Passing Laws: President's Role And Absence

In the United States, the chief function of Congress is to make laws. A bill is a proposal for a new law or a change to an existing law. Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee whose members will research, discuss, and make changes to the bill. The bill is then put before that chamber to be voted on. If the bill passes one body of Congress, it goes to the other body to go through a similar process of research, discussion, changes, and voting. Once both bodies vote to accept a bill, they must work out any differences between the two versions. Then both chambers vote on the same version of the bill. If it passes, they present it to the president.

Bills can be proposed by citizens

In the United States, the process of law-making is a lengthy one. All laws in the United States begin as bills. A bill is a proposal for a new law or a change to an existing law. The idea for a bill can come from a sitting member of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives, or it can be proposed by citizens. Bills can be petitioned by people or citizen groups who recommend a new or amended law to a member of Congress that represents them. Citizens who have ideas for laws can contact their Representatives to discuss their ideas. If the Representatives agree, they research the ideas and write them into bills.

The First Amendment to the Constitution guarantees the right to petition. This means that citizens or citizen groups can transmit their proposals to the Member. Similarly, state legislatures may 'memorialize' Congress to enact specified federal laws by passing resolutions to be transmitted to the House and Senate as memorials. The Member may introduce the proposal as it has been submitted or may redraft it. They may also consult with the Legislative Counsel of the House or the Senate to frame the ideas in suitable legislative language and form.

Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee whose members will research, discuss, and make changes to the bill. The bill is then put before that chamber to be voted on. Representatives discuss the bill and explain why they agree or disagree with it. Then, a reading clerk reads the bill section by section, and the Representatives recommend changes. When all changes have been made, the bill is ready to be voted on. There are three methods for voting on a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives: Viva Voce (voice vote), Division, and Recorded. If the bill passes one body of Congress, it goes to the other body to go through a similar process of research, discussion, changes, and voting. Once both bodies vote to accept a bill, they must work out any differences between the two versions. Then both chambers vote on the same version of the bill. If it passes, they present it to the president.

When a bill reaches the president, he has three choices. He can choose to sign and pass the bill, refuse to sign or veto the bill, or do nothing. If the president chooses to veto a bill, in most cases, Congress can vote to override that veto, and the bill becomes a law. However, if the president does not sign off on a bill and it remains unsigned when Congress is no longer in session, the bill will be vetoed by default, and this action cannot be overridden by Congress.

The Senate advises and consents to treaties

The process of passing a bill into law in the United States involves several steps. A bill is a proposal for a new law or a change to an existing law. The idea for a bill can come from a sitting member of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives, be proposed during their election campaign, or be petitioned by people or citizen groups. Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee, then put before that chamber to be voted on. If the bill passes one body of Congress, it goes through a similar process in the other body. Once both bodies vote to accept a bill, they must work out any differences between the two versions, after which both chambers vote on the same version of the bill. If it passes, they present it to the president.

However, the process for passing treaties is slightly different. Treaties are binding agreements between nations and become part of international law. The United States Constitution provides that the president "shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two-thirds of the Senators present concur" (Article II, section 2). This means that the Senate plays a crucial role in advising and consenting to treaties, but the president ultimately has the power to make treaties.

Historically, there has been debate over whether the power of treaty-making should reside with the legislative or executive branch. During the Constitutional Convention in 1787, delegates discussed this issue, with some arguing that the Senate should have the sole power to make treaties, while others argued that the executive branch should have this power with the advice and consent of the Senate. Ultimately, the Constitution was amended to include the clause: "The President by and with the advice and Consent of the Senate, shall have power to make Treaties, but no treaty shall be made without the consent of two-thirds of the members present."

In practice, this means that the Senate considers and either approves or rejects a resolution of ratification for a treaty. If the resolution passes, ratification takes place through the formal exchange of instruments between the United States and the foreign power(s). While the Senate typically advises and consents to treaties, in some cases, presidents have entered into international agreements without their advice and consent, known as "executive agreements." These agreements are still binding under international law, but they are not submitted to the Senate for approval.

The House of Representatives presents charges in impeachments

The process of passing a law in the United States involves the creation and approval of a bill, which can be proposed by a sitting member of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives. Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee that researches, discusses, and makes changes to it before presenting it to their chamber to be voted on. If the bill passes in one body of Congress, it goes through the same process in the other body. If it passes in both bodies, they must work out any discrepancies between the two versions and vote on the same bill. If it passes this stage, the bill is then presented to the president.

However, it is important to note that a law cannot be passed without the president's approval. The president has the power to veto, or reject, a bill that has been passed by Congress. If the president exercises this power, the bill is sent back to Congress, which can then decide to override the veto and pass the bill into law with a two-thirds vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Now, turning to the role of the House of Representatives in impeachments, the U.S. Constitution grants the House the "sole Power of Impeachment" (Article I, section 2). This means that the House of Representatives is responsible for initiating impeachment proceedings and bringing charges, or articles of impeachment, against a government official. The House has the power to impeach federal officials, including the president, vice president, and civil officers.

The impeachment process typically begins when a lawmaker introduces an impeachment resolution or when the House passes a resolution authorizing an inquiry. The Committee on the Judiciary usually has jurisdiction over impeachments, but special committees have also been appointed to investigate charges. The committee then decides whether to pursue articles of impeachment and report them to the full House. If the articles are adopted by a simple majority vote, the House has officially impeached the official.

It is important to note that impeachment does not necessarily result in removal from office. Impeachment is the process of bringing charges against a government official, and it is similar to an indictment in criminal law. Once an official has been impeached by the House, the Senate conducts an impeachment trial to determine guilt or innocence. The Senate sits as a High Court of Impeachment, considering evidence, hearing witnesses, and voting to acquit or convict the impeached official. In the case of presidential impeachment trials, the chief justice of the United States presides.

The Enrolling Clerk prepares the engrossed copy of the bill

In the United States, a bill is a proposal for a new law or a change to an existing law. The process of a bill becoming a law is a lengthy one, and it can be stopped at several stages. The idea for a bill can come from a sitting member of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives, be proposed during their election campaign, or be petitioned by citizen groups. Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee, which researches, discusses, and makes changes to it. The bill is then put before the chamber to be voted on. If the bill passes one body of Congress, it goes through the same process in the other body. If it passes both, the two bodies must work out any differences between the two versions and vote on the same version of the bill. If it passes this stage, it is sent to the President for review.

The Enrolling Clerk plays a crucial role in this process. They are responsible for preparing the engrossed copy of the bill, which is the formal reprinting of the bill in the form upon which the chamber will vote for final passage. The Enrolling Clerk ensures that the printed text of the bill matches the officially adopted language, including any amendments made on the Assembly floor. They also coordinate and distribute the bills to be printed for the Assembly, maintaining a temporary archive until they pass out of the Assembly. The Enrolling Clerk works in cooperation with the Secretary of the Senate to examine all bills and ensure they are correctly enrolled.

Once the Enrolling Clerk has prepared the engrossed copy of the bill, it is signed by the presiding officers of both chambers. The enrolled bill, or the final version of the measure agreed upon by both chambers, is then sent to the President for consideration. The Constitution provides that "Every Bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it becomes a Law, be presented to the President of the United States."

The President has the power to veto a bill, in which case it is returned to the congressional chamber in which it originated. The chamber can attempt to override the veto, but this requires a two-thirds majority vote in both chambers. If the veto is successfully overridden, the bill becomes a law without the President's signature.

The President of the Senate refers the engrossed bill to a committee

In the United States, laws are made by Congress, which is divided into two bodies: the Senate and the House of Representatives. A bill is a proposal for a new law or a change to an existing law. The idea for a bill can come from a sitting member of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives, be proposed during their election campaign, or be petitioned by citizens or citizen groups. Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives also has the power to refer a bill to the appropriate committee or committees, with the assistance of the Parliamentarian. Until 1975, the Speaker could only refer a bill to one committee. Now, the Speaker may refer a bill to multiple committees for consideration of those provisions of the bill within each committee's jurisdiction. The Speaker may place time limits on the committees' consideration of bills, but this is usually only done for additional committees that are reviewing a bill after the report of the primary committee.

Committees may interact with a bill in several ways. They markup bill texts, hold hearings to learn more about the subject, or express legislative interest. They can also report legislation out to the full chamber, recommending or disapproving of its consideration, or report an original bill. Once a bill has been through this process in one body of Congress, it goes to the other body to go through a similar process of research, discussion, changes, and voting.

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