US Federal Government Branches PDF

The Three Branches of Power within the Federal Government (See pages 8 and 9 of the brochure) a. The Legislative Branch 1. its composition U.S. Congress The House of Representatives The S...

The Three Branches of Power within the Federal Government (See pages 8 and 9 of the brochure) a. The Legislative Branch 1. its composition U.S. Congress The House of Representatives The Senate There are 435 representatives, elected for There are 100 senators, elected for six two years directly by the people. years directly by the people. The number of representatives per state There are two senators per state. depends on the population. The president of the Senate is the Vice- The Speaker of the House is elected by President of the United States. (Kamala Representatives. (Mike Johnson) Harris) Since January 2023, it has been the 118th US Congress (until January 2025). There is a short Democratic majority in the Senate (47 + 4 independent v. 49) and a Republican majority in the House of Representatives (220 v. 212) 2. Its role The main role of the U.S. Congress is to make laws. It also votes the federal budget. Only the US Congress has the power to declare war. How does a bill become a law ? The process is very long. See page 10 of the brochure. If you see the following acronyms in the press, what do they mean ? « H.R. 2002 has not been adopted yet » ? « Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and John Cornyn (R-Tex.)… » ? b. The Judicial Branch 1. Its composition (see page 7 of the brochure) It is made up of all the federal courts (94 district trial courts and 13 appeal courts) and is headed by the US Supreme Court (SCOTUS). The US Supreme Court is composed of nine justices : eight associate justices one Chief Justice (John G. Roberts) They are all appointed for life by the President, with the consent of the Senate. The last justice to be appointed was Ketanji Brown Jackson (in 2022 by President Biden). She replaced Stephen Breyer who retired.  - Its role The role of the US Supreme Court is twofold. It arbitrates conflicts between states, between a state and the federal government, between a US citizen and the federal government etc… It also guarantees that congressional laws and presidential orders (executive orders) are constitutional. This is the power of judicial review : the US Supreme Court is the final interpreter of the US Constitution. Do you know Supreme Courts rulings / decisions ? Here are a few examples : Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) Brown v. Topeka Board of Education (1954) Roe v. Wade (1973) Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022) c. The Executive Branch At the head of the executive branch of the federal government, there is the president of the United States (POTUS). He/She is elected for four years and can only be elected twice. What is the role of the president and how does he/she govern ? - represents the United States abroad - Commander-in-chief of the US Army - Chief Executive : He is responsible for implementing the laws voted by the US Congress. He governs with his administration. He takes EXECUTIVE ORDERS. - appoints the people at the head of the different federal departments (for example the Department of State, Department of Defense…) = they form the Cabinet. - How is a president elected ? Using page 11 of the brochure and the extract from the U.S. Constitution (Article II, Section 1) handed out in class, answer the following questions : (you can also use the following link : https://www.usa.gov/election ) 1. What are the conditions that a candidate must meet to be able to run for US presidency ? 2. How many stages are there in US presidential elections ? What are the primaries ? 3. Who are « Electors » ? How many are there and what is their role in the election ? Does it mean the US presidential elections are direct or indirect elections ?