1. House
1.1. Structure
1.1.1. 435 Members
1.1.1.1. Must be 25 years old
1.1.1.2. Must be 7-year U.S. citizen
1.1.1.3. Must live in state of election
1.1.1.4. Serve 2-year terms
1.1.2. Very formal
1.1.2.1. You must ask permission to talk
1.1.2.2. Your speaking time is limited
1.1.3. Contains numerous smaller groups called committees which deal with individual issues
1.2. Important positions
1.2.1. The Speaker of the House (John Boehner, until recently) is responsible for planning the agenda for the House, presiding over meetings, allowing people to talk, and keeping general order.
1.2.1.1. The Majority Leader is the voice of the majority party in the House, and serves the purpose of keeping the majority party Representatives on track and making sure they vote the way their party intends.
1.2.1.1.1. Majority Whips basically threaten members of their party into showing up to important votes and voting in a specific way to benefit the party agenda.
1.2.1.2. The Minority Leader does the same jobs as the majority leader, except that they do so for the minority party in the House.
1.2.1.2.1. Minority Whips do the same thing as the majority whips, except that they do so for the minority party.
1.3. My Representative Is Robert E. "Bob" Latta.
1.3.1. From Bluffton, Ohio
1.3.2. Has served since 2007
1.3.3. Is on the Committee of Energy and Commerce, as well as three subcommittees within it
2. Senate
2.1. Structure
2.1.1. 100 Members
2.1.1.1. Must be 30 years old
2.1.1.2. Must be resident of U.S. for at least 9 years
2.1.1.3. Must live in state of election
2.1.1.4. Serve 6-year terms
2.1.2. Much less formal than the House
2.1.2.1. Can talk about issues for virtually unlimited amount of time
2.2. Important Positions
2.2.1. The President of the Senate (the Vice President) presides over the operations of the Senate, but exercises little power outside breaking tied votes.
2.2.1.1. The President Pro Tempore (Usually just called the President Pro Temp), is like the Vice President of the Senate, so to speak. Traditionally the Senator of the Majority Party who has been there for the longest time.
2.2.1.1.1. The Majority Leader is the spokesperson for the majority party, so it could be argued that they have the most power of anybody in the Senate, since the President of the Senate is the Vice of the U.S. and the Pro Temp is pretty ceremonial.
2.2.1.1.2. The Minority Leader does the same stuff their Majority counterpart does, but for the minority party.
2.3. My Representatives
2.3.1. Sherrod Brown
2.3.1.1. From Cleveland
2.3.1.2. Served since 2006
2.3.1.2.1. U.S. Senate Committee on Finance
2.3.1.2.2. Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
2.3.1.2.3. Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
2.3.1.2.4. Committee on Veteran Affairs
2.3.1.2.5. Select Committee on Ethics
2.3.2. Rob Portman
2.3.2.1. From Cincinnati
2.3.2.2. Has served since 2010
2.3.2.2.1. United States Senate Committee on the Budget
2.3.2.2.2. United States Senate Committee on Finance
2.3.2.2.3. United States Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
2.3.2.2.4. United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs