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==Role== ===Powers=== {{Main|Powers of the United States Congress}} ====Overview==== [[File:USCurrency Federal Reserve.jpg|thumb|alt=$100,000-dollar bill.|Congress's [[power of the purse]], which authorizes it to tax citizens, spend money, and print currency]] [[File:USS Bon Homme Richard (CVA-31) underway in the Gulf of Tonkin on 2 November 1964.jpg|thumb| alt=Aircraft carrier at sea.|Congress authorizes defense spending, such as the purchase of the [[USS Bon Homme Richard (CV-31)|USS ''Bon Homme Richard'' (CV-31)]]]] [[File:ThompsonWatergate.jpg|thumb|alt=Seated suits behind a microphone.|The [[Senate Watergate Committee]], investigating President [[Richard Nixon|Nixon]] and the [[Watergate scandal]] from 1973 to 1974]] [[Article One of the United States Constitution|Article One of the Constitution]] creates and sets forth the structure and most of the powers of Congress. Sections One through Six describe how Congress is elected and gives each House the power to create its own structure. Section Seven lays out the process for creating laws, and Section Eight enumerates numerous powers. Section Nine is a list of powers Congress does not have, and Section Ten enumerates powers of the state, some of which may only be granted by Congress.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Epps|first1=Garrett|title=American Epic: Reading the U.S. Constitution |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=af8TDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA9 |date=2013|publisher=Oxford|location=New York|isbn=978-0-19-938971-1|page=9}}</ref> [[Constitutional amendment]]s have granted Congress additional powers. Congress also has [[implied powers]] derived from the Constitution's [[Necessary and Proper Clause]]. Congress has authority over financial and budgetary policy through the enumerated power to "lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States". There is vast authority over budgets, although analyst Eric Patashnik suggested that much of Congress's power to manage the budget has been lost when the welfare state expanded since "entitlements were institutionally detached from Congress's ordinary legislative routine and rhythm."<ref name=tws2010Sep11t14dd2>{{cite news | author= Eric Patashnik | title= The American Congress: The Building of Democracy | publisher= Houghton Mifflin Company | pages= 671–2 | year= 2004 | isbn= 0-618-17906-2 | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=_MGEIIwT5pUC&q=Zelizer+Julian+2004+American+Congress+The+Building+of+Democracy | access-date= September 11, 2010 | archive-date= October 19, 2017 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171019131704/https://books.google.com/books?id=_MGEIIwT5pUC | url-status= live }}</ref> Another factor leading to less control over the budget was a [[Keynesian economics|Keynesian]] belief that balanced budgets were unnecessary.<ref name=tws2010Sep11t14dd2/> The [[Sixteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Sixteenth Amendment]] in 1913 extended congressional power of taxation to include [[income tax]]es without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration.<ref name="davidson-p18">Davidson (2006), p. 18.</ref> The Constitution also grants Congress the exclusive power to appropriate funds, and this ''[[power of the purse]]'' is one of Congress's primary [[Separation of powers under the United States Constitution#Checks and balances|checks]] on the executive branch.<ref name="davidson-p18"/> Congress can borrow money on the credit of the United States, [[Commerce Clause|regulate commerce]] with foreign nations and among the states, and coin money.<ref>{{cite news | title= Congress and the Dollar | newspaper= New York Sun | date= May 30, 2008 | url= http://www.nysun.com/editorials/congress-and-the-dollar/78978/ | access-date= September 11, 2010 | archive-date= August 1, 2020 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200801071404/https://www.nysun.com/editorials/congress-and-the-dollar/78978/ | url-status= live }}</ref> Generally, the Senate and the House of Representatives have equal legislative authority, although only the House may originate revenue and [[Appropriations bill (United States)|appropriation bills]].<ref name=tws2010Sep11bb/> Congress has an important role in [[defense (military)|national defense]], including the exclusive power to declare war, to raise and maintain the [[Military of the United States|armed forces]], and to make rules for the military.<ref>{{cite news | author= Kate Zernike | title= Senate Passes Detainee Bill Sought by Bush | newspaper= The New York Times | date= September 28, 2006 | url= https://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/28/washington/29detaincnd.html | access-date= September 11, 2010 | archive-date= January 3, 2020 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200103000202/https://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/28/washington/29detaincnd.html | url-status= live }}</ref> Some critics charge that the [[executive branch]] has usurped Congress's constitutionally defined task of declaring war.