Congress greatly strengthened its budgetary powers by the Budget and Impoundment Control Act of , which provided for a congressional budget, created new committees to consider overall budget outlays, and established the Congressional Budget Office. The law also limited the president's power to rescind or impound the spending of money appropriated by Congress. Initiatives in foreign policy usually are taken by the president, but Congress is also involved in the making of foreign policy through its power to tax and spend, to finance foreign policies, to declare war, and to ratify treaties which require the approval of two-thirds of the Senate.
Congress placed unusual limitations on the conduct of foreign relations in when it passed the War Powers Act, restricting the president's authority to commit U. In various other ways, Congress influences the work of the executive branch.
Senate confirmation is required for presidential nominations of cabinet officials, ambassadors, federal judges, and certain other officials. Congressional committees investigate executive agencies and officials and regularly review the administrative implementation of congressionally enacted programs. Ultimately, Congress has the power to remove the president from office through impeachment, a process in which the House investigates alleged wrongdoing and votes on the charges, and the Senate tries the president on these charges.
In , Andrew Johnson was impeached by the House and tried by the Senate, narrowly escaping conviction. Richard M. Nixon resigned in after the House Judiciary Committee recommended impeachment charges.
Bill Clinton was impeached December on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice but won acquittal in the Senate by a comfortable margin. From time to time Congress sets up special committees to investigate subjects that do not fall directly in the jurisdiction of its standing committees. Its power of investigation is considered one of the essential functions of Congress.
Special committees have been created to investigate criminal charges against members, to study social and economic problems, to probe into unethical political activities, and to publicize controversial issues. Famous special committees were the House Committee on Un-American Activities, set up in to investigate fascist, Communist, and other extremist political organizations, the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities commonly known as the Watergate committee , set up in , and the House and Senate select committees investigating the Iran-contra affair in In the s, Congress accelerated its use of the legislative veto, a device originated in the s by which provisions were written into a law requiring the executive to seek congressional approval before taking actions authorized under that law.
By the s, legislative veto provisions had been included in more than laws, including the War Powers Act. This practice came under mounting attack from presidents and other executive branch officials, and eventually it was challenged in the federal courts. In the U. Supreme Court ruled that the legislative veto was an unconstitutional intrusion by the legislature into the executive sphere.
A line-item veto, by which a president could veto isolated portions of a law, was enacted by Congress in but ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in Congress and the Public Members of Congress live and work under great pressure. House members, whose terms are only two years, must start planning for their next campaign as soon as they are elected to the first one. Members commonly travel weekly to their districts, maintain staff and offices there, send newsletters to their constituents, and campaign vigorously for reelection even when their districts are considered "safe" seats.
They make extensive use of free postal services and the printed reports of the Congressional Record to show their constituents that they are active in their behalf. Members are also constantly canvassed by lobbyists representing special-interest groups. Under pressure from the public to open up its deliberations, the House in authorized television coverage of its proceedings on C-SPAN, the public-affairs network.
The Senate followed suit in In the early s, Congress also took up reform proposals relating to campaign finance and lobbyists'contributions. In the House banking facility was closed after revelations of members' overdrafts.
Bibliography: Arnold, R. Calvin, eds. Download the PDF from here. Create a List. List Name Save. Rename this List. Rename this list. List Name Delete from selected List.
Save to. Save to:. Save Create a List. Create a list. Save Back. Congress of the United States. Grades 6—8 , 9— The Congress of the United States, the nation's lawmaking body, is made up of two houses, the House of Representatives and the Senate.
The main power of Congress, as set forth in the U. Constitution, is to make laws that, when signed by the president, become the law of the land, governing American life. Congress also has the responsibility to determine that public policies are being administered by the government in accordance with the law and as efficiently and effectively as possible.
The news reporting of congressional hearings, debates, and other activities provides citizens with much information about what their government is doing. Congress sometimes is required to perform specialized judicial and electoral functions. Share this page Follow Ballotpedia. What's on your ballot? Jump to: navigation , search. Senate , "Salaries," accessed May 29, Changes in Net Worth of U. Categories : Sessions of Congress Unique congress pages.
Voter information What's on my ballot? Where do I vote? How do I register to vote? How do I request a ballot? When do I vote? When are polls open? Who Represents Me? Congress special elections Governors State executives State legislatures Ballot measures State judges Municipal officials School boards. How do I update a page? Election results. These new members of Congress defeated incumbents or competed for open seats as a result of appointments to state and executive offices, resignations, and retirements.
Here are some facts about the new members of Congress. The th Congress convened on January 3, , and concluded on January 3, Both chambers were expected to be in session for fewer days in than they were in In , the Senate was scheduled to exceed its average number of days in session by three. The House was scheduled to meet for 10 fewer days than its average. Click here to view the calendar for the first session of the th Congress. After Democrats took control of the House in the th Congress, they voted to change some rules from the previous session of Congress when Republicans were in control.
Some of the changes appear below. A full explanation of the rules changes can be viewed here. Members of the th United States Congress introduced 16, pieces of legislation, and of those received a vote.
Ballotpedia identifies which of those are key votes —votes that help citizens understand where their legislators stand on major policy issues. Ballotpedia features , encyclopedic articles written and curated by our professional staff of editors, writers, and researchers.
Click here to contact our editorial staff, and click here to report an error. Click here to contact us for media inquiries, and please donate here to support our continued expansion. Share this page Follow Ballotpedia. What's on your ballot? Jump to: navigation , search. Changes in Net Worth of U. Categories : Sessions of Congress Unique congress pages. Voter information What's on my ballot? Where do I vote? How do I register to vote? How do I request a ballot?
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