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Posts Tagged ‘Ask an Expert’
Ask an Expert: Size of the House and Senate
Question: Why do we have 100 Senators and 435 Members of the House? Can these numbers be changed? Minneapolis, MN Answer: The number of Senators is set by the Constitution and cannot be changed without amending that document. The size of the Senate is established by Article I, section 3...
Ask an Expert: Constitutionality of Legislation
Question: Is there any type of formal procedure within Congress that evaluates the constitutionality of proposed legislation? Columbus, OH Answer: There is no formal procedure on behalf of Congress overall to determine the constitutionality of proposed bills. During floor debate in both the House and Senate, the constitutionality of a...
Ask an Expert: Conference Committee Procedures
Question: I have been hearing a lot about conference committees because of the Dodd-Frank Financial Overhaul bill. How do conference committees work? Decatur, AL Answer: There are no formal rules governing conference committee procedures. Because they are intended to be flexible negotiating sessions to iron out differences between House and...
Ask an Expert: Bill Types
Question: What is the difference between a “bill,” a “resolution,” “a joint resolution,” and a “concurrent resolution?” Haverford, PA Answer: The key distinction among them is that two make law, and two don’t. The measures that make law are bills and joint resolutions, while concurrent and simple resolutions do...
Ask an Expert: Career Path to Congress
Question: Despite all the turmoil in Washington today, my 11 year old son has political aspirations of one day serving in Congress. To meet this goal, what should his career path look like? Marietta, GA Answer: There are as many different career paths that lead to Congress as there are...
Ask an Expert: GOP Origins
Question: What does G.O.P. stand for when referring to Republicans? Santa Barbara, CA Answer: It stands for “Grand Old Party.” According to the Republican National Committee, the term originated in the late 1870′s when publications such as The Cincinnati Commercial, The Boston Post, and The New York Herald, among others,...
Ask an Expert: How do I Hold my Elected Officials Accountable?
Question: If the President and/or Congress breaks the law, what redress do the people or opposing party have? W. Answer: You are asking an important question – how do we hold our elected officials accountable? Elections are the ultimate form of accountability in the hands of citizens. By electing new...
Ask an Expert: House and Senate Differences
Question: What is the essential difference between the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives? Perth Amboy, NJ Answer: The design of the U.S. Congress is consistent with the basic principle of government endorsed by the framers of the U.S. Constitution: that dividing government into units which must share power...
Ask an Expert: Chaplains
Question: Have the House and Senate always had chaplains? Isn’t having one in Congress a violation of the separation of church and state? Houston, Texas Answer: There have been persistent critics over the years who have charged the practice of official chaplains violates the concept of separation of church and...
Ask an Expert: Statue of Freedom
Question: What is the story behind the statue on top of the Capitol dome? Answer: When Members and visitors enter the Capitol, they do so under the watchful eye of the Statue of Freedom. She faces East rather than toward the National Mall and Monuments because the East Front of...