<ref>{{cite news | title=References about congressional war declaring power}} *{{cite news| author=Dana D. Nelson| title=The 'unitary executive' question| newspaper=Los Angeles Times| date=October 11, 2008| url=https://latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-nelson11-2008oct11,0,224216.story| access-date=October 4, 2009| archive-date=January 14, 2021| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214433/https://www.latimes.com/opinion/la-oe-nelson11-2008oct11-story.html| url-status=live}} *{{cite news| author=Steve Holland| title=Obama revelling in U.S. power unseen in decades| agency=Reuters UK| date=May 1, 2009| url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE5406CF20090501| access-date=September 28, 2009| archive-date=January 3, 2011| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110103100212/http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE5406CF20090501| url-status=dead}} *{{cite news| title=The Law: The President's War Powers| newspaper=Time| date=June 1, 1970| url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,878290,00.html| access-date=September 28, 2009| archive-date=August 22, 2013| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130822171512/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,878290,00.html| url-status=dead}}</ref> While historically presidents initiated the process for going to war, they asked for and received formal war declarations from Congress for the [[War of 1812]], the [[Mexican–American War]], the [[Spanish–American War]], [[World War I]], and [[World War II]],<ref name=tws28sep07>{{cite news| title=The Law: The President's War Powers| newspaper=Time| date=June 1, 1970| url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,878290,00.html| access-date=September 28, 2009| archive-date=August 22, 2013| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130822171512/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,878290,00.html| url-status=dead}}</ref> although President [[Theodore Roosevelt]]'s military move into Panama in 1903 did not get congressional approval.<ref name="tws28sep07"/> In the early days after the [[Korean War|North Korean invasion of 1950]], President [[Harry S. Truman|Truman]] described the American response as a "police action".<ref>{{cite web | url=http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/index.asp?document=594 | title=The President's News Conference of June 29, 1950 | publisher=Teachingamericanhistory.org | date=June 29, 1950 | access-date=December 20, 2010 | archive-date=December 26, 2010 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101226063925/http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/index.asp?document=594 | url-status=dead }}</ref> According to ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine in 1970, "U.S. presidents [had] ordered troops into position or action without a formal congressional declaration a total of 149 times."<ref name="tws28sep07"/> In 1993, [[Michael Kinsley]] wrote that "Congress's war power has become the most flagrantly disregarded provision in the Constitution," and that the "real erosion [of Congress's war power] began after World War{{spaces}}II."<ref>{{cite news| author=Michael Kinsley| title=The Case for a Big Power Swap| newspaper=Time| date=March 15, 1993| url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,977990,00.html| access-date=September 28, 2009| archive-date=August 13, 2013| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130813070158/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,977990,00.html| url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| title=Time Essay: Where's Congress?| newspaper=Time| date=May 22, 1972| url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,879072-1,00.html| access-date=September 28, 2009| archive-date=May 21, 2013| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130521074302/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,879072-1,00.html| url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | title= The Law: The President's War Powers | newspaper= Time | date= June 1, 1970 | url= http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,878290,00.html | access-date= September 11, 2010 | archive-date= August 22, 2013 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130822171512/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,878290,00.html | url-status= dead }}</ref> Disagreement about the extent of congressional versus presidential power regarding war has been present periodically throughout the nation's history.