The Congress Of The USA

13 Pages 3371 Words

es of the United States were made up of two houses.
The second is that a bicameral legislature offered a way of resolving a major conflict in the writing of the Constitution. Delegates to the Constitutional Convention from the heavily populated states wanted a state's representation in the new Congress to be based on population. Delegates from the less heavily populated states feared that the larger states would dominate the Congress if this were done. They insisted that each state receive equal representation. This obstacle was overcome by the Great Compromise. It provided for equal representation for each state in the Senate, and for the House of Representatives to be elected on the basis of population.
Furthermore, a legislature made up of two chambers supports the system of checks and balances that is built into the American form of government. Either house is able to block legislation approved by the other. Therefore, the two houses must often cooperate with each other and compromise on their differences in writing the nati...