Structure and Powers of the National Government The White House The United States Supreme Court The United States Capitol Building

Legislative Executive Judicial *Law- making *Law- executing *Law-interpreting Article I Article II Article III

Legislative Branch: A Job Description Refresher: What is representative democracy? **We elect representatives to do the day to day, hands on government work so we don’t have to  The legislative branch’s job is to translate what the people want into public policy (law)

Structure of the Legislative Branch The Senate:  100 members (2 per state)  6 year terms  Continuous body: Only 1/3 of the senate seats are up for election every 2 years. 2/3 of membership stays the same regardless of election results. The House of Representatives  435 members, with each state’s representation based on the population  2 year terms  All 435 seats are up for election every two years: NOT a continuous body. The Two Houses of Congress (two houses = bicameral)

Committees = where Congress does most of its work!  Committees are organized by subject matter.  Because of the large volume of work, committees are essential to the legislative process.  Each bill (draft of a potential law) is researched and voted upon in committee before going to the floor of the house. Most bills die in committee! Congress at Work

Terms & Sessions of Congress  A Term of Congress lasts two years First term: March 4, 1789/ ended: March 3, 1791 **What term do you think we are currently on? Answer: 114 th term ( )  There are two sessions in each term of Congress  A session is a period of time during which, each year, Congress assembles and conducts business. (A session lasts for one year).

 Convening on January 6, 2015 (that’s tomorrow!)  114 th Term / 1 st Session (2015) and 2 nd Session (2016)  Fun fact: The 20 th Amendment (1933) changed the date a term starts from March to “noon on the 3 rd day of January” of every odd-numbered year. WHY DO YOU THINK THEY CHANGED IT?  Our Current Congressional Leadership Our Current Congressional Leadership Leadership and Committees of the 114th Congress

The Expressed Powers of Congress are outlined in Article I Section 8 of the constitution. Examples of Expressed Powers include:  Levy taxes  Borrow money  All of the money borrowed by the government and not repaid is our public debt  Regulate commerce (a.k.a. the Commerce Power)  Coin money (a.k.a. legal tender)  Issue copyrights and patents  Impeach civil officials  House impeaches; Senate tries (judges) Expressed Powers of Congress

Article I, Section 8, Clause 18: “The Congress shall have Power To...make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof.”  The Necessary and Proper Clause gives Congress Implied Powers. These allow Congress to do all things “necessary and proper” to carry out its expressed powers.  Nickname: The Elastic Clause  It allows Congress to S T R E T C H the constitution Implied Powers of Congress

Legislative Executive Judicial *Law- making *Law- executing *Law-interpreting Article I Article II Article III

 Headed by the president and vice president  Includes thousands of other employees who work for:  The Executive Office, the Cabinet, and other independent agencies Executive Branch: The Structure 80% of the people who work for the executive branch work some place other than Washington DC!

 Qualifications:  Natural born citizen  35 years old  Have lived in the USA for 14 years  Terms:  4 year terms / 2 year term limit  Pay:  $400,000/year  Plus a $50,000/year expense allowance  Other benefits: living in a mansion, lots of cars, airplanes, and helicopters, a private resort hideaway, the finest healthcare treatments, generous travel funds… The Presidency: Fast Facts

 Chief of State – ceremonial head of government  Chief Executive – holds the executive power of the nation  Chief Administrator – director of the executive branch  Chief Diplomat – main architect of our foreign policy  Commander in Chief – head of the armed forces  Chief Legislator – principal author of public policy (law) ----the six roles above come directly from the constitution the two roles below come from tradition----  Chief of Party – leader of his/her political party  Chief Citizen – the representative of the people Roles of the President

Article II of the Constitution gives the president the following powers and responsibilities:  Overseeing the various parts of the executive branch  Enforcing laws  Issuing executive ordinances ( executive orders ) executive orders  Appointing and removing officials  Making treaties and executive agreements  Commanding the military as commander in chief  Signing or vetoing legislation  Issuing pardons Powers of the President

 15 Executive Offices, each headed by a Secretary (or, in the case of the Justice Dept, the Attorney General) who is appointed by the president.  Each Secretary has two jobs: serve as head of their executive department and advise the president The Cabinet

 The Presidential Succession Act of 1947 established the order of succession to the office of president. Presidential Succession

Independent Agencies of the Executive Branch

How it works:  When people vote in the presidential election, they are actually voting for presidential electors.  The number of electors for each state is determined by population (# of seats in Congress). Electing the President: The Electoral College The Electoral College  In every state except Maine and Nebraska, the electors are chosen at large. That is, they are chosen on a winner-take-all basis. The candidate who receives the largest number of popular votes in a state wins ALL of that state’s electoral votes. The first candidate to get 270 votes wins the election.

Legislative Executive Judicial *Law- making *Law- executing *Law-interpreting Article I Article II Article III

Article III of the Constitution gives the judicial power of the United States to the Supreme Court and “in such inferior courts as the congress may … establish” The Supreme Court:  Nine justices, no jury  Hears appeals from lower federal courts and highest state courts  Has limited original jurisdiction Judicial Branch

The Supreme Court

94 United States District Courts  Judge, with or without jury  Tries cases involving federal crimes and federal civil proceedings  Does not hear appeals Judicial Branch: Inferior Courts

12 United States Courts of Appeals  Judges, no jury  Hears appeals from United States district courts and certain other federal courts and commissions

Federal Inferior Courts have original jurisdiction for:  Federal Criminal Cases – a defendant is tried for committing an action that Congress has declared by law to be a federal crime  Federal Civil Cases – involves some noncriminal matter. Ex: a lawsuit in which the plaintiff seeks damages (money) for some harm done by the defendant. Judicial Branch

The US Supreme Court has final appellate jurisdiction for all cases.  For a case to reach the supreme court, the Court directs a lower court to send the records for their review using a Writ of Certiorari.  When the Supreme Court votes on a case, they issue their decision in a written statement which includes the Majority Opinion (the winning side’s argument, written by a justice who voted with the majority) as well as the Dissenting Opinion (the losing side’s argument, written by a justice who voted with the minority). Judicial Branch

Checks & Balances  Over the executive branch:  To override presidential vetoes  To impeach and convict a president  To approve or reject treaties  To approve or reject presidential appointments  Over the judicial branch:  To approve federal judges/justices  To impeach and convict judges/justices Checks of the Legislative Branch

Checks & Balances  over the legislative branch:  To veto acts of Congress  To call special sessions of Congress  over the judicial branch:  To appoint federal judges/justices Checks of the Executive Branch

Checks & Balances Checks of the Judicial Branch  over the legislative branch:  To declare laws to be unconstitutional  over the executive branch:  To declare executive actions to be unconstitutional