<ref>{{cite news | title= The proceedings of congress.; senate. | newspaper= The New York Times | date= June 28, 1862 | url= https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0C12FC345B1B7493CAAB178DD85F468684F9 | archive-url= https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20171010131908/http://www.nytimes.com/1862/06/28/news/the-proceedings-of-congress-senate.html |url-status = dead| archive-date= October 10, 2017 | access-date= September 11, 2010 }}</ref> Congress can establish post offices and post roads, issue patents and [[copyright]]s, fix standards of weights and measures, establish [[Inferior courts of the United States|Courts inferior to the Supreme Court]], and "make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof". [[Article Four of the United States Constitution|Article Four]] gives Congress the power to admit new states into the Union. One of Congress's foremost non-legislative functions is the power to [[Congressional investigation|investigate]] and oversee the executive branch.<ref>{{cite news | author= David S. Broder | title= Congress's Oversight Offensive | newspaper= The Washington Post | date= March 18, 2007 | url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/16/AR2007031601989.html | access-date= September 11, 2010 | archive-date= May 1, 2011 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110501115602/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/16/AR2007031601989.html | url-status= live }}</ref> [[Congressional oversight]] is usually delegated to [[United States congressional committee|committees]] and is facilitated by Congress's subpoena power.<ref>{{cite news | author= Thomas Ferraro | title= House committee subpoenas Rice on Iraq | work= Reuters | date= April 25, 2007 | url= https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN2518728220070425 | access-date= September 11, 2010 | archive-date= January 14, 2021 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214442/https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN2518728220070425 | url-status= live }}</ref> Some critics have charged that Congress has in some instances failed to do an adequate job of [[Congressional oversight|overseeing]] the other branches of government. In the [[Plame affair]], critics including Representative [[Henry A. Waxman]] charged that Congress was not doing an adequate job of oversight in this case.<ref>{{cite news|author=James Gerstenzang |title=Bush claims executive privilege in Valerie Plame Wilson case |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=July 16, 2008 |url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/presidentbush/2008/07/cheney-plame-ag.html |access-date=October 4, 2009 |url-status = dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080801095524/http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/presidentbush/2008/07/cheney-plame-ag.html |archive-date=August 1, 2008 }}</ref> There have been concerns about congressional oversight of executive actions such as [[warrantless wiretapping]], although others respond that Congress did investigate the legality of presidential decisions.<ref>{{cite news | author1=Elizabeth B. Bazan |author2=Jennifer K. Elsea |author3=legislative attorneys | title=Presidential Authority to Conduct Warrantless Electronic Surveillance to Gather Foreign Intelligence Information | publisher=Congressional Research Service | date=January 5, 2006 | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/nation/specials/angler/crsreview-2006.pdf | access-date=September 28, 2009 | archive-date=February 5, 2012 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120205042154/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/nation/specials/angler/crsreview-2006.pdf | url-status=live }}</ref> Political scientists Ornstein and Mann suggested that oversight functions do not help members of Congress win reelection. Congress also has the exclusive [[Federal impeachment in the United States|power of removal]], allowing impeachment and removal of the president, federal judges and other federal officers.<ref>{{cite news | author1= Linda P. Campbell | author2= Glen Elsasser | name-list-style= amp | title= Supreme Court Slugfests A Tradition | newspaper= Chicago Tribune | date= October 20, 1991 | url= https://www.chicagotribune.com/1991/10/20/supreme-court-slugfests-a-tradition/ | access-date= September 11, 2010 | archive-date= April 29, 2011 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110429192843/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1991-10-20/news/9104040635_1_senate-judiciary-committee-first-high-court-nominee-confirmation/2 | url-status= live }}</ref> There have been charges that presidents acting under the doctrine of the [[unitary executive]] have assumed important legislative and budgetary powers that should belong to Congress.<ref>{{cite news | author=Eric Cantor | title=Obama's 32 Czars | newspaper=The Washington Post | date=July 30, 2009 | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/29/AR2009072902624.html | access-date=September 28, 2009 | archive-date=August 31, 2010 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100831202255/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/29/AR2009072902624.html | url-status=live }}</ref> So-called [[signing statements]] are one way in which a president can "tip the balance of power between Congress and the White House a little more in favor of the executive branch", according to one account.