majority leader and the minority leader play important roles in the House.

Majority and minority whips. These assistant floor leaders are responsible for keeping the leadership informed and persuading party members to vote along party lines. The term whip was first used in the British Parliament. In England, a whip is the person who keeps the dogs under control during a fox hunt.

Leadership Roles in the Senate Leaders in the Senate have similar roles to those in the House. They are responsible for the functioning of their chamber. They also work to build support for legislation that advances their party's core policies. The leadership positions in the Senate are the president, majority and minority leaders, and whips.

President of the Senate. The president of the Senate is the official presiding officer of this body. The Constitution assigns this position to the vice president of the United States. In general, however, the vice president appears on the Senate floor only for ceremonies or to break a tie vote.

President of the Senate pro tempore. The president of the Senate pro tempore is the senior senator of the majority party and may preside over Senate sessions when the vice president is not there. The term pro tempore means "for the time being." Normally, however, neither the vice president nor the president pro tempore presides. Most often, other members of the majority party take turns presiding as the Senate conducts its day-to-day business.

Majority leader. The majority leader serves as the spokesperson for the party that holds the most seats in the Senate. This leader, however, lacks the speaker of the House's ability to single-handedly make things happen on the floor. The Senate majority leader must work with party members and the minority leader to move legislation to a vote.

In 2007, Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) became the first woman to serve as speaker of the House, making her the highestranking female politician at the time. Though she lost control when Republicans took the House in 2011, she was reelected to the position in 2019. In 2007, Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) became the first woman to serve as speaker of the House, making her the highestranking female politician at the time. Though she lost control when Republicans took the House in 2011, she was reelected to the position in 2019.

Minority leader. This leader helps shape minority party policy and devise strategies for stopping majority-sponsored bills opposed by the minority party. The minority leader also works with the Senate majority leader to schedule business on the Senate floor.

Majority and minority whips. The main duty of these assistant floor leaders is to stand in for the majority and minority leaders. Their other duties vary, depending on the needs of their party leaders.

The Congressional Committee System Individual legislators do not have the time or expertise to thoroughly understand all the bills that come before Congress. Instead, they rely on a division of labor, entrusting most of the work of lawmaking to various committees. Congress has five kinds of committees, some permanent and others temporary.

Standing committees. House and Senate standing committees are permanent committees that handle most legislative business. Each standing committee has its own broad area of responsibility, such as homeland security or foreign affairs. In addition to studying legislation, standing committees have another key duty: they gather information through hearings and investigations. Committee hearings are one way for Congress to monitor the policies of government agencies.

Subcommittees. Most standing committees also have several smaller subcommittees. The subcommittees reviewed proposed legislation. The vast majority of bills introduced in Congress each year "die" in committee.

Select or special committees. Both the House and the Senate sometimes form a select committee or special committee to investigate specific problems. These committees are usually temporary. Although they do not review legislation, special and select committees may make recommendations to Congress based on their investigations.

Standing committees and their subcommittees do much of the legislative work of Congress. Joint committees oversee the operations of the Library of Congress and the Government Printing Office, as well as researching economic and tax policies. Standing committees and their subcommittees do much of the legislative work of Congress. Joint committees oversee the operations of the Library of Congress and the Government Printing Office, as well as researching economic and tax policies.

Joint committees. Congress has a small number of permanent joint committees made up of members of both the House and the Senate. Joint committees deal with issues of interest to both chambers. The Joint Committee on the Library, for example, oversees the operations of the Library of Congress. The Library of Congress is the research arm of Congress and is home to one of the world's largest libraries. Its collections include millions of books, photographs, documents, recordings, maps, and manuscripts.

Conference committees. A conference committee is a temporary kind of joint committee. It is formed to iron out differences between two versions of a bill passed by the House and Senate. Both chambers must pass identical versions of a bill for it to become law.

Staff and Support Agencies Members of Congress do not face the rigors of committee work alone. If you have ever seen a congressional committee in action, you may have noticed the people sitting behind the committee members. You may have seen them hand a document to a member or whisper in a member's ear. These people are employed as congressional staffers, or staff members. Some work for the committee at large, while others belong to a member's personal staff.

The House and Senate each employ around 1,000 committee staffers to support the work of their various committees. This staff includes clerical workers as well as experts in the subject area of a particular committee. The number of personal staff a Congress member has varies. Representatives average about 14 staffers apiece, while senators average about 39 staff members each. Personal staff members perform a variety of tasks, from answering constituents' questions to writing speeches and drafting bills.

The number of people working on personal and committee staffs has grown over time. Members of Congress rely on staffers to help them do their jobs. But some critics suggest that staffs have grown too large. The number of people working on personal and committee staffs has grown over time. Members of Congress rely on staffers to help them do their jobs. But some critics suggest that staffs have grown too large.

In addition to staff, several support agencies provide Congress with the information it needs to do its job. The Congressional Research Service helps by researching policy questions. The General Accountability Office checks the financial accounts of government programs. The Congressional Budget Office provides House and Senate budget committees with data and analyses that aid the budget process. It also provides other committees with cost estimates related to proposed legislation.

Caucuses and Coalitions Members of Congress have also formed a number of unofficial groups to pursue particular goals and interests. For example, there are more than 300 informal caucuses in Congress. Often, members of a caucus need not belong to the same party or even the same chamber. The National Women's Political Caucus, for example, is a bipartisan group of women in Congress. Likewise, the Congressional Black Caucus is open to all African American members of Congress. Groups like the Climate Change Caucus and the Congressional Nanotechnology Caucus attract lawmakers who have an interest in specific subjects.

Other unofficial groups have formed within one political party or chamber of Congress. The Blue Dog Coalition, for example, is a group of conservative and moderate House Democrats. The House Tea Party Caucus brings together House Republicans dedicated to advancing a conservative agenda.

Reading Check

Reading Check Section 2 - The Organization of Congress Score: - Drag and match the leadership role to the corresponding duties.

President of the Senate Speaker of the House Majority whip Majority and minority leaders President of the Senate pro tempore Minority leader Submit Restart Notes Unit/Lesson:

Lesson 11 - Lawmakers and Legislatures Section:

Section 2 - The Organization of Congress (p. 201 - 205)

1. Rewrite this sentence by filling in the blanks to complete the analogy:

The Senate "cools" legislation from the House like a _________ cools ________.

Then list some important differences between the House and the Senate that might allow the Senate to "cool" legislation from the House. Start typing here... Show Answer Key

Come up with another analogy for the relationship between the House and Senate. Once you have done so, create a simple illustration for your analogy. Use the same structure from the question above. The Senate "cools" legislation from the House like a ________ cools ___________. previewPaint brush iconDraw Show Answer Key

2. Which leadership position in Congress has the most power? List some specific powers of that position. Start typing here... Show Answer Key

3. Create a simple table listing the five types of committees in Congress. Include these things in your table for each type of committee:

• one or two of the committee’s important functions

• a concrete example of that type of committee (if possible) Congressional Committee Important Functions Examples Show Answer Key

Create an appropriate symbol for each of the five types of committees in Congress. previewPaint brush iconDraw Show Answer Key

4. Sketch a simple graph showing what has happened to the size of House and Senate staff since 1930. Then list two or three important jobs congressional staffers do. previewPaint brush iconDraw Show Answer Key

5. Suppose you are a member of Congress and want to create a new caucus. Come up with a creative name for your caucus, and explain what issues or topics your caucus would focus on. Start typing here... Show Answer Key