FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

THE THREE BRANCHES OF GOVERNMENT

* Legislative – Established in Article I* Executive – Established in Article II* Judicial – Established in Article III

THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

House of Representativesand

Senate

LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

• Also called Congress.• Meet in the Capitol

Building in Washington, DC.

LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

• Bicameral - 2 Houses • House of Representatives • Senate• Responsibility is to make (create) laws.• Dual Role - constituents needs & wants and

considering what is good for nation as a whole.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

• 435 Seats• Number of seats determined by state

population.• 19 Committees - 84 sub-committees• Referred to as the “lower” house.• Leader is called Speaker of the House.

HOUSE OF REPRESENATIVES

• Has sole power to Impeach President.• All bills to raise money must come from the

House of Representatives.• All bills (laws) must pass in the House before

going to the President.

SENATE

• 100 seats -2 seats per state - separate vote• 16 Committees and 69 sub- committees• Referred to as the “upper” house• Vice President is President of Senate but NO

vote unless a tie.• Leader = President pro tempore• Nicknamed “Millionaires Club”

SENATE

• Power to try impeachment - 2/3rd vote• Senate approval needed on bills to raise

money.• All laws must pass in the Senate before going

to the President.

LEGISLATIVE BRACH

• Powers of Congress• Oversee elections• Set rules within the legislative branch• To tax, to borrow money, to coin money• Set rules of naturalization• regulate commerce• Establish Post Offices

LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

• Powers continued….• To declare war• To raise and support armies• To make all laws that are necessary and

proper

LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

• Powers that Congress DOES NOT have..• Can not suspend Habeas Corpus• Can not tax inter-state commerce• Can not take money from treasury unless a

law is passed to do so• Can not give a title of nobility

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Do Members Represent Their Voters?

• Representational view–members vote to please their constituents

• Organizational View–members vote to please fellow members of Congress

• Attitudinal View–members vote on the basis of their own beliefs

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2014 Presidential Election by County

THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH

EXECUTIVE BRANCH

• Responsible for enforcing the laws.• President is the head of the Executive

Branch.• President provides leadership by setting

goals and developing policy.

EXECUTIVE BRANCH

• Must be a natural born citizen• Must be at least 35 years old• Must be 14 years a resident within the United

States• Term is for 4 years - only 2 in a row• Must give state of the union to Congress

EXECUTIVE BRANCH

• Must take an oath as follows, “I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States”

EXECUTIVE BRANCH

• Powers of the President….• Commander and Chief of the Army and

Navy• Can grant pardons and Can veto laws.• Can call Congress into session.• Make treaties, appoint Supreme Court

Justices and Ambassadors - Senate approval

EXECUTIVE BRANCH

• Can be impeached for the following reasons:• Treason• Bribery• Other high Crimes and Misdemeanors

EXECUTIVE BRANCH

• President creates cabinet - advisors• Department of State, Treasury, Interior,

Agriculture, Justice, Labor, Commerce, Veterans’ Affairs, Defense, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, Energy, Education and NOW Homeland Security

Electoral College

Why?• Because we do not pick our President by

direct ballot. Technically, we only select electors. These electors form what is called the Electoral College and are the people who officially elect the President.

Why was it Created?

• People (then) were not knowledgeable enough to select a President.(poor communications)

• This was a check that gave the states a voice in choosing the President

• To maintain regional balance

What are the drawbacks to the Electoral College?

• Encourages low voter turnout• Diminishes third party influence• Person with most popular votes may not win• Leads to tactical, insincere voting• If there is no majority winner in the Electoral College,

the election goes to the H.o. R and there is a loss of separation of powers

Why low voter turnout?• The Electoral College is a winner take all

system of deciding who receives a states electoral votes. Consequently, if a person gets 50.1% of the popular vote (in a two man race), he get 100% of the electoral votes. Therefore, many people feel that their vote does not matter and choose to not vote.

Third Parties• The Electoral College discourages 3rd parties

because a candidate must have a broad based, national platform to have a chance to gain the highest office. Rarely are 3rd parties financially and politically able to do this.

Tactical Voting• Voters often resort to tactical voting in Presidential

elections because the person they truly support cannot win the all of the electoral votes. For instance, many people would have preferred Ralph Nader in the 2000 Presidential election but knew that he was not going to win. Instead, they often voted for Al Gore because he was the major candidate with the platform closest to Nader.

Obama & Romney

THE JUDICIAL BRANCH

JUDICIAL BRANCH

• Responsible for interpreting the law in regards to the Constitution

• Final court of appeals for state and federal cases.

• Supreme Court justices are appointed by the President, approved by the Senate, and they hold their office for life or retirement.

JUDICIAL BRANCH

• Currently - 9 Justices - only can be changed by Constitutional Amendment

• Justices hear 150 cases per year - over 5000 requests

• 4 Justices need to agree to hear a case• Session is October through June• Removed by impeachment or conviction

JUDICIAL BRANCH

• Qualifications - nothing listed in the Constitution

• Unofficial qualifications are:• Politically active• Lawyer or Lower Court Judge• Same political party as the President

JUDICIAL BRANCH

• Article III is where we define treason.• Treason = committing an overt action - it must

be seen• Talking about treason is not a crime• Can not punish family

JUDICIAL BRANCH

• Judicial Act of 1789• Created three part court system• Established the Office of Attorney General• Job of Attorney General is to represent the

USA in the Supreme Court and to be a legal advisor to the Executive Branch

JUDICIAL BRANCH

S u p rem e C ou rt9 Ju s tices

C ircu it C ou rts1 3 C ou rt o f A p p ea ls

S ta te vs . S ta te

D is tric t C ou rtsTria l C ou rtsC ivil C ases

C rim in a l C ases

C h ie f Ju s ticeH ead o f S u p rem e C ou rt

JUDICIAL BRANCH

• Civil Cases - sue, divorce, contracts, any case that does not involve a crime

• Criminal Cases - commit a crime• Defendant - the person on trial• Plaintiff - person who brought case to court• Prosecutor - represents city, state, people in a

criminal case

JUDICIAL BRANCH

• Influences on the Court• Precedents - past decisions• Personal legal views - strict interpretation

means to look at intent of founding fathers - broad interpretation means you need to take into account changes in society

• Justices interaction

JUDICIAL BRANCH

• Influences continued……• Public Opinion, Congress, and the President

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Overview

• Judicial Review – the power of courts to declare laws unconstitutional

• Judicial Restraint Approach – judges should decide cases strictly on the basis of the language of the Constitution

• Activist Approach – judges should discern the general principles underlying the Constitution and apply them to modern circumstances

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Map 16.1 U.S. District and Appellate Courts

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Note: Washington, D.C., is in a separate court. Puerto Rico is in the first circuit; the Virgin Islands are in the third; Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands are in the ninth.Source: Administrative Office of the United States Courts (January 1983).

Activist v. Originalist

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXeUfVhDVUM&feature=related

• http://fora.tv/2009/02/23/Uncommon_Knowledge_Antonin_Scalia#fullprogram

Divided Government

• Divided government – One party controls the White House and another party controls one or both houses of Congress

• Unified government – The same party controls the White House and both houses of Congress

• Does gridlock matter?• Is policy gridlock bad?

Copyright © 2011 Cengage

Copyright © 2011 Cengage

Points to Clarify

• Impeachment – to accuse an official of commiting a crime

• the President’s cabinet advises the President• Ex post facto – can’t be charged for a crime if

it wasn’t a crime when you did it• Habeas Corpus – trial by jury• Bill or Rights and Amendments