by Charles Ray

Created on: November 30, 2009   Last Updated: December 01, 2009

When the United States was founded and the national institutions were established, special attention was given to the construction and functions of the legislature. Two Houses of the Congress were established to have very different functions.

The House of Representatives was designed as a short-tenure body to directly represent the interests of the people, while the Senate was meant to be a more deliberative body whose actions were to benefit the whole republic.

The different natures are represented by the terms of office and the method of selection. The House of Representatives serves for two year terms and are elected directly by eligible voters in their districts. Because of the short term in office, and the need for representatives to go back frequently to their constituents for reaffirmation (read re-election), this has typically been the more activist, and often raucous legislative body.

Members of the House of Representatives are expected to have a narrow, parochial view of national events, and to focus primarily on the local aspects.

Senators, elected by voters statewide, serve for six years. Not having to stand for re-election so often, Senators traditionally are expected to take a broader, long-range view of issues, and while representing the interests of citizens of their state primarily, they are also expected to take a national view of issues. The founding fathers intended the Senate to be a more deliberative body, tempering the short range view of those representing the masses.

Each House of Congress has certain prerogatives which are jealously guarded. The House of Representatives has the lion's share of power over the federal budget, and while both must agree on a budget to submit to the President for signature, often the House has the most sway - in particular for domestic budgetary items.

Foreign Affairs are an important part of the Senate's responsibility. The Constitution provides that the President must have the advice and consent of the Senate for the appointment of ambassadors and other public officers, and for the ratification of treaties.

The Senate must also approve any declaration of war, and until the Johnson Administration's Gulf of Tonkin adventure, had some control over overseas deployment of military forces. It has being trying with mixed success since the Vietnam War to re-exert control over deployment of the military.

The aforementioned is the traditional view of the differences between the House and the Senate as envisioned by the founding fathers. The increase in partisanship on the part of American politicians, and the polarization of the political process has blurred the lines.

Individual politicians have often ventured into areas that were traditionally the preserve of the other body. For instance, former Texas congressman Charlie Wilson, a Member of the House of Representatives, involved himself in the anti-Soviet resistance in Afghanistan, often doing things that would normally not have been done by a member of the House.

Senators, too, have not been immune. Former Alaska Senator Ted Stevens was the champion of local pork spending, including his famous 'bridge to nowhere.' The partisanship has also brought a sense of rancor and public bickering to the Senate that previously existed only behind closed doors.

On paper, the House and the Senate are two distinct and different bodies, but in the reality of today's polarized world, there is precious difference between them.

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