1. Civics and Government

2. Joachim Gauck  President  Serving since March 2012  Elected – 991 out of 1228 in the Federal Convention.* * is a special constitutional body in the political and federal institutional system of Germany, convened solely for the purpose of electing the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, either every five years or within 30 days of the premature termination of a presidential term. Angela Merkel Chancellor Serving since 2005 Nominated by president and elected by the people She is on her 3 rd 4-year term Background & Qualifications -Must be at least 40 -Entitled to vote in Bundestag elections -Cant serve more than two consecutive five-year terms

3. Barack Obama -President -Elected -In his second 4-year term currently Background & Qualifications - be a natural-born citizen of the United States -be at least thirty-five years old -have been a permanent resident in the United States for at least fourteen years.

4. GERMANYUSA  Bundestag  Bicameral  598 seats  US Congress  Bicameral  100 in senate; 438 in House of Representatives

5. GERMANY – BASIC LAWUSA – BILL OF RIGHTS  Equality before the law – men and woman have equal rights  Rights of liberty – personal freedoms  Freedom of faith, of conscience and of creed  Freedom of religion  Right to bear arms  Freedom of speech  Freedom of assembly

6. GERMANYUSA  Two party system  Social Democratic Party – civil and political rights, social democracy and justice, and strong economy.  Christian Democratic Union – Christian beliefs and conservatism.  Two party system  Republican – conservative, traditional, less government spending.  Democrat – liberal, “go green,” favor change and equality.

7. GERMANYUSA  Must be 18 years of age  Must be a German citizen.  Held every four years  Elections are held for the Bundestag, the Landtags of the various states, and local elections.  Bundestag – lower house of federal parliament  Must be 18 years of age, US citizen, legal resident of state in which he/she votes, and must be registered.  The US holds a general election each year on Tuesday following the first Monday, to fill an elective office like mayor or senator.  A primary election is used by political parties to determine a candidate for a specific office, like president. Held every four years.  Closed – only members of party can vote in party primary  Open – any member can vote in party primary

8. GERMANYUSA  Most of Germany’s tax revenue comes from income tax and VAT.  VAT is Value Added Tax and is a type of consumption tax; it is a tax only on the value added to a product, material, or service.  Germany spending:  Military – 10.4%  Education and Research – 4.2%  Healthcare – 4.7%  Labor and Social Affairs – 41.3%  Most of the US money is made from tax revenue and 47% of this revenue comes from income tax.  Other tax revenue would be social insurance tax, estate tax and excise tax.  Nontax revenue comes from passports, copyrights, tolls, and interest.  The US spending  Military – 57%  Education - 6%  Healthcare – 5%  Social Security, Unemployment & Labor – 34% **Germany’s word for tax is die Steuer meaning help.

9. GERMANYUSA

10. GERMANYUSA  In 2010, 5.93 million criminal acts were committed.  In 2010, 72,052 people were in prison.  Germany does not have capital punishment. It was banned in 1949.  In 2010, there were an estimated 1,246,248 violent crimes.  The property crime rate was 2,941.9 offenses per 100,000 persons.  In 2008, 2,418,352 people were incarcerated.  The US does have capital punishment