美国宪法第一条解读|ARTICLE I: THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

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ARTICLE I: THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

Only Congress has the power to make federal laws.

Congress includes the House of Representatives and the Senate.

House members are:	Senators are:
Elected every 2 years	Elected every 6 years
At least 25 years old	At least 30 years old
Residents of their states	Residents of their states
U.S. citizens for at least 7 years	U.S. citizens for at least 9 years
Elected by voters in the state	Elected by voters in the states*

*In 1787, the Constitution said state legislatures choose senators. But in 1913, the 17th amendment changed how senators are elected. Voters in each state now elect their senators, just as they elect House members.

Members of the 113th Congress take the oath of office.

The House of Representatives

How do we decide how many members of the House to elect?

The population of a state determines how many representatives it will have in the House. The U.S. population is counted every 10 years.

If a House members dies or leaves office before the term is finished, the state governor calls a special election to choose another member.

The Constitution of 1787 said each House member would represent no more than 30,000 people. But as the U.S. population grew, so did the House of Representatives. In 1929 Congress voted to limit the number of House members. Today, the House includes 435 members.

Who is the leader of the House?

The leader is called the Speaker. House members choose who he or she will be.

Nancy Pelosi was the first female Speaker of the House. She held the position from 2007-2011.

The Senate

How do we decide how many senators to elect?

Every state has two senators. Each senator has one vote. One-third of the Senate is elected every two years. (As a result, the whole Senate does not change at once.)

If a senator dies or leaves office, the state's governor can appoint someone to serve temporarily. In 1787, the state legislature appointed a new senator. Today, voters choose a new senator at the next election or in a special election.

Who is the leader of the Senate?

The vice president is the leader of the Senate.

Senators choose the rest of their officers, including a leader who serves when the vice president is absent.

The vice president votes on proposals in the Senate only if the senators' votes are equally divided. In 2001 Vice President Dick Cheney broke his first tie in the Senate.

How are elected officials removed from office?

For the purpose of impeachment, only the House of Representatives can accuse a government official of wrongdoing. The Senate decides if the person is guilty. Two-thirds of the senators must agree on the verdict.

If the Senate finds an official guilty, he or she must leave the position. The person may also be barred from being elected to another federal position.

In addition to the impeachment process, state or federal prosecutors may charge the person with violations of criminal law. The accused person may then go to trial in the regular court system.

In 1998, the House formally accused President Bill Clinton of lying in court and trying to prevent lawyers from investigating him. He went to trial before the Senate. The chief justice of the United States led the trial. But the majority of senators voted not to convict President Clinton, and he finished his term in office.

How does the legislature make laws?

The House and Senate can make laws in three ways:

if both the House of Representatives and the Senate pass a bill and the president signs it.
if both the House of Representatives and the Senate pass a bill and the president does not do anything with it in 10 days.
if both the House of Representatives and the Senate pass a bill, the president vetoes it, and two-thirds of House and Senate vote again to pass it.

In 1933 President Franklin Roosevelt signed a law creating the Tennessee Valley Authority. A bill can become a law without the president’s signature or veto unless the House of Representatives and the Senate adjourn within 10 days after it is passed.

Together, the House and the Senate are called Congress.

Congress must

operate together and in the same place.
meet at least one time every year.
have a majority of members to vote on and pass laws.
keep and occasionally publish an official record of what it does and how it votes. Some parts of the record may remain secret.
formally approve and keep a record of any money it spends

Congress can

decide when, where and how representatives and senators are elected.
decide whether an elected representative or senator is qualified to serve. But, Congress has to permit elected officials to serve if they meet the requirements of the Constitution.
decide how to do its business and punish members

In 1968, Shirley Chisholm was the first African-American woman elected to Congress.

Members of Congress cannot

be arrested for crimes while they are working in or traveling to and from the Capitol buildings.
be sued or arrested for doing any part of their official work.
create and then take another job in the federal government, or vote to increase the salary of a federal job and then take the position.
also hold a U.S. government job at the same time.
use royal titles
accept gifts from foreign governments without approval

The Constitution requires officials to tell prisoners why they are being detained, except during invasions or rebellions if public safety requires that this right be suspended.

But during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln permitted soldiers to detain without trial someone who tried to interfere with government troops. Later, the Supreme Court declared that only Congress had the power to suspend the right of "habeas corpus" -- Latin for "show me the body."

Congress has the power to

tax every state equally.
spend money.
borrow money.
regulate trade between the states.
regulate trade with foreign nations and American Indian tribes.
make laws governing immigration and conferring citizenship on immigrants.
make laws related to people who cannot pay their debts.
make money from valuable metals, such as gold and silver.
regulate how much U.S. and foreign money is worth.
punish people who make false money.
protect artists' and scientists' legal rights to the things they create.
create a system of courts lower than the Supreme Court.
punish crimes committed on the ocean.
punish crimes that violate international law.
declare war.
permit sailors on private ships to attack an enemy's ships.
make rules about how enemies' property can be seized.
build and support a military.
build and support a navy.
make a system of rules for soldiers.
have authority over the militia.
have a seat of government that is not part of any state, and to operate in and control that area.
make laws that it needs to carry out its powers.

Congress also has the power to create post offices and a system to deliver mail. Here, Dennis Kucinich, a member of Congress from Ohio, urges Congress to help the U.S Postal Service.

Congress does not have the power to

ban U.S. participation in the international slave trade before 1808.
pass a bill that allows someone to be punished without a trial.
pass a bill that makes something a crime after someone does it, or changes the punishment of a crime after someone commits it.
tax the goods a state ships for sale in other states, or make sure one state's port makes more money than another's.

Article I also limits some of the powers of the states.

The states cannot

Create money
Make something a crime after someone has done it, or change the punishment of a crime after someone has done it
Interfere with contracts people have already made
Give anyone a royal title

States cannot support an army during peacetime without the consent of Congress.

States also cannot do the following, unless Congress approves it

Make laws – except related to examining goods – about trade between the states or other nations.
A state cannot tax ships that use its ports.
Make treaties with another state or country.
Make war, unless the state is invaded.