Legislative Branch means the branch of Government which is concerned with making laws. Modern governments comprise of three branches namely: the legislative branch, executive branch which oversees the carrying out of laws. The executive branch is concerned with executing the laws and the third branch is the judicial branch which is concerned with the administration of justice by interpreting the laws made by the legislature and implemented by the executives.
As per Article I of the Constitution of U.S, all legislative powers are vested in the Congress of the United States. The American Congress is the bicameral legislative body meaning that there are two legislative houses. The Congress consists of Senate (Upper House) and House of Representatives (Lower House). There are two elected Senators from each State making the total number of Senators to be 100. The House of Representatives consists of 435 elected representatives that are divided among the 50 states in proportion to their total population.
The meeting place of the Congressmen is at the United States Capitol, Washington, D.C. It is here that the Senate and the House of Representatives come to analyze, discuss, debate and decide the various laws that would apply to the United States of America. The U.S. Capitol is one of the symbolic and important buildings in the world. This is the focal point and the most important place of the U.S. Legislative branch. The U.S. Capitol also has visitors who visit the place to learn and understand the American democracy and get an in-depth understanding of its functioning’s.
The bicameralism in U.S. is very effective as at times we get to see that generally in the bicameral legislature it is usually the lower house which has more power but in the United States both the houses namely the upper house as well as the lower house are powerful. All Congressmen are residents of the states from which they are elected and hence understand the needs, interests and requirements of the people of their constituency.
The Congress has the authority to enact (i.e., to make a proposed bill into law) legislation. It also has the right to confirm or reject many Presidential appointments that are sent to it. The first step in the legislative process is to introduce the bill to the Congress and then there are rest of the stages where finally a bill becomes law and gets implemented. Congress can make new laws or change existing laws as these are the powers given to the Congress in the Constitution of the United States of America.
In-order to pass a legislation the bill has to be sent to the President for his signature after both the Houses pass the same bill by majority vote and once it receives the assent of the President then it becomes a law. The Congress also conducts investigations to oversee the executive branch i.e., the branch that implements these laws.
As per the Constitution of the United States of America, the Vice President of the United States is the presiding officer of the Senate (Upper House) and is termed as president of the Senate who may cast decisive vote in the event of a tie in the Senate. Senators must be 30 years of age, U.S. citizens for at least nine years and residents of the state that they represent. They are elected to serve for a term of six years with one-third of its members being elected every two years. Every constituent state in U.S. whether it is large or small area wise, elects two senators and both of them represent the entire state.
The House of Representatives consists of 435 elected representatives that are divided among the 50 states in proportion to their total population. The number of 435 members representing each state is determined by the population with every state of U.S. guaranteed at least one seat.
The House of Representatives requires one to be at least twenty-five years old and a U.S. citizen for at least 7 years and must be resident of the state from which the representative is elected. The members of the House of Representatives are elected every two years. The House is presided over by the Speaker whom the House itself chooses. Thus, the term of incumbency (period of holding the position) of the Senators and the members of the House of Representatives is different.
The President who is the head of the State and Commander-in-chief of the armed forces is vested with the executive power. The President can also veto bills created by Congress and nominate heads of federal agencies. Veto means a Constitutional right to reject a decision or proposal made by a law-making body. Once the bill is vetoed, it must be passed by two thirds majority in both the houses of the Congress. Though the President is powerful but the power of the President can be controlled and checked by the Congress. The power of the Congress is potentially very important and significant for the nation of United States of America.
Both the legislative houses i.e., Senate and House of Representatives have equal powers of legislating. The Congress can confirm or reject President’s nominees and can remove the President in exceptional circumstances. It has the power to impeach, try and convict the President of U.S. The Justices are nominated by the President and are confirmed by the Senate.
This is called the system of checks and balances where one branch responds to the actions of other branches. The main purpose of checks and balances is so that any one branch of the government does not exert too much of power.
In the U.S. both the houses are directly elected by the people. By the 17th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, direct elections were introduced. Before the Amendment the Senators were elected by the state legislatures but now, they are directly elected by the people of U.S.
The Congress can also declare war and has substantial investigative powers. The U.S. Constitution has given Congress significant powers. Though in U.S. the President holds the most powerful and influential position but the Congress too is very active and powerful. The framers of the U.S. Constitution have divided powers among the three branches in accordance with the checks and balances so that no single branch can dominate or overpower and take their powers for granted.