Prior to the adoption of the Twentieth Amendment, on Feb. 6, 1933, the president, vice-president, senators and members of the House of Representatives assumed office on March 4 following their election ; and the Congress met annually on the first Monday of De cember. Under this plan newly elected members of the Senate and House, elected in November of an even-numbered year, did not take office until March 4 of the succeeding year, and, unless the president called a special session of Congress, the newly elected members did not actually begin to function until the regular session in the succeed ing December, more than a year after their election. It was possible that the session meeting from December 3 of the even-numbered year until March 4 of the odd-numbered year be controlled by members who had already failed of re-election, and who might therefore be regarded as no longer representing their constituents. In order to avoid control of a session of Congress by defeated members, who were termed "lame ducks," the Twentieth Amendment was adopted, under which the terms of the president and vice-president begin on the 2oth day of January fgllowing their election; the terms of senators and representatives begin on the 3rd day of January following their election ; and the Congress assembles each year on the 3rd day of January. The regular sessions of Congress usually adjourn in the early summer. The president may on extraordinary occasions convene the two houses in special session.
The organization and procedure of the two houses of Congress are to a limited extent determined by Congress, and to a larger extent by the size and traditions of the two houses. The rules of the Senate permit great freedom of debate ; those of the House of Representatives restrict debate and expedite business. Under the Senate rules obstruc tive tactics may be and are often resorted to, though such tactics re late in fact to relatively few measures. The House of Representatives, with its larger membership, would be helpless with complete freedom of debate, yet both houses accomplish a large amount of legislative business, as is indicated by the passage of nearly one thousand meas ures at the first session of the seventieth Congress which convened Dec. 5, 1927, and adjourned May 29, 1928.
The House of Representatives elects from its own members a speaker as presiding officer. The vice-president of the United States is the presiding officer of the Senate. The work of both houses is largely done in committee. The committee systems of both houses de veloped largely by accident, and many committees in each house, once created for important tasks, remained long after their usefulness had ceased. The Senate, in 1921, and the House of Representatives, in 1927, reorganized their committees and materially reduced their number. There are now thirty-three standing committees in the Sen ate, and forty-seven in the House of Representatives. Although they may in some cases have different names, the committee organizations of the two houses closely parallel each other. There is an appropria tions committee in each house ; committees on commerce and inter state commerce in the Senate, and a single committee on interstate and foreign commerce in the House; a committee on ways and means in the House, and a finance committee with similar functions in the Senate. Each house has a judiciary committee. The committees re
ferred to are regarded as of distinct importance; though other com mittees are at times equally powerful. The Senate committee on foreign relations is peculiarly important, because treaties may not be entered into without the concurrence of two-thirds of the senators.
Committees in each house are controlled by the political party hav ing a majority of the members of that house. Appointment to im-. portant committees is based largely on seniority in term of service, and a member serving continuously over a long period is likely to be come chairman of an important committee, if his political party is in control. Seniority as such naturally plays a larger part in the House of Representatives than in the Senate with its smaller number of members, though the business of the Senate is in good part con trolled by a small group of experienced members. Leadership in the two houses is always exercised by a few members of the politically dominant party. In the House of Representatives for many years be fore 1911, the real leadership was largely vested in the speaker, who made the appointments to standing committees. Since 1911 the speaker has been relegated more distinctly to the position of presiding officer, and committees have been elected by the House itself on the basis of selections first made by the party organizations. The majority and minority floor leaders have large influence. In the Senate there is less of individual leadership than in the House of Representatives.
The Federal Executive.—In discussing the presidential sys tem, the relation between the president and Congress has been gener ally described. There are no constitutional limitations upon a president's succeeding himself, but a tradition exists that a president should not serve for more than two terms, a tradition based on the example set by Washington and other early presidents.
The Constitution expressly authorizes the president to make cer tain appointments to office and the expansion of the National Ad ministration has greatly increased the number of officers owing their appointment to him. The more important appointments are subject to confirmation by the Senate. The United States Supreme Court has determined that where power to appoint to an executive office is vested in the president this carries with it a complete power to remove from office. Efforts upon the part of Congress to impose restrictions upon the president's power to remove even his more direct advisers led to the effort to impeach President Andrew John son in 1868, which failed. However, the president's power of removal may be limited by act of Congress with respect to quasi-legislative or quasi-judicial officers who are required to discharge their duties independently of executive control ; and the use of such officers (particularly as members of independent commissions) has greatly increased with the extension of Federal control with respect to com mercial transactions of various types, including labour disputes and hours and wages of labour.