Grab todays Agenda 72 and take out your Pocket Constitutions Look in Article I Sections 2 and 3 What officers does the Constitution mandate the House and the Senate to have What is their job ID: 441462
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Slide1
Do Now:
Grab today’s Agenda
(7:2
)
and take out your Pocket Constitutions.
Look in Article I Sections 2 and 3.
What officers does the Constitution mandate the House and the Senate to have? What is their job?Slide2
Leadership
House Leadership
Senate Leadership
Member CharacteristicsSlide3
House Leadership
Speaker of the House
The presiding officer of the House of Representatives is the Speaker of the House.
The Speaker is elected at the opening of each Congress (January every 2 years) by a vote of all the members. In reality, the majority party selects the Speaker on a straight party-line vote.
What does the Speaker do?
He/She
presides over the House when in session and sets the agenda.
Makes committee assignments and assigns bills to committees.
Because of political parties, the Speaker also speaks for the majority party in Congress. (He is not alone.)
Additional perk to being Speaker of the House: Next in line of secession after the Vice President
!Slide4
House Leadership
Speaker of the House (continued)
Notable Speakers:
Current – John Boehner (R-OH)Slide5
House Leadership
Speaker of the House (continued)
Notable Speakers:
Current – John Boehner (R-OH)
First Woman – Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)Slide6
House Leadership
Leaders and Whips
While not in the Constitution, each party (both majority and minority) chooses a leader to represent their party in the House.
The House leaders are responsible for rounding up votes, keeping count of the potential votes, and makes sure their members “toe the party line
.”Slide7
House Leadership
Leaders and Whips (continued)
Current Leaders:
Majority Leader (Republican) – Kevin McCarthy (CA)
Minority Leader (Democrat) – Nancy Pelosi (D-CA
)Slide8
House Leadership
Leaders and Whips
While not in the Constitution, each party (both majority and minority) chooses a leader to represent their party in the House.
The House leaders are responsible for rounding up votes, keeping count of the potential votes, and makes sure their members “toe the party line
.”
The leaders have an assistant called a Whip.
Whips help their leader round up votes, lean on waverers, and reports views and complaints of the party back to the leadership.Slide9
House Leadership
Leaders and Whips (continued)
Current Whips:
Majority
Whip
(Republican) –
Steve
Scalise
(LA)Slide10
House Leadership
Leaders and Whips (continued)
Current Whips:
Majority
Whip
(Republican) –
Steve
Scalise
(LA)
Minority
Whip
(Democrat) –
Steny
Hoyer
(
D-MD)Slide11
Senate
Leadership
Vice President
The Vice President presides over the Senate.
However, he/she has no power, unless there is a tie. The Vice President gets to vote if there is a tie in the Senate.
In our history, there have been 244 tie-breaking votes made by 35 different Vice Presidents.
John Adams, the first President of the Senate (because he was Washington’s Vice President), cast 29 tie-breaking votes – a record.
The last vice president to serve as tie breaker was Dick Cheney (President George W. Bush). He broke a Senate tie 8 times.
Current President of the Senate – Joe
BidenSlide12
Senate
Leadership
President Pro Tempore
Since the Vice President’s only real role in the Senate is to be the tie breaker, and ties in a Senate vote are not that common, there is no reason for the Vice President to be there.
Presiding over the Senate in his place is the President Pro Tempore.
Only other position (besides Speaker of the House) mandated by the Constitution.
Usually given to the most senior senator of the majority party.
Orrin Hatch (R-UT) is the current President Pro Tempore.Slide13
Senate
Leadership
Leaders and Whips
Leaders and Whips in the Senate are chosen in the same way they are chosen in the House.
Leaders and Whips in the Senate have the same responsibilities as the leaders and whips in the House.
Current Leaders
:Slide14
Senate
Leadership
Leaders and Whips
Leaders and Whips in the Senate are chosen in the same way they are chosen in the House.
Leaders and Whips in the Senate have the same responsibilities as the leaders and whips in the House.
Current Leaders:
Majority Leader – Mitch McConnell (R-KY
)Slide15
Senate
Leadership
Leaders and Whips
Leaders and Whips in the Senate are chosen in the same way they are chosen in the House.
Leaders and Whips in the Senate have the same responsibilities as the leaders and whips in the House.
Current Leaders:
Majority Leader – Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
Minority Leader – Harry Reid (D-NV
)Slide16
Senate
Leadership
Leaders and Whips
Leaders and Whips in the Senate are chosen in the same way they are chosen in the House.
Leaders and Whips in the Senate have the same responsibilities as the leaders and whips in the House.
Current Leaders:
Majority Leader – Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
Minority Leader – Harry Reid (D-NV)
Current Whips:
Majority Whip – John
Cornyn
(R-TX
)Slide17
Senate
Leadership
Leaders and Whips
Leaders and Whips in the Senate are chosen in the same way they are chosen in the House.
Leaders and Whips in the Senate have the same responsibilities as the leaders and whips in the House.
Current Leaders:
Majority Leader – Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
Minority Leader – Harry Reid (D-NV)
Current Whips:
Majority Whip – John
Cornyn
(R-TX)
Dick Durbin – (D-IL)Slide18
Member CharacteristicsSlide19
Member Characteristic
Average Age
What affect do you think the age of each house has on how they represent the people?
House of Representatives
Senate
Oldest Member
John
Conyer
(D-MI)
1929 (85)
Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
1933 (81)
Youngest Member
Eise
Stefanik
(R-NY)
1984 (30)
Tom Cotton (R-AR)
1977 (37)Slide20
Member Characteristics
Primary OccupationSlide21
Member Characteristics
What conclusion can you come to regarding education and Congress?Slide22
Member CharacteristicsSlide23
Member CharacteristicsSlide24
Member CharacteristicsSlide25
Member CharacteristicsSlide26
Conclusion
The Speaker of the House, the President Pro Tempore, and the President of the Senate are the only constitutionally mandated offices in Congress.
The leaders and whips in each house of Congress are chosen along party lines. Each serves as a leader in their house as well as a leader in their party.
The 114
th
Congress is more diverse
than Congress ever
was before. Still room for improvement!Slide27Slide28Slide29