ABSTRACT
The United States has a bicameral legislature. In legislative matters, each house is the equal of the other.1 Both houses are chosen by popu-lar vote, albeit by differently defined constituencies. They are elected separately from the executive, and members of the two houses are precluded by the Constitution from holding any civil office under the authority of the United States. Congress displays the characteristics of what Michael Mezey has aptly termed an “active” legislature: Its policy-making power is strong and it enjoys popular support as a legitimate political institution.2 Each house is master of its own timetable and proceedings.
