How Does the United States Government Work?
- The Constitution provided a separation of power into three separate branches to keep the power dynamic equal. Each branch has its own responsibilities. Yet, they work together to assure the rights of the United States citizens are not ignored. They do this through checks and balances, which is when a branch may use its powers to check the powers of the other two branches.
- There are 3 branches of the U.S. government
- Legislative (makes laws): This branch confirms or rejects presidential nominations for heads of federal agencies, the Supreme Court, and federal judges. They also have the authority to declare war and draft proposed laws. Americans have the right to vote for Representatives and Senators through confidential and free ballots
- Made up of:
- Congress is composed of two parts
- Senate: Has 100 elected senators total. There are 2 senators per state and each senator serves a 6-year term
- House of Representatives: Has 435 voting representatives. The number of representatives from each state is based on the state’s population. Each representative can be reelected and serves a two-year term
- Congress is composed of two parts
- Made up of:
- Legislative (makes laws): This branch confirms or rejects presidential nominations for heads of federal agencies, the Supreme Court, and federal judges. They also have the authority to declare war and draft proposed laws. Americans have the right to vote for Representatives and Senators through confidential and free ballots
- Executive (carries out laws): They enforce the laws and carry them out, and include executive departments, independent agencies, commissions, committees, and other boards. As an American citizen, you have the right to vote for the vice president and president through confidential and free ballots.
- Made up of:
- President: The head of the state, the commander-in-chief of the U.S. military, and the head of the U.S. government. The president can serve a four-year term but can be elected two times
- Vice President: Is the presiding officer of the Senate and supports the President. If the president is unable to serve, the vice president will become a president. The vice president can serve and be elected an unlimited number of four-year terms. This includes being a vice president under a separate president
- Cabinet: These members are nominated by the president and have to be approved by the Senate with at least 51 votes. The Cabinet serves as the president’s head of various departments and agencies as well as advisors. They include the other high-ranking government officials, the vice president, and heads of executive departments
- Made up of:
- Judicial (interprets laws): This branch decides if laws violate the Constitution, applies laws to individual cases and interprets the meanings of laws.
- Made up of:
- Supreme Court: This is the highest court in the country with nine justices who are approved by the Senate with at least 51 votes and have to be nominated by the president. Nine members make up the Supreme Court, a Chief Justice, and eight Associate Justices. There is a minimum of six Justices to decide the case, and if there is an even number of justices and a case results in a tie, the lower court’s decision stands. There is also no set term for justices, they serve until retirement, death, or removal in exceptional circumstances
- Other Federal Courts: These courts were not created by the Constitution, Congress established them all over the country to handle federal business, using the power granted by the Constitution. These courts handle cases that involve federal laws including bankruptcy, tax, and lawsuits involving state and U.S. governments or the Constitution
- Confirmation Process for Justices and Judges: The president nominates a person to fill a vacant judgeship, and then the Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing on the nominee. They vote on whether to forward the nomination to the full Senate. If the nomination goes forward, the Senate can debate the nomination and a debate must end before the Senate can vote on confirming the nominee. A Senator will then request unanimous consent to end the debate, but any Senator can refuse. Without unanimous consent, the Senate must pass a cloture motion to end the debate. It takes 51 in all 100 Senators to vote to pass cloture and end the debate about a federal judicial nominee. Once the debate ends, the Senate votes on confirmation with a needed 51 votes to 100 Senators to be confirmed
- Made up of:
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- Each branch of government can change the acts of the other branches
- The Justices of the Supreme Court are nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate, and they can overturn unconstitutional laws
- The president can nominate heads of federal agencies and can veto legislation which is created by Congress
- Congress can remove the president from the office under exceptional circumstances and can confirm or reject the president’s nominees
State and Local Government
- State and local governments are compiled of governors, mayors, state representatives, sheriffs, and city council members
- Governors: The governor is chosen by popular vote and most of them serve four-year terms. More than half of the 50 states put a limit on the number of times an individual can be elected, which is called term limits. In most of the 50 states, several other top officials are elected such as an Attorney General, a Secretary of State, and a Lieutenant Governor. Governors have the authority to issue executive orders, veto legislation, grant pardons to criminals, and prepare state budgets. In some states, power is spread out through elected officials and is checked by the legislature. In states where the power is too few, Governors have broader authority and more powers.
- State Legislatures: State legislatures vary in size from 20 to 400 and are not necessarily in proportion to the state’s population. Many state legislatures serve for several terms like the national legislature, which creates a large body of politicians. All states have guidelines to meet in annual sessions and rules for compensation, residency, and age.
- State Courts: Each state has its own court system, and most states have a Supreme Court. Most states have two types of courts: appeal courts that hear cases appealed from lower courts, and trial courts that handle issues from murder, divorce settlements, and traffic fines. In a vast majority of cases, state judges have the final voice since most come under the state rather than the federal jurisdiction.
- Power in the United States is also divided by level, past the three branches
- State constitutions determine the financing, role, and structure of state and local governments
Types of Local Governments
- There are four types of organized local governments
- Counties: These are the largest political subdivisions. They have the duties to collect taxes, record deeds, deaths, maintaining jails, keep the peace, marriages, and build and repair bridges and roads. Their primary function though is to administer state laws within their state borders, and elected officials usually lead the counties, called Commissioners and Supervisors
- Municipalities: Today, about 80% of the United States population live in municipalities. This is a city, borough government, or town and they get their authority to rule only as it is granted by the state. Municipal governments affect the lives of many citizens, and they may have elected mayors or be managed by city managers
- Townships: A township can be another name for a city or town or a subdivision of a county. These types of governments do not exist in around half of the states, and each has different responsibilities
- Special Districts: An example of a special district is a local school district, and these units of government have special functions. They are growing in numbers, especially in counties and city governments with heavily populated areas that may be overworked
- Local and state governments are in charge of issues such as marriage, death certificates, school policies, driving ages, theft, murder, birth, rape, and the primary responsibility of protecting citizens.