VOA慢速英语2018--什么是美国参议院？

What Is the US Senate?

The Senate is one of the two parts of the United States Congress, the legislature that makes the country’s laws.

The Congress has two parts because the men who wrote the U.S. Constitution could not agree on details of the new form of government.

Men from states with large populations thought they should be able to send more lawmakers to Congress. After all, their states had more people.

But men from states with smaller populations thought each state should have the same number of lawmakers. After all, people in small states did not want their voices to be lost.

So the Constitution-writers agreed that part of Congress should be based on states’ populations, and the other part of Congress should have equal representation¹.

The Senate is the part with equal representation. Each state has two senators³, no matter how big or small its population.

Differences between the Senate and House

The Constitution-writers expected members of the Senate – called senators – to help set limits on the office of the president. They gave senators the power to decide whether to try and remove the president and other government officials accused of wrongdoing. Senators also approve or reject the president’s choices for top government positions, including Supreme⁴ Court justices. And senators have powers to approve treaties with other countries.

At the same time, the Constitution-writers wanted the Senate to limit what they feared would be the strong emotions of voters. James Madison called it a “fence” against the passion of the people.

George Washington reportedly said the Senate would “cool” laws proposed by House members, who were more closely connected with everyday Americans.

Because senators have so much responsibility, the Constitution-writers required them to be a little older than House members – at least 30 years old, compared to 25. And they decided⁵ that each senator² would serve six years – compared to two for members of the House. A longer time in office would make the Senate stronger and reduce political pressures, they reasoned.

However, not all senators finish their terms at once. Every two years, one-third of senators must leave their office or seek re-election. The other two-thirds remain in place.

Finally, the Constitution-writers decided that state lawmakers would elect the state’s senators. This situation would permit states some additional power in the federal government. However, in 1913, the Constitution was changed to permit voters to elect senators directly.

The work of the Senate

The Senate does its lawmaking work through 16 regular committees. They study and make decisions on the federal budget, foreign relations, national laws and other issues.

Senators also gather together to talk – a lot – about why they plan to vote a certain way, and why other senators should support them. Unlike in the House of Representatives, the Senate permits senators to debate at length.

Because of all their talk, the Senate has been called the world’s “greatest deliberative body.”

But others have pointed⁶ out that the Senate is a group of very different, independent individuals. Getting a majority to agree can be extremely difficult. One former Senate leader said trying to get them to move together was like “herding cats.” Another described it as “loading frogs into a wheelbarrow.”

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Words in This Story

no matter - n. to say that something does not, will not, or should not affect something else?

regular - adj. normal or usual?

certain - adj. used to refer to something or someone that is not named specifically

1 representation   

n.表现某人（或某事物）的东西，图画，雕塑

参考例句：

• The painting is a representation of a storm at sea.这幅画描绘的是海上的暴风雨。
• All parties won representation in the national assembly.所有政党在国民大会中都赢得了代表资格。

2 senator   

n.参议员，评议员

参考例句：

• The senator urged against the adoption of the measure.那参议员极力反对采取这项措施。
• The senator's speech hit at government spending.参议员的讲话批评了政府的开支。

3 senators   

n.参议员( senator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• When the senators vote, the ayes will have it. 参议员投票时，投赞成票的人将占多数。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The committee concluded that the senators had engaged in improper conduct. 委员会断定议员们从事了不正当活动。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

5 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

6 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。