The U.S. Congress is the branch of the federal government to which the founders gave the most attention, providing in the Constitution considerably more detail about it than the presidency or the judiciary. Despite this attention to detail, the structures, operations, and rituals that dictate how the national legislature carries out its responsibilities -- from headline-grabbing budget stalemates to the quotidian task of updating basic legislation -- remain opaque and mysterious to most Americans. Although millions of voters turn out at polling places every two years to elect a new House and a third of the Senate, few citizens understand how their elected officials actually do the work of "the peoples' branch." This book includes information on the place of party leadership structure, House and Senate rules, the legislative process, the committee system, and congressional staff roles in the operation of Congress.