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Archive for the ‘Capitol Corner’ Category
Ask An Expert: First Congress
Question: Where and when did the First Congress meet? How many days were they in session and what was their agenda? Answer: The First Congress was one of the longer ones — but then so was its agenda. It drafted the Bill of Rights, it established the Departments of Treasury,...
Ask an Expert: Rules Governing Lame Duck Sessions
Are defeated Members required to return to DC to vote in a lame-duck session? Do the new set of House leaders have any power in a lame duck session? Lima, Ohio All current Members of Congress, whether defeated or not, retain their position and the obligations of representation until the...
Ask an Expert: How Does the House Ethics Process Work?
Question: In light of the recent charges against Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY) and Maxine Waters (D-CA) I would like to know how does the House Ethics process work? Highland Falls, NY Answer: The House and Senate have the authority to discipline their Members for ethical violations, under Article I, Section...
Ask an Expert: Replacing a House Speaker
Is an ousted Speaker supposed to resign from office? When does the new leadership come into place? Evanston, IL The new leadership assumes office, along with all Members of Congress, when they take the oath of office on the opening day of the new Congress, now scheduled for January 3,...
Ask an Expert: A 50-50 Senate?
If the Senate is split 50-50, who is in control? Has there ever been an even split? Wilmington, DE If the voters in November choose to elect 50 Republicans and 50 Democrats to the U.S. Senate, Democrats would be considered the Majority because they are the party of the Vice...
Ask an Expert: What Does the Speaker Do?
If we elect a new Congress, there will also be a new Speaker. Can you explain how the Speaker is chosen and what the duties are for that office? Durham, N.C. The Speaker of the House is a powerful position. The House Speaker is both the presiding officer of the House of Representatives and the [...]
Ask An Expert: Filling the Tree
What does it mean to “fill the amendment tree” in the Senate? Some Senators said that’s why they voted against bringing “Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell” to the floor for a vote yesterday (Sept. 21, 2010). Ames, Iowa The “amendment tree” is the term used to describe the diagram which keeps track...
Ask an Expert: What Do Congressmen Do?
What do Members of Congress actually do besides vote? What are their specific duties? Milwaukee, Wisconsin That’s an important question given the fact that we expect many new men and women to assume the role of Member of Congress when the new Congress convenes in January. There is no formal...
The Pledge of Allegiance
Do Members of Congress say the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag? Chestertown, Maryland Yes. But only recently. The Senate has opened its daily session with the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag since June 24, 1999. The House began reciting the Pledge as part of its daily session eleven...
Capitol Corner: The Congressional Oath
Do Members of Congress have to take an oath-of-office like the President? What do they pledge? Columbus, OH Yes. The Constitution (Article VI, clause 3) requires that Senators and Representatives take an oath of office to support the Constitution. The specific language of the oath has changed several times since...