I’m Just A Bill

(Whew, you sure gotta climb a lotta steps to get to this Capitol Building here in Washington. But I wonder who that sad little scrap of paper is?)

I'm just a bill, yes I'm only a bill
And I'm sitting here on Capitol Hill
Well, it's a long, long journey to the capital city
It's a long, long wait while I'm sitting in committee
But I know I'll be a law someday
At least I hope and pray that I will
But today I'm still just a bill

(Gee, bill, you certainly have a lot of patience and courage!)
Well, I got this far
When I started, I wasn't even a bill, I was just an idea
Some folks back home decided they wanted a law passed
So they called their local congressman and he said, "You're right, there ought to be a law"
Then he sat down and wrote me out and introduced me to Congress, and I became a bill
And I'll remain a bill until they decide to make me a law

I'm just a bill, yes I'm only a bill
And I got as far as Capitol Hill
Well now I'm stuck in committee, and I sit here and wait
While a few key congressmen discuss and debate
Whether they should let me be a law
How I hope and pray that they will
But today I am still just a bill

(Listen to those congressmen arguing! Is all that discussion and debate about you?)
Yeah, I'm one of the lucky ones. Most bills never even get this far. I hope they decide to report on me favorably, otherwise I may die
(Die?)
Yeah, die in committee! Oooh, but it looks like I'm gonna live. Now I go to the House of Representatives and they vote on me
(If they vote "yes", what happens?)
Then I go to the Senate and the whole thing starts all over again
(Oh no!)
Oh yes!

I'm just a bill, yes I'm only a bill
And if they vote for me on Capitol Hill
Well then I'm off to the White House where I'll wait in a line
With a lot of other bills for the President to sign
And if he signs me then I'll be a law
How I hope and pray that he will
But today I am still just a bill

(You mean even if the whole Congress says you should be a law, the President can still say no?)
Yes, that's called a "veto". If the President vetoes me, I have to go back to Congress, and they vote on me again, and by that time it's...
(By that time, it's very unlikely that you'll become a law! It's not easy to become a law, is it?)
No! But how I hope and I pray that I will
But today I am still just a bill

(He signed you, bill! Now you're a law!)
Oh yes!