<ref>{{cite news | author=Christopher Lee | title=Alito Once Made Case For Presidential Power | newspaper=The Washington Post | date=January 2, 2006 | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/01/AR2006010100788.html | access-date=October 4, 2009 | archive-date=January 14, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214425/https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/01/AR2006010100788.html | url-status=live }}</ref> Past presidents, including [[Ronald Reagan]], [[George H. W. Bush]], [[Bill Clinton]], and [[George W. Bush]],<ref>{{cite news | author=Dan Froomkin | title=Playing by the Rules | newspaper=The Washington Post | date=March 10, 2009 | url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/white-house-watch/bush-rollback/playing-by-the-rules.html | access-date=October 4, 2009 | archive-date=January 14, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214428/http://voices.washingtonpost.com/white-house-watch/bush-rollback/playing-by-the-rules.html | url-status=dead }}</ref> have made public statements when signing congressional legislation about how they understand a bill or plan to execute it, and commentators, including the [[American Bar Association]], have described this practice as against the spirit of the Constitution.<ref>{{cite news | author=Dana D. Nelson | title=The 'unitary executive' question | newspaper=Los Angeles Times | date=October 11, 2008 | url=https://latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-nelson11-2008oct11,0,224216.story | access-date=October 4, 2009 | archive-date=January 14, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214451/https://www.latimes.com/opinion/la-oe-nelson11-2008oct11-story.html | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | author=Charlie Savage | title=Obama Undercuts Whistle-Blowers, Senator Says | newspaper=The New York Times | date=March 16, 2009 | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/17/us/politics/17signing.html | access-date=October 4, 2009 | archive-date=January 14, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214415/https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/17/us/politics/17signing.html | url-status=live }}</ref> There have been concerns that presidential authority to cope with financial crises is eclipsing the power of Congress.<ref>{{cite news | author1=Binyamin Appelbaum | author2=David Cho | name-list-style=amp | title=U.S. Seeks Expanded Power to Seize Firms Goal Is to Limit Risk to Broader Economy | newspaper=The Washington Post | date=March 24, 2009 | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/23/AR2009032302830.html | access-date=September 28, 2009 | archive-date=January 14, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214525/https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/23/AR2009032302830.html | url-status=live }}</ref> In 2008, [[George F. Will]] called the Capitol building a "tomb for the antiquated idea that the legislative branch matters".<ref name=tws28sep>{{cite news | author=George F. Will – op-ed columnist | title=Making Congress Moot | newspaper=The Washington Post | date=December 21, 2008 | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/19/AR2008121902929.html | access-date=September 28, 2009 | archive-date=May 1, 2011 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110501115643/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/19/AR2008121902929.html | url-status=live }}</ref> ====Enumeration==== The Constitution enumerates the powers of Congress in detail. In addition, other congressional powers have been granted, or confirmed, by constitutional amendments. The [[Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Thirteenth]] (1865), [[Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Fourteenth]] (1868), and [[Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Fifteenth Amendments]] (1870) gave Congress authority to enact legislation to enforce rights of African Americans, including [[voting rights]], [[due process]], and [[equal protection]] under the law.<ref>Davidson (2006), p. 19.</ref> Generally militia forces are controlled by state governments, not Congress.<ref>{{cite news|author=Kincaid|first=J. Leslie|author-link=J. Leslie Kincaid|date=January 17, 1916|title=To Make the Militia a National Force: The Power of Congress Under the Constitution "for Organizing, Arming, and Disciplining" the State Troops.|newspaper=The New York Times|url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40C14FB355C13738DDDAE0994D9405B868DF1D3|url-status=live|access-date=September 11, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110430043641/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40C14FB355C13738DDDAE0994D9405B868DF1D3|archive-date=April 30, 2011}}</ref> ====Implicit, commerce clause==== Congress also has [[implied powers]] deriving from the Constitution's [[Necessary and Proper Clause]] which permit Congress to "make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof".