Within the United States Congress there are two separate entities, the Senate and House of Representatives. Both serve as legislative branches of the government and both are essential to passing any bill or law. However there are many differences between the two. One obvious difference between the two houses of Congress is that the House of Representatives currently contains 435 members each serving 2 year terms, while the Senate has 100 members serving 6 year terms. The House of Representatives has one member to represent each of the 435 districts that represent portions of the states. The Senate, on the other hand has two members from each state regardless of the state’s population.

Another difference between the House and Senate is their eligibility requirements and term limitations. In order to run for a seat in the House of Representatives, a candidate must be at least 25 years old, and must have been a US citizen for at least 7 years; in addition they must be a legal resident of the chosen state. To run for a Senate seat, a candidate must be at least 30 years old, and have been a US citizen for at least 9 years. House seats are elected by the districts whereas Senate seats are elected by the states.

Both parties share allegiances to their respective parties, but this plays out differently in each branch. Since majority rules when making decisions in the House, members of the House of Representatives often form small alliances which are based on similar political goals. The house has a lower profile then the Senate; therefore they are often not pressured by the media as much and in turn are not pressured to vote along party lines, giving them more flexibility when making decisions. Senators on the other hand being more prestigious and high profile get plenty of media attention. Unlike the House, the Senate must have “unanimous consent” when making its decisions. The main problem with this is its members may not agree with each other politically, making their decisions all that more difficult. This is why Senate decisions generally fall more along political party lines than compared to the House of Representatives.

The Constitution has specifically given each chamber of Congress different duties. For example the House has the power to totally overhaul revenue bills and impose taxes, but lacks the Senates ability to filibuster. The Senate, with its less strict rules and extended debates, is considered to have more important powers and responsibilities such as ratifying foreign treaties before they are presented to the President. They also have the ability to confirm (or not confirm) presidential nominations, which the House cannot do.

Even though the Senate is considered by many to be more powerful than the House, it is the Speaker of the House who is considered the most powerful leader on Capitol Hill.  The House speaker is given more power than the speaker of the Senate largely due to the fact that the House is more than four times the size of the Senate. Also the House speaker is considered second in line for President, behind the Vice President, should the President ever die, step down or be impeached.

Regardless of the branch, the Congress reviews all laws to be passed. Before a bill can become a law, it must go through several steps and chambers. A bill is introduced to the House of Representatives or the Senate, and then a committee holds a hearing to review the proposed bill. Assuming the proposed bill passes the committee, it is then presented to the floor for debate and passage. Once the proposed bill has gone through several chambers and conferences and both the House and Senate agree on it, it is then presented the President for approval.

The branches of Congress also share an important relationship with the Executive branch of our government. The President has many important responsibilities and has many powers bestowed under the Constitution; yet he cannot pass bills into laws alone. The framers of our Constitution did not want to give one person such power, which is why the President needs the Congress. Even though they may not see eye to eye, the President can persuade or influence Congress in many different ways to achieve his goals. The President primarily uses his agenda to push ideas and suggestions to Congress. As stated in the Constitution under Article II, “The Power to Inform and Convene Congress”, which means that aside from the normal letters and media coverage, the President can emphasize that agenda from time to time by addressing Congress to provide them with information, i.e. the State of the Union. This gives the President an opportunity to express his legislative agenda to the People and also to Congress. The President also has the power to convene Congress in extraordinary circumstances or during times of crisis, giving him more time to share ideas and give suggestions. For example President George W. Bush appeared before Congress on September 20, 2001, asking for them to pass new legislation designed to strengthen our antiterrorism programs, help the airlines and rebuild New York after the September 11th terrorist attack.

The roles and powers of the President have evolved and expanded over the course of history to meet new challenges in a changing world. One example of this is through the use of Executive Orders. More than 13,000 orders have been issued by Presidents as far back as George Washington. These orders are just a strong as laws, but they do not require Congress’s approval. One example of how powerful these orders can be was when President George W. Bush signed Executive Order 13292 on March 25, 2003, giving the Vice President the same ability as the President to classify or declassify intelligence information. This executive order granted one of the greatest expansions of power to the Vice President in American history. This order was not received well by many as by controlling classification; the Vice President could now in effect control intelligence and have a major influence on foreign policy.

Congress has tried to limit the power of the President in various ways throughout history to keep the power of the Executive Office in check. One example of this was in 1973 when Congress enacted the “War Powers Resolution”. This law placed several restrictions on the Presidents use of the military; most notably that the President couldn’t commit the armed forces until Congress had official declared war.

In conclusion, the responsibilities and relationships between the two branches of Congress and the President are designed in such a way that no one branch becomes too dominant or ultra powerful, and to ultimately make sure our government is kept in a healthy balance.