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What is the Preamble of the Constitution?
An introduction listing six reasons for writing the Constitution.
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What are the six reasons listed in the Preamble?
- to form a more perfect union
- establish justice
- insure domestic tranquility
- provide for a common defense
- promote the general welfare
- secure the blessings of liberty for ourselves and our posterity.
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What are the three branches of out federal government?
- legislative
- executive
- judicial
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Where in the Constitution do we find information about the legislative branch?
Article I; amendments 16, 17, 20, and 27
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What is the legislative branch?
Congress; law making body of our government
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What composes our congress?
two houses; the House of Representatives and the Senate
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How is the number of members in the House of Rep. determined?
Determined by the population of each state
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how many representatives are there?
435
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Approximately how many people does each member of the House of rep. represent?
about 620,000
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why does each member of the House of Rep. represent so many people?
Congress passed a law limiting the number of representatives to 435 in 1929, so that the House of Rep did not grow to an unmanageable size.
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How do representatives gain office?
They are elected by the people of their district.
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What are the qualifications to be a member of the House of Rep.?
- 25 years of age
- Citizen of the US for the past 7 years
- Living in the district he represents
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What are voter requirements in most states?
- Must be a citizen of the U.S. and the state they live in
- be 18 years of age
- registered to vote
- not be incarcerated, on parole, or on probation for a felony charge
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How does the gov't know the population of each state?
a census is taken every ten years
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How long is a term for a member of the House of Rep.?
two years
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What happens if a representative dies in office or must vacate their office?
The governor of their state calls for a special election
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Who are some of the officers of the House?
Speaker, chaplain, Sergeant at Arms. the Clerk, and the Parliamentarian
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How are the officers of the House chosen?
They are nominated by a caucus of the majority party and elected by members of the House
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How many members are in the Senate?
100, two from each state
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what are the qualifications to be elected a senator?
- 35 years of age
- citizen of the USA for nine years
- live in the state you will represent
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Have senators always been elected officials?
No, senators were originally selected by each state's legislatures. Changed in 1913.
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How long is a senator's term in office?
six years, but only 1/3 of the senate is up for election at one time, every two years.
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What happens if a senator dies or is removed from office?
The governor with permission of the state legislature will appoint a temp. senator or call for a special election.
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Who is the chairman of the Senate?
The vice-president
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Can the Vice-President vote in the Senate?
When he acts as the President of the Senate to break a tie
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Who acts as the Chairman of the senate if the VP is unable to do so?
The president pro tempore of the senate
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What are some of the officials of the senate?
chaplain, Sergeant at Arms, the Clerk, and the secretary
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How are these officials selected?
They are elected by the senators
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Who does the impeaching (accusing)?
the House of Representative has the sole power of impeachment
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Who tries the impeachment trial?
The senate has the sole power of trying impeachment trials
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What is a quorum in the senate needed for trying impeachment cases?
two-thirds of senators present
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Who may be impeached?
Any public official who is not in either house of congress
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How can a member of congress be removed?
two-thirds of votes of the house they are part of
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What is the punishment given to an impeached official?
Removal from office and/or prohibited from every holding another office
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What happens if the impeached official committed a crime?
they may be tried in a regular court
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Who presides over the impeachment trial of the POTUS?
Since the VP is not allowed, due to conflict of interest, the chief justice presides.
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When are congressmen elected?
The Tuesday after the first Monday in November in even number years
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When do congressmen take office?
Jan 3, following an election
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Who judges of the qualifications of those elected to congress?
each house judges its newly elected members and may refuse by a majority vote to let an unqualified person take their seat.
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What is a quorum for business in each house?
a majority of members is a quorum for business
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How do we know what happens in congress?
each house keeps a journal of what it does each day and the information from these journals is published in the Congressional Record each day.
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Is everything placed in the Congressional Record?
No, somethings may be kept secret if determined necessary.
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Do both houses always meet at the same time?
yes, the constitution requires both houses to attend at the same time and place.
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How often must congress meet?
They are required to meet at least once a year but usually hold regular meetings 9 months a year.
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What is congressional immunity?
No congressman may be arrested in or going to or from either house of congress except for treason, felony, or breach of peace. Also they cannot be sued for what they say during a session of congress.
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Can a congressman hold other offices while a congressman?
No, Congressman can only be a congressman
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How does a bill, proposed law, become a law?
It must be passed by both houses of congress and be signed by the POTUS or recieve 2/3 vote from each house after a veto.
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What happens if the president vetoes, refuses to sign, a bill?
The bill returns to the house where it originates. If the bill receives 2/3 vote from both houses it becomes a law.
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What happens if the president does nothing within the ten day requirement?
The bill becomes law unless congress adjourns during that ten day period.
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Where do bills originate?
Bills may originate in both houses. Tax bills must be originated in the House of Representatives.
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Can a house amend a bill from the other?
Yes but once amended it must return to the house where it originated
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Is the president required to view resolutions passed by congress?
- Yes, unless it is a
- resolution to adjourn,
- a non-legislative resolution,
- a joint resolution for proposing an amendment to the constitution
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What are some the expressed powers of Congress?
to tax, borrow money, regulate commerce, make naturalization and bankruptcy laws, coin money, fix the standards of wights and measures, punish counterfeiters, to establish post offices, and post roads, to make copyright and patent laws, to establish federal courts, punish crimes at sea, declare war, raise and support armed forces, organize and regulate states' militias, and to control DC and all US Gov't property in the states.
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What implied powers mean?
Congress, due to the elastic clause, has the power to create laws needed to to see its powers are carried out.
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what powers are forbidden to Congress?
take away writs of habea corpus, to pass ex post facto laws, bills of attainder, to tax exports, give advantages to ports of any state, tax goods moving between states, withdraw money from the treasury without an act of Congress, fail to account for and make public all money received and spent, grant titles of nobility
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what powers are forbidden to the states?
make treaties, alliances, or confederations, to grant letters of marque and reprisal, coin or make money, to back money with anything other than gold or silver, pass bills of attainder,
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