Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2016

Abstract

In Article I of the Constitution, the Framers vest the legislative authority of the United States government in a bicameral Congress, and over the ten sections of the Article they systematically flesh out the structure, duties, and powers of that Congress. In the early sections of Article I they describe the membership of each House, giving life to the “Great Compromise” of the Constitutional Convention under which each state has equal representation in the Senate but population-based representation in the House of Representatives. In Section 5, they grant Congress the power to govern itself.

Section 5 consists of four separate clauses, each of which addresses different practical aspects of legislative procedure.

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Displayed as a portion of the National Constitution Center's Interactive Constitution, available at: http://constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution

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