Language practice and comprehension check

TASK I USEFUL VOCABULARY:

oversee – v. (-sees; past -saw; past part. -seen) officially supervise (workers etc.); superintend. oversight n. 1 failure to do or notice something. 2 inadvertent mistake. 3 supervision.

take on – 1 undertake (work etc.). 2 engage (an employee). 3 be willing or ready to meet (an opponent etc.). 4 acquire (new meaning etc.).

cover-up – n. concealment of facts

coverage – n. 1 area or amount covered. 2 amount of publicity received by an event etc.

scrutiny n. – 1 critical gaze. 2 close investigation.

scrutinize v. – (also -ise) (-zing or -sing) subject to scrutiny.

expose v. – 1. reveal the identity or fact of. 2. exhibit, display.

laudatory adj. – praising.

abuse – v. (-sing) 1 use improperly, misuse. 2 insult verbally. 3 maltreat. —n. 1 misuse. 2 insulting language. 3 unjust or corrupt practice. 4 maltreatment (child abuse).

TASK II a) Match the words on the left to their synonyms on the right.

relevant	a. first
standing	b. connected
original	c. examining
investigative	d. solid
laudatory	e. permanent
substantial	f. evident
select	g. present
modern	h. praising
obvious	i. chosen

b) Match the nouns on the left to their synonyms on the right.

scrutiny	a. business
floor	examination
concern	incompetence
inadequacy	meeting
contempt	attention
coverage	fault
publicity	disrespect
shortcoming	report
involvement	proof
evidence	participation
oversight	ill-treatment
abuse	control

c) Make up sentences with the words above.

TASK III Use the following phrases in the sentences of your own/

to survive intensive scrutiny, to bring forward a proposal, to deal with the complexity of legislation, to take on the Task, to expose inadequacy, to issue subpoenas, to punish disregard, to cover up a burglary.

TASK IV Grammar review.

Find the meanings of the following derivatives in the dictionary:

1. to laud – laudatory

2. to inform – information – informative

3. to involve – involved – involvement

4. complex – complexity – complexion

5. to cover – coverage

6. public – to publicize – publicity

7. to abuse – abusive

8. to commit – committee – commission

9. to allege – allegedly – allegation

10. to govern – governance – governor - government

TASK V Complete each sentence with one of the expressions given:

a) to chair a committee; b) on the floor; c) legislative business; d) contempt of Congress; e) press and TV coverage; f) brewing hysteria; g) areas to concern.

1. Senate business includes …1….. (bills and resolutions) and executive business (nominations and treaties).

2. Both Senators Bond and Carper spoke …2…. about the healthcare proposal that President Bush outlined during the State the Union address on Tuesday.

3. This checklist is not exhaustive but it sets out the main …3…… yourselves with both before any crisis arises and during the crisis itself.

4. US playwright Arthur Miller is convicted of …4…… after refusing to reveal the names of alleged Communist writers.

5. The difference between the tabloids and the traditional …5…… is so subtle as to be unrecognizable.

6. Many liberal senators, angry with Lieberman for supporting President Bush on Iraq, don't want him to …6….. in a Democratic-controlled Senate. It appears there are two stories developing in Asia. One is the appearance of a new virus and the second is a level of …7… which is difficult to understand.

TASK VI Answer the following questions:

1. Why is professional assistance in legislative committees so important?

2. What subjects do committees scrutinize?

3. Why do the relevant committee’s recommendations have weight on the floor?

4. How many standing committees are there in Congress?

5. What are the main standing committees?

6. What was the original purpose of the committees and Congressional agencies?

7. What general Task have committees taken on?

8. What did Woodrow Wilson remark on?

9. Are committees investigative hearings mentioned in the Constitution?

10. Why has the Court upheld Congress’s right to investigate?

11. What happened to many investigators due to intense press and TV coverage?

12. What is the primary product of such committee investigations?

13. How is the Senate committee investigation of the Watergate scandal estimated?

14. What did the Watergate scandal deal with?

15. Why did President Nixon resign?

16. What was the role of Senator Joseph McCarthy in 1954 investigations?

17. What did his activity cost hundreds of people?

TASK VII Issues to discuss.

1. The legislative work of committees.

2. The Congress’s role in overseeing government.

3. The role of Senate committees.

TASK VIII Agree or disagree with the following quotations.

1. The more corrupt the state, the more laws. Cornelius Tacitus (55-120).

2. A public man is a responsible man, and a responsible man is a slave. Benjamen Disraeli (1804-1881).

TASK IX Read the following passages and entitle them.

1. Bills may originate in either the House of Representatives of the Senate, unless a bill involves raising revenue, in which case it must originate in the House of Representatives. (U.S. Const. art. I, sec. 7). Only Senators and Representatives (also known as Members of Congress) can introduce a bill in their respective chamber. When bills are introduced, they are given a bill number. The numbering system starts over with each session of Congress, and bill numbers run in chronological order according to when the bill is introduced. Bills in the House of Representatives are given the initial H.R., and Senate Bills are given the initial S. Thus, H.R. 1, would be the first bill introduced in a new session of Congress or the House of Representatives (a session of Congress lasts for two years).

2. Once the bill has emerged from committee consideration, it moves to the “floor” of either the House of Representatives or the Senate (again depending on where the bill was introduced). The entire chamber then debates and may amend the bill. The chamber then takes an open vote on the bill. For non-controversial votes, the chamber will take a voice vote, but if any legislator asks for a roll call, then each member’s vote is made separately and publicity.

3. If the bill passes the first chamber, it is sent to the other chamber where the process described above is repeated. If the bill is amended in the second chamber, it must be sent back to the first chamber because both chambers must agree on the amendments. If the two chambers cannot immediately agree on how to pass identical legislation, the bill will be sent to a joint committee (comprised of both House of Representatives and Senate members), which will attempt to work out a compromise among the different versions of the bill. If the joint committee is successful, the bill will be returned to both chambers for a vote.

4. All floor debates and votes are published the following day in the Congressional Record. Legislators can review the Congressional Record before it is published to change or add a statement. The Government Printing Office publishes committee reports for major legislation separately. In recent years, many committee hearings, floor debates and votes have been broadcast live from C-SPAN (Cable Satellite Public Affairs Network), a cable television network that provides twenty-four coverage of public affairs.

Text 7. THE ENACTMENT PROCESS