<ref>{{cite news |author= Stephen Herrington |title= Red State Anxiety and The Constitution |newspaper= The Huffington Post |date= February 25, 2010 |url= https://huffingtonpost.com/stephen-herrington/red-state-anxiety-and-the_b_476050.html |access-date= September 11, 2010 |archive-date= July 2, 2010 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100702193559/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/stephen-herrington/red-state-anxiety-and-the_b_476050.html |url-status= live }}</ref> Broad interpretations of this clause and of the [[Commerce Clause]], the enumerated power to regulate commerce, in rulings such as [[McCulloch v Maryland|''McCulloch v. Maryland'']], have effectively widened the scope of Congress's legislative authority far beyond that prescribed in Section Eight.<ref>{{cite news |title= Timeline |publisher= CBS News |year= 2010 |url= http://www.cbsnews.com/htdocs/supreme_court_interactive/framesource_timeline.html |access-date= September 11, 2010 |archive-date= May 1, 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110501060936/http://www.cbsnews.com/htdocs/supreme_court_interactive/framesource_timeline.html |url-status= live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author= Randy E. Barnett |title= The Case for a Federalism Amendment |newspaper= The Wall Street Journal |date= April 23, 2009 |url= https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB124044199838345461 |access-date= September 11, 2010 |archive-date= July 2, 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150702085854/http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB124044199838345461 |url-status= live }}</ref> ====Territorial government==== {{main|Territories of the United States|Non-voting members of the United States House of Representatives}} Constitutional responsibility for the oversight of [[Washington, D.C.]], the federal district and national capital, and the U.S. territories of [[Guam]], [[American Samoa]], [[Puerto Rico]], the [[U.S. Virgin Islands]], and the [[Northern Mariana Islands]] rests with Congress.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120113132945/http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/155653.pdf Executive Order 13423] Sec. 9. (l). "The 'United States' when used in a geographical sense, means the fifty states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands, and associated territorial waters and airspace."</ref> The republican form of government in territories is devolved by congressional statute to the respective territories including direct election of governors, the D.C. mayor and locally elective territorial legislatures.<ref>U.S. State Department, [https://2009-2017.state.gov/s/inr/rls/10543.htm Dependencies and Areas of Special Sovereignty] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220621161149/https://2009-2017.state.gov/s/inr/rls/10543.htm |date=June 21, 2022 }}</ref> Each territory and Washington, D.C., elects a non-voting delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives as they have throughout congressional history. They "possess the same powers as other members of the House, except that they may not vote when the House is meeting as the House of Representatives". They are assigned offices and allowances for staff, participate in debate, and appoint constituents to the four military service academies for the Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard.<ref>[http://www.house.gov/content/learn/ House Learn] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171111025616/https://www.house.gov/content/learn/ |date=November 11, 2017 }} webpage. Viewed January 26, 2013.</ref> Washington, D.C., citizens alone among U.S. territories have the right to directly vote for the President of the United States, although the Democratic and Republican political parties nominate their presidential candidates at national conventions which include delegates from the five major territories.<ref>The Green Papers, [http://www.thegreenpapers.com/P16/events.phtml?s=c&f=m 2016 Presidential primaries, caucuses and conventions] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214401/http://www.thegreenpapers.com/P16/events.phtml?s=c&f=m |date=January 14, 2021 }}, viewed September 3, 2015.</ref> ===Checks and balances=== {{Main|U.S. Congress in relation to the president and Supreme Court}} [[File:United States Capitol seen from the United States Supreme Court, Washington, DC - 20080326.jpg|thumb|The [[United States Capitol]] seen from the [[United States Supreme Court building]]]] [[File:Senate in session.jpg|thumb|The [[Impeachment trial of Bill Clinton|impeachment trial of President Clinton]] in 1999, presided over by [[William H. Rehnquist|Chief Justice William Rehnquist]]]] Representative [[Lee H. Hamilton]] explained how Congress functions within the federal government: <blockquote>To me the key to understanding it is balance. The founders went to great lengths to balance institutions against each other{{snd}}balancing powers among the three branches: Congress, the president, and the Supreme Court; between the House of Representatives and the Senate; between the federal government and the states; among states of different sizes and regions with different interests; between the powers of government and the rights of citizens, as spelled out in the Bill of Rights{{spaces}}... No one part of government dominates the other.<ref name=tws2010Sep11t14aa/>{{rp|6}}</blockquote> The Constitution provides [[Separation of powers under the United States Constitution|checks and balances]] among the three branches of the federal government. Its authors expected the greater power to lie with Congress as described in Article One.<ref name=tws2010Sep11t14aa>{{cite book |author= Lee H. Hamilton |title= How Congress works and why you should care |publisher= Indiana University Press |year= 2004 |isbn= 0-253-34425-5 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=bmFSp3b8J_oC&q=How+Congress+Works+and+Why+You+Should+Care |access-date= September 11, 2010 |archive-date= January 14, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214417/https://books.google.com/books?id=bmFSp3b8J_oC&q=How+Congress+Works+and+Why+You+Should+Care |url-status= live }}</ref><ref>"The very structure of the Constitution gives us profound insights about what the founders thought was important{{spaces}}... the Founders thought that the Legislative Branch was going to be the great branch of government." —Hon. [[John Charles Thomas (jurist)|John Charles Thomas]] [http://www.opm.gov/constitution_initiative/speech.asp] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071014122957/http://opm.gov/constitution_initiative/speech.asp|date=October 14, 2007}}</ref> The influence of Congress on the presidency has varied from period to period depending on factors such as congressional leadership, presidential political influence, historical circumstances such as war, and individual initiative by members of Congress. [[Impeachment of Andrew Johnson|The impeachment]] of [[Andrew Johnson]] made the presidency less powerful than Congress for a considerable period afterwards.<ref>{{cite news |author= Susan Sachs |title= Impeachment: The Past; Johnson's Trial: 2 Bitter Months for a Still-Torn Nation |newspaper= The New York Times |date= January 7, 1999 |url= https://www.nytimes.com/1999/01/07/us/impeachment-the-past-johnson-s-trial-2-bitter-months-for-a-still-torn-nation.html |access-date= September 11, 2010 |archive-date= January 14, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214435/https://www.nytimes.com/1999/01/07/us/impeachment-the-past-johnson-s-trial-2-bitter-months-for-a-still-torn-nation.html |url-status= live }}</ref> The 20th and 21st centuries have seen the rise of presidential power under politicians such as [[Theodore Roosevelt]], [[Woodrow Wilson]], [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]], [[Richard Nixon]], [[Ronald Reagan]], and [[George W. Bush]].<ref name="kingwh">{{cite news | first=Richard | last=Greene | title=Kings in the White House | date=January 19, 2005 | work=BBC News | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4181799.stm | access-date=October 7, 2007 | archive-date=January 14, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214403/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4181799.stm | url-status=live }}</ref> Congress restricted presidential power with laws such as the [[Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974]] and the [[War Powers Resolution]]. The presidency remains considerably more powerful today than during the 19th century.<ref name=tws2010Sep11t14aa/><ref name="kingwh"/> Executive branch officials are often loath to reveal sensitive information to members of Congress because of concern that information could not be kept secret; in return, knowing they may be in the dark about executive branch activity, congressional officials are more likely to distrust their counterparts in executive agencies.<ref>{{cite news |author1=Steven S. Smith |author2=Jason M. Roberts |author3=Ryan J. Vander Wielen |title=The American Congress (Fourth Edition) |publisher=Cambridge University Press |pages=18–19 |year=2006 |isbn=9781139446990 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fWpE_HxuxVEC&q=Smith,+Steven+S.,+Jason+M.+Roberts,+and+Ryan+Vander+Wielen+%282007%29.+The+American+Congress |access-date=September 11, 2010 |archive-date=January 14, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214403/https://books.google.com/books?id=fWpE_HxuxVEC&q=Smith%2C+Steven+S.%2C+Jason+M.+Roberts%2C+and+Ryan+Vander+Wielen+%282007%29.+The+American+Congress |url-status=live }}</ref> Many government actions require fast coordinated effort by many agencies, and this is a task that Congress is ill-suited for. Congress is slow, open, divided, and not well matched to handle more rapid executive action or do a good job of overseeing such activity, according to one analysis.