AP GOV - Executive Branch and Legislative Branch

2.1 Congress: The Senate and the House of Representatives

❖The United States Congress is one of the world’s most democratic governing bodies.

❖Defined in Article I of the Constitution, Congress consists of the Senate and the House of

Representatives

❖Its 535 elected members and roughly 30,000 support staff operate under designated rules

to carry out the legislative process

Structure of Congress

❖After the Revolutionary War and the failure of the Articles of Confederation, creating a

republican form of government that reflected citizen and elite views was of top concern

for Americans at the Constitutional Convention.

❖For that reason, the framers designed Congress as the most democratic and chief

policy-making branch.

❖The First United States Congress opened in 1789 in New York City

Article I

❖The Bicameral legislature resulted from a dispute at the Constitutional Convention

between the large and small states

❖The Great Compromise dictated that representation in the House would be based on

population

❖Article I’s provision for a census every 10 years assures states a proportional allotment of

these seats

❖Together, the members of the House represent the entire public

❖The Senate, in contrast, has two members from each state, granting states equal

representation in that chamber

❖With this structure, the framers created a republic that represented both the citizenry at

large and the states

❖The framers designed each house to have a different character and separate

responsibilities

❖Senators are somewhat insulated from public opinion by their longer terms, and they have

more constitutional responsibilities.

❖Because they represent an entire state, senators have a more diverse constituency

❖Smaller congressional districts give a more intimate constituent-representative

relationship.

❖Originally senators were elected by state legislatures in a form of elite democracy, but

that changed with the 17th Amendment in 1913

❖The requirement that both chambers must approve legislation helps prevent the passage

of rash laws