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Historical graph of party control of the Senate and House as well as the Presidency [1]. The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, which along with the United States House of Representatives—the lower chamber—comprises the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States.
The Senate has exclusive power to confirm U.S. presidential appointments to high offices, approve or reject treaties, and try cases of impeachment brought by the House. The Senate and the House provide a check and balance on the powers of the executive and judicial branches of government.
Party divisions of United States Congresses have played a central role on the organization and operations of both chambers of the United States Congress—the Senate and the House of Representatives—since its establishment as the bicameral legislature of the Federal government of the United States in 1789.
The House Government Reform Committee and the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, which have oversight jurisdiction over virtually the entire federal government, furthermore, are authorized to review and study the operation of government activities to determine their economy and efficiency and to submit recommendations based on GAO reports.
Senate rule XXXI governs the Senate process for considering the president's nominations. For most positions, the nomination is passed first to a Senate committee for review. Generally, it is the Senate committee with jurisdiction over the topic or department related to the position to be filled. [11] A public hearing by the committee is possible.
The speaker does not normally preside over debates, but is, rather, the leader of the majority party in the House. The Vice President of the United States is, ex officio, President of the Senate. The Senate also elects a President pro tempore. For decades the person elected has been the most senior member of the majority party in the Senate ...
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, touted his party’s success in taking control of the Senate, saying in a statement he is “confident our new conservative majority can restore our institution to the ...
The U.S. government being a federal government, officials are elected at the federal (national), state and local levels. All members of Congress, and the offices at the state and local levels are directly elected, but the president is elected indirectly, by an Electoral College whose electors represent their state and are elected by popular vote.