Watch Three Ring Binder Video Think about these

◦ Watch Three Ring Binder Video ◦ Think about these questions while watching the video: How many branches of government are shown? Why did the founders choose to separate the government into three branches?

The Legislative Branch Main responsibility *Make the laws*-Article I Structure of Congress is bicameral ◦ Meaning it has two chambers, or houses Members of House of Representatives Senate 435 Members (Population)–CA (53) vs. AK, DW, MN, ND, SD, VT, WY (1) 100 Members (2 Per State) President of the Senate. VP, Tie Breaker Speaker of the House. Leader of Maj, 3 rd President Pro Tempore. Oldest, 4 th Majority/Minority Leader–Support Majority/Minority Leader-Support Majority/Minority Whip-Count Votes Majority/Minority Whip. Count Votes Congress

The Legislative Branch Qualifications How House Senate 25 years old 30 years old Citizen for 7 years Citizen for 9 years Long House Senate 2 year term 6 year term No term limits, can be reelected indefinitely

The Legislative Branch Key Powers Congress has two types of powers: ENUMERATED: actually listed in the Constitution IMPLIED: not specifically listed, but are “necessary and proper” to get their job done (aka: ELASTIC CLAUSE)

The Legislative Branch Enumerated Powers Pass laws Print money Borrow money Tax Create and support armies Regulate trade between states with foreign countries Declaring war and peace Regulate immigration Regulate naturalization Establish lower courts Establish post offices and

The Legislative Branch Checks Balