The U.S. Government Standard 2

The Constitution The gov’t gets it power from the American people. The Preamble of the Constitution explains why it was written. Power was divided between the states and the federal gov’t Known as federalism Federal Gov’t makes laws for the whole country State Gov’t only has authority over people within their state

Powers Divided Delegated Powers - Powers the Constitution gives to Federal Gov’t Ex: Print money Reserved Powers – Powers set aside, or reserved, for the state Concurrent Powers – Shared powers between the Federal and State gov’ts Ex: Taxation

Separation of Powers Framers wanted to shield against tyranny so they formed multiple branches of govt Legislative Branch (Congress) Makes the laws Executive Branch (President) Carries out the laws Judicial Branch (Supreme Court) Interprets the meaning of the laws

Checks & Balances Each branch has powers to limit, or check, the powers of the other two branches. President can veto laws passed by Congress Congress can override presidential veto by two-thirds vote of both houses Congress made the Supreme Court the head of the Judicial Branch 6 Supreme Court Justices Including a chief justice Judicial review – the Supreme court reviews the acts of other branches of gov’t to make sure the gov’t has acted correctly

An Enduring Document Framers knew that the Constitution would need to be updated, or amended. They wanted it to be an enduring document Amendment – written change made to the Constitution Takes ¾ of the states Process outlined in Article V Only changed the Constitution 27 times

Interpreting the Constitution Constitution sets broad guidelines for governing Does not call for regular meetings of the executive branch. George Washington brought his advisers together Known as the president’s cabinet These traditions are seldom written down. “unwritten Constitution”

Congress & the Constitution Congress applies the Constitution to a particular issue The Supreme Court decides if Congress has interpreted the Constitution correctly If they decide a law is unconstitutional then it is dead.

Political Parties Political Party – group of citizens with similar views on public issues Political parties nominate a candidate to run for office Political parties take different positions on key issues Range of differences is known as the political spectrum In the U.S. we have a two-party system Republican & Democrat Third parties exist and at times have influenced national politics

Different Systems Multi-party system – more than two strong political parties Usually band together and form coalitions One-party system – a single political party controls the government. Citizens have no choice between political parties

Party Organizations Each political party has a national, state & local committee Sometimes has county & city The national committee selects the date, location & rules for the party’s national nominating convention Party chooses president & VP candidates

Financing Campaigns Voters, businesses, labor unions and other groups contribute money to political parties The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act revised contribution limitations Unlimited contributions through ads & other activities Known as “soft money” Americans can contribute $3 of their taxes to election funds

Elections Counties are divided into voting districts Voters vote at their assigned polling place Depends on the state how votes are cast Primary elections – held in late spring or early summer Allows voter to choose their party’s candidates for the general election

In a closed primary voters vote for a particular party’s candidate In an open primary voters can choose candidates from any major party In most states, whoever receives the most votes wins the primary election General election for the president as the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November every 4 years Congressional elections occur every 2 years U.S. adopted the secret ballot in 1888

Electoral College The popular vote is the vote of the citizens The popular vote does not always predict the president An elector is the person chosen from each state & D.C. who formally select the president Group of electors is called the electoral college There are 538 electors Number of electors per state is equal to the number of Senators & Representatives in Congress

A few weeks after elections, electors cast their votes. Before the election, each political party in every state selects electors Electors promise to vote for the party’s candidate In every state, except NE & ME, the electors vote for the person who wins the popular vote A few weeks after elections, electors cast their votes. Candidate who receives majority, or 270+, electoral votes wins If neither candidate receives majority the HOR selects the president.

Nomination Process A party’s platform is a statement of the party’s views and policies Each part of the platform is called a plank The candidate for each party is usually determined after the primary They are formally chosen at the national convention VP candidates are chosen for their ability to win votes.