<ref>{{cite news |author1=Steven S. Smith |author2=Jason M. Roberts |author3=Ryan J. Vander Wielen |title=The American Congress (Fourth Edition) |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=19 |year=2006 |isbn=9781139446990 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fWpE_HxuxVEC&q=Smith,+Steven+S.,+Jason+M.+Roberts,+and+Ryan+Vander+Wielen+%282007%29.+The+American+Congress |access-date=September 11, 2010 |archive-date=January 14, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214427/https://books.google.com/books?id=fWpE_HxuxVEC&q=Smith%2C+Steven+S.%2C+Jason+M.+Roberts%2C+and+Ryan+Vander+Wielen+%282007%29.+The+American+Congress |url-status=live }}</ref> The Constitution concentrates removal powers in the Congress by empowering and obligating the House of Representatives to [[Federal impeachment in the United States|impeach]] executive or judicial officials for "Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors". Impeachment is a formal accusation of unlawful activity by a civil officer or government official. The Senate is constitutionally empowered and obligated to try all impeachments. A simple majority in the House is required to impeach an official; a two-thirds majority in the Senate is required for conviction. A convicted official is automatically removed from office; in addition, the Senate may stipulate that the [[defendant]] be banned from holding office in the future. Impeachment proceedings may not inflict more than this. A convicted party may face criminal penalties in a normal court of law. In the history of the United States, the House of Representatives has impeached sixteen officials, of whom seven were convicted. Another resigned before the Senate could complete the trial. Only three presidents have ever been impeached: [[Andrew Johnson]] in 1868, [[Bill Clinton]] in 1999, [[Donald Trump]] in 2019 and 2021. The [[trial (law)|trials]] of Johnson, Clinton, and the 2019 trial of Trump all ended in acquittal; in Johnson's case, the Senate fell one vote short of the two-thirds majority required for [[conviction (law)|conviction]]. In 1974, [[Richard Nixon]] resigned from office after [[Impeachment process against Richard Nixon|impeachment proceedings]] in the [[House Judiciary Committee]] indicated his removal from office. The Senate has an important check on the executive power by confirming [[Cabinet of the United States|Cabinet]] officials, judges, and other high officers "by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate". It confirms most presidential nominees, but rejections are not uncommon. Furthermore, treaties negotiated by the President must be ratified by a two-thirds majority vote in the Senate to take effect. As a result, presidential arm-twisting of senators can happen before a key vote; for example, President Obama's secretary of state, [[Hillary Clinton]], urged her former senate colleagues to approve a nuclear arms treaty with Russia in 2010.<ref>{{cite news |author= Charles Wolfson |title= Clinton Presses Senate to Ratify Nuclear Arms Treaty with Russia |publisher= CBS News |date= August 11, 2010 |url= https://www.cbsnews.com/news/clinton-presses-senate-to-ratify-nuclear-arms-treaty-with-russia/ |access-date= September 11, 2010 |archive-date= September 14, 2010 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100914104143/http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20013329-503544.html |url-status= live }}</ref> The House of Representatives has no formal role in either the ratification of treaties or the appointment of federal officials, other than in [[Twenty-fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution#Section 2: Vice presidential vacancy|filling a vacancy]] in the office of the vice president; in such a case, a majority vote in each House is required to confirm a president's nomination of a vice president.<ref name=tws2010Sep11bb/> In 1803, the Supreme Court established [[judicial review]] of federal legislation in ''[[Marbury v. Madison]]'', holding that Congress could not grant unconstitutional power to the Court itself. The Constitution did not explicitly state that the courts may exercise judicial review. The notion that courts could declare laws [[unconstitutional]] was envisioned by the [[Founding Fathers of the United States|founding fathers]]. [[Alexander Hamilton]], for example, mentioned and expounded upon the doctrine in [[Federalist No. 78]]. [[Originalism|Originalists]] on the Supreme Court have argued that if the constitution does not say something explicitly it is unconstitutional to infer what it should, might, or could have said.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cfif.org/htdocs/legal_issues/legal_updates/us_supreme_court/scalia-constitutional-speech.htm |title=Constitutional Interpretation the Old Fashioned Way |publisher=Center For Individual Freedom |access-date=September 15, 2007 |archive-date=January 14, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214412/https://www.cfif.org/htdocs/legal_issues/legal_updates/us_supreme_court/scalia-constitutional-speech.