4/10/08
each chamber is controlled by the party with the most members
speaker of the house powers/responsibilities:
	presides over the house chamber
	recognizes members that wish to speak
	appoints members to select, special, and conference committees
	decides points of order
	refers bills/resolutions to appropriate house committees
	schedules legislation
	currently nancy pelosi from CA
	elected by entire house
next in power is house majority leader
	helps with scheduling and other duties
each party has whips (John Boehner, OH)
	there to help floor leader, count votes, make sure peole are there for the vote

senate: 
presiding officer is VP
president pro tempore - typically longest serving member of the majority party

committees
		permanent	temporary
legislative	standing	conference
authority	

no legis.	joint		select
authority			special

joint committees - service 
conference committees - exist on a bill-by-bill basis to work out diffs between house and senate versions, also joint committees b/c they have members of house and senate on them
most bills don't make it out of committee
house members, committees and interest groups can originate bills
full committee can decide not to do anything with a bill and let it die
filibusters only happen in the senate, can be stopped by cloture (takes vote by 3/5 of senate members), shuts off debate on a particular bill
house rules committee - arm of leadership, sets rules of debate on chamber floor on a bill-by-bill basis, doesn't issue rule, bill dies, doesn't pass rule, bill dies
closed rule is restricted access
open rule is unrestricted access
committee of the whole - 
yay for vetos and overrides and pocket vetos