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House vs. Senate

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KRIZDA88
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28 Feb 2008, 3:43 pm

Just a thought. Why is it that Senators are generally seen to be more powerful than Representatives in the House? Constitutionally neither one should have more power than the other, and when it comes to passing laws both have to approve it. So what makes Senators any better than Reps. Anyone have any insight into this or how the view got started?


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28 Feb 2008, 5:12 pm

In Minnesota the State Senate has less members than the House, so each Senator's vote is worth more based on percentages.



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28 Feb 2008, 6:28 pm

It might based off the years in a term 2 for each representative and 6 for a senator

However if you based on numbers the House has more members then and the Speaker of the House is third in line of succession of the presidency.

By the Constitution they are both equal.

Neither are powerful than the other because then its like the House of Commons and House of Lords in the UK which is based social status then.


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iamnotaparakeet
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28 Feb 2008, 6:56 pm

JerryHatake wrote:
It might based off the years in a term 2 for each representative and 6 for a senator

However if you based on numbers the House has more members then and the Speaker of the House is third in line of succession of the presidency.

By the Constitution they are both equal.

Neither are powerful than the other because then its like the House of Commons and House of Lords in the UK which is based social status then.


I suppose the amount of time they have would mean something toward how long they can voice their opinions. Is the US House and Senate equal in terms of number of members or in terms of, as a group, being equal in say? If your vote is 1/50 is it worth more or less than if your vote is 1/51?



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28 Feb 2008, 7:10 pm

In the bicameral legislature, the Senate was intended to be the upper house and the House of Representatives was supposed to be the lower house (much like the Roman Senate and Council of the Plebs). Originally the Senate was supposed to be the more elitist body, appointed by state legislatures rather than by popular vote and thus serving as the voice of state governments in federal affairs. Unfortunately (to my mind, anyways) this break-down of power was altered by the 17th Amendment, moving us away from the complex Republican form of government with the intricate system of checks and balances to more of a simple representative democracy. In my opinion, electing Senators directly (exactly as we elect Representatives) rather defeats the purpose of having a bicameral legislature; the House was supposed to be the popular assembly the Senate really was not. Under the current system, we may as well just have a one-house legislature.


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28 Feb 2008, 8:02 pm

Orwell wrote:
In the bicameral legislature, the Senate was intended to be the upper house and the House of Representatives was supposed to be the lower house (much like the Roman Senate and Council of the Plebs). Originally the Senate was supposed to be the more elitist body, appointed by state legislatures rather than by popular vote and thus serving as the voice of state governments in federal affairs. Unfortunately (to my mind, anyways) this break-down of power was altered by the 17th Amendment, moving us away from the complex Republican form of government with the intricate system of checks and balances to more of a simple representative democracy. In my opinion, electing Senators directly (exactly as we elect Representatives) rather defeats the purpose of having a bicameral legislature; the House was supposed to be the popular assembly the Senate really was not. Under the current system, we may as well just have a one-house legislature.


Thats pointless to have a one-house legislature because the people disliked the state legislatures picking their senators because they did not do what was in the interest of the people they represented. 16th Amendment came in that way with bribed senators. This nation was created by the people for the people governed by the people.


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28 Feb 2008, 8:27 pm

JerryHatake wrote:
Thats pointless to have a one-house legislature because the people disliked the state legislatures picking their senators because they did not do what was in the interest of the people they represented. 16th Amendment came in that way with bribed senators. This nation was created by the people for the people governed by the people.

16th Amendment came by voting on it when everyone was on vacation for Christmas. Congressmen are bribed just as easily as Senators, and the 17th election has done nothing to reduce corruption in our legislature- if you disagree feel free to look at how much money Hillary's accepted from the pharmaceutical corporations. I don't really care for your populist rhetoric, Washington, Madison, and the rest of the Founders hated democracy, and stated such openly. The Senator's did generally do what was in the interest of the people they represented- they represented the states. This tri-partite division of power- federal government, state government, and the electorate all keeping each other in check, is what Federalism is all about. You can butcher Lincoln quotes all you want, but I didn't like him as a president so that's unlikely to change my opinion.


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