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> Judicial review means that the Supreme Court can nullify a congressional law. It is a huge check by the courts on the legislative authority and limits congressional power substantially. In 1857, for example, the Supreme Court struck down provisions of a congressional act of 1820 in its [[Dred Scott]] decision.<ref>{{cite news |title= Decision of the Supreme Court in the Dred Scott Case |newspaper= The New York Times |date= March 6, 1851 |url= https://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/big/0306.html |access-date= September 11, 2010 |archive-date= January 14, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214440/https://www.nytimes.com/section/learning |url-status= live }}</ref> At the same time, the Supreme Court can extend congressional power through its constitutional interpretations. The congressional inquiry into [[St. Clair's Defeat]] of 1791 was the first congressional investigation of the executive branch.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.lawfaremedia.org/remembering-st-clairs-defeat |title=Remembering St. Clair's Defeat |first=Matthew |last=Waxman |publisher=[[Lawfare (website)|Lawfare]] |date=November 4, 2018 |access-date=May 22, 2019 |archive-date=January 14, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214425/https://www.lawfaremedia.org/remembering-st-clairs-defeat |url-status=live }}</ref> Investigations are conducted to gather information on the need for future legislation, to test the effectiveness of laws already passed, and to inquire into the qualifications and performance of members and officials of the other branches. Committees may hold hearings, and, if necessary, [[subpoena]] people to testify when investigating issues over which it has the power to legislate.<ref>{{cite news|author = Frank Askin|title = Congress's Power To Compel|newspaper = The Washington Post|date = July 21, 2007|url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/20/AR2007072001802.html|access-date = September 28, 2009|archive-date = January 14, 2021|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214425/https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/20/AR2007072001802.html|url-status = live}}</ref><ref name=tws2010Sep11dd>{{cite news |title=Congressional Hearings: About |publisher=GPO Access |date=September 28, 2005 |url=http://www.gpoaccess.gov/chearings/about.html |access-date=September 11, 2010 |url-status = dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100809032123/http://www.gpoaccess.gov//chearings/about.html |archive-date=August 9, 2010 }}</ref> Witnesses who refuse to testify may be cited for [[contempt of Congress]], and those who testify falsely may be charged with [[perjury]]. Most committee hearings are open to the public (the [[United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence|House]] and [[United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence|Senate intelligence committees]] are the exception); important hearings are widely reported in the mass media and transcripts published a few months afterwards.<ref name=tws2010Sep11dd/> Congress, in the course of studying possible laws and investigating matters, generates an incredible amount of information in various forms, and can be described as a publisher.<ref name=tws2010Sep11ff>{{cite news |date=May 25, 2010 |title=Congressional Reports: Main Page |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office Access |url=http://www.gpoaccess.gov/serialset/creports/index.html |access-date=September 11, 2010 |url-status = dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100807204440/http://www.gpoaccess.gov//serialset/creports/index.html |archive-date=August 7, 2010 }}</ref> Indeed, it publishes House and Senate reports<ref name=tws2010Sep11ff/> and maintains databases which are updated irregularly with publications in a variety of electronic formats.<ref name=tws2010Sep11ff/> Congress also plays a role in presidential elections. Both Houses meet in joint session on the sixth day of January following a presidential election to count the electoral votes, and there are procedures to follow if no candidate wins a majority.<ref name=tws2010Sep11bb/> The main result of congressional activity is the creation of laws,<ref name=tws2010Sep11cc>{{cite news |title= Tying It All Together: Learn about the Legislative Process |publisher= United States House of Representatives |url= http://www.house.gov/house/Tying_it_all.shtml |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110420234437/http://www.house.gov/house/Tying_it_all.shtml |archive-date= April 20, 2011 |access-date=April 20, 2011}}</ref> most of which are contained in the United States Code, arranged by subject matter alphabetically under fifty title headings to present the laws "in a concise and usable form".<ref name=tws2010Sep11bb/>
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