简单点说国会是美国最高立法机关,就是最高级别.
选总统都要通过国会.别说是国防部长了.
国会
联邦立法机构--国会(Congress)
http://thomas.loc.gov 美国最高立法机关。由参议院和众议院组成。国会行使立法权。议案一般经过提出、委员会审议、全院大会审议等程序。一院通过后,送交另一院,依次经过同样的程序。法案经两院通过后交总统签署;若总统不否决,或虽否决但经两院2/3议员重新通过,即正式成为法律。国会还拥有宪法所规定的其他权力。如对外宣战权、修改宪法权等。两院均设有许多委员会,还设有由两院议员共同组成的联席委员会,国会工作大多在各委员会中进行。委员会分为:①常设委员会,其数目各届国会不尽相同,任期与每届国会任期同为2年。影响较大的有:众议院的议事规则、赋税、拨款、军事、司法、外交等委员会,参议院的外交、拨款、财政、司法、军事等委员会。②特别调查委员会,为处理临时或专门性问题而设立。③联席委员会,需要作出与两院共同有关的决定时成立。④调解委员会,其任务是拟定一个能为两党接受的议案。国会还设有总审计室、国会图书馆等附属机构。
参议院
http://www.senate.gov/ 总统与外国缔结的条约及总统任命的高级官员须经参议院,参议院还有权审判弹劾案,有权在特殊条件下复选副总统。参议员由各州选民直接选出,每州2名,实行各州代表权平等原则。现有议员100名。当选参议员必须年满30岁,作为美国公民已满9年,当选时为选出州的居民。任期6年,每2年改选l/3,连选得连任。副总统是参议院的当然议长。
众议院
http://www.house.gov 众议院有权提出财政案和弹劾案,有权在特殊条件下复选总统。 众议员数按各州人口比例分配,每州至少1名。按1929年《议席分配法》,将众议员总数固定为435名,并根据联邦商务部统计局每10年提供的各州人口变动情况,重新调整各州之间的议席分配。众议员由直接选举产生,必须年满25岁,作为美国公民已满7年,当选时为选出州的居民。任期2年,连选得连任。众议院议长由全院大会选举产生。
两院议员长期连任现象极为普遍。议员不得兼任其他政府职务。
国会网址大全(Congressional Mega Sites )
Major web sites for many facets of legislative information, including government, commercial, non-profit, and educational sources such as: THOMAS, GPO Access, C-SPAN, CapWeb, Legi-Slate, CQ Washington Alert, University of Michigan Documents Center, National Archives, Federal News Service, Federal Network, etc.
国会议员 (Members of Congress )
U.S. Senate - U.S. House of Representatives
国会委员会(Committees of Congress)
Senate Committees - House Committees - Joint Committees - Conference Committees
国会的组织机构及任务Congressional Organizations and Commissions
Congressional Support Agencies - House Support Offices - Democratic Organizations - Republican Organizations - Commissions, Caucuses, Task Forces
国会的电子邮件地址(E-Mail Addresses for Congress )
Congressional E-Mail Directories - Who Represents Me in Congress?
国会的时间表(Congressional Schedules )
All Schedules - House - Senate
国会大事表(Congressional Calendars )
All Calendars - House - Senate
议员席诉讼程序(Floor Proceedings )
House - Senate
立法:法案、修正案及法律条款(Legislation: Bills, Amendments and Laws )
About Legislation - Comprehensive Sites for Bills, Amendments, and Laws - Congress This Week - Major Bills and Amendments - Appropriations Bills - Bills in Conference - Bill and Amendment Summaries & Status - Full Text of Legislation - Discharge Petitions - Laws Enacted - Bills Vetoed by the President - Line Item Vetoes
美国邮政编码(United States Code) (USC)
House Internet Law Library - GPO Access - Cornell Law School
参众两院规章制度(House and Senate Rules )
House Rules - Senate Rules
国会档案及记录(Congressional Record and Journals )
Full Text - Congressional Record Index - Journals of the House of Representatives (1991-94)
投票表决名单(Roll Call Votes )
Member Voting Records - Special Interest Group Ratings
参议院行政事务(Executive Business of the Senate)
Executive Calendar - Communications - Nominations - Treaties
立法程序(The Legislative Process )
General Description - House - Senate - Legislative Glossaries
其它相关网址(英文)
Congress of the United States (Grolier Online)
About the U.S. Congress (U.S. Government Manual)
Major Differences Between the Two Houses of Congress (Project Vote Smart)
Capitol Questions (Ilona Nickels, C-SPAN)
由国会问题专家回答访问者提出的各种问题。
Legislative Powers of Congress [PDF] (CRS Report, via Senate Rules Committee)
通过 Adobe Acrobat Reader,浏览器浏览。访问者可根据 下载 。
Current Congressional Profile (Office of the Clerk of the House)