1. How many members of Congress are there?
	There are 535 members of Congress.

2. What is the minimum age of House members? Senate members?
The minimum age for House members is 25 years old. Senate members must be at least 30 years old.

3. What are the dominant prior occupations of most Congress members?
Most Congress members were employed in law and business, occupations with high status and usually with substantial incomes.

4. Why are women underrepresented in Congress?
Women are underrepresented in Congress because the dominant prior occupations of Congress members are traditionally held by and favor white males, such as law and business.

5. What is an incumbent?
An incumbent is someone already holding office in Congress.

6. Compare/contrast the reelection bids of House members and Senators.
In the House, incumbents are usually reelected at overwhelming rates. In the Senate, however, odds for reelection are slightly lower for incumbents, and they usually win by lower margins. The reason for the lower rates of reelection for Senate members is because they represent an entire state, which means that there is a larger base for opposition.

7. What is casework?
Casework is any activity of members of Congress which help constituents on an individual level. Casework serves to cut through the bureaucratic red tape to get people what they think they have a right to get.

8. What is a bicameral legislature?
A bicameral legislature is a legislature which is divided into two Houses. With the exception of Nebraska, every American state legislature as well as the U.S. Congress is a bicameral legislature.

9. What powers does the Constitution give the House? Senate?
The Constitution gives the House the power to initiate all revenue bills and to pass all articles of impeachment. The Constitution gives the Senate the power to to ratify all treaties, to confirm important presidential nominations (including nominations to the Supreme Court), and to put impeached officials on trial.

10. What are congressional term limits?
Congressional term limits are the limits on the number of terms a member of Congress may serve. Reformers in the 1980s felt that the high rate of incumbency in Congress served as a roadblock to change and encouraged ethics abuse. In 1995 and 1997, the Supreme Court decided that state-imposed term limits on members of Congress were unconstitutional.

11. What does the House Rules Committee do?
The House Rules Committee reviews most bills coming from a House committee before they go before the full House. The Rules Committee gives each bill a 'rule', which schedules the bill on the calendar, allots time for debate, and sometimes even specifies what kind of amendments may be offered.

12. How does seniority play a role in Congress?
Up until the 1970s, the seniority system was a rule for selecting committee chairs. The member who had served on the committee the longest and whose party controlled Congress became chair, regardless of party loyalty, mental state, or competence. Today, seniority usually means that a member of Congress is an incumbent who has had success in defending their seat.

13. What is a filibuster?
A filibuster is a strategy unique to the Senate whereby opponents of a piece of legislation try to talk it to death, based on the tradition of unlimited debate. Today, a filibuster can be halted by 60 members present and voting.

14. What are the duties of the majority/minority leaders? Whips?
The majority leader's duties are to schedule bills, influence committee assignments, and rounding up votes on behalf of the party's legislative positions. The minority leader's duties are the same as the majority leader's, but they act on behalf of the minority party. The duties of the whips are to work with the majority or minority leaders to count votes beforehand, and to secure votes which are vital to the passing of a bill favored by the whip's party.

15. What are select/standing/joint committees?
Select committees are appointed for a specific purpose, such as the Watergate investigation. Standing committees are formed to handle bills in different policy areas. Each house of Congress has its own standing committees. Joint committees exist in a few policy areas, such as the economy and taxation; their membership is drawn from both the Senate and the House.

16. What is the Congressional Budget Office responsible for?
The Congressional Budget Office focuses on analyzing the president’s budget and making 	economic projections about the performance of the economy, the costs of proposed policies, and the economic effects of taxing and spending alternatives.

17. Discuss the policymaking process.
The U.S. Congress is bicameral and is split into the House of Representatives and the Senate. The House of Representatives is more hierarchical. The House Rules Committee reviews bills before sending them to the Full House and puts them on an agenda. The Senate operates on a separate agenda. The House has power to initiate revenue bills, but the Senate has the responsibility to ratify all treaties. Both the House and Senate must agree on a policy before sending it to the president for final approval.
18. Discuss the models of representation.
Members of Congress cannot claim descriptive representation-that is, representing constituents by mirroring their personal political characteristics. They can, however, engage in substantive representation which mirrors the interests of their groups.

19. What does a conference committee do?
A conference committee is composed of members of both House and Senate and irons out differences between bills.
20. Explain presidential leadership “at the margins”.
The president doesn’t focus on making change by shaping the political landscape, but rather works at the margins of coalition building to recognize and exploit opportunities presented by favorable configuration of political forces.
21. Know the different ways a bill becomes law.
First, a bill is drafted in precise, legal language. Next, it is introduced by a member and assigned to a subcommittee, from where it is sent to a Full Committee. If it is approved by the full committee it is placed on the calendar and sent to the Full House by the Rules Committee. The Full House debates the bill, offers amendments, and votes on it. If the bill passes in a different version than that of the Senate, it is sent to the Conference Committee to iron out the differences. They each re-vote on the new compromised bill and then send it to the president to be signed or vetoed.
22. What is the quintessential dilemma for Congress?
The quintessential dilemma for Congress is combining the faithful representation of constituents with making effective policy.
23. Know the racial/ethnic makeup of Congress.
In the House, there are 361 Whites, 44 Blacks, 25 Hispanics, 7 Asians, and 1 American Indian. In the Senate, there are 96 Whites, 0 Blacks, 2 Hispanics, 2 Asians, and 0 American Indians.
24. What is an open-seat election?
An open-seat election means that there is no incumbent running for the seat.
25. Know and understand Senate rules.
The vice president slights senatorial chores and leaves power to the party leaders. In return, Senators usually ignore vice presidents except when they use their power to break ties.
26. What is malapportionment?
Malapportionment is apportionment for the purposes of restricting voting to districts that ensure the desired outcome.
27. What is substantive representation?
Substantive representation is when a member of Congress represents the interests of a group.
28. What does “unsafe at any margin” mean?

29. What is 'pork-barrel' politicking?
Pork barrel politicking refers to spending that is intended to benefit constituents of a politician in return for political support.
30. What is unique about Nebraska's legislature?
It is the only state legislature in the entire U.S that is not bicameral.