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 The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the lower house being the House of Representatives. The composition and powers of the Senate and the House are established in Article One of the Constitution (which does not use the terms "upper" and "lower"). Regardless of population, each U.S state is represented by two senators and is therefore based on the equal representation of each state. Senators serve six-year terms that are staggered, so that every two years, a third of the Senate will be elected, while the other third will be elected in another two years, a constant reshuffle. Hence, there are Senate races every two years. According to a theory long popular among scholars of United States government, the Senate is regarded as a more deliberative body than the House of Representatives because the Senate is smaller and its members serve longer terms, allowing for a more collegial and less partisan atmosphere that is somewhat more insulated from public opinion than the House. The Senate has several exclusive powers not granted to the House, including consenting to treaties as a precondition to their ratification and consenting to appointments of Cabinet secretaries and federal judges. The Framers of the Constitution created a bicameral Congress out of a desire to have two houses to be accountable to each other. One house was intended to be a "people's house" that would be sensitive to public opinion. The other house was intended to represent the states. It was to be a more deliberate forum of 'elite wisdom' where six-year terms insulated the senators from public opinion. The Constitution provides that the approval of both chambers is necessary for the passage of legislation. The Senate of the United States was formed on the example of the ancient Roman Senate. The name derives from the senatus, Latin for council of elders (from senex meaning old man in Latin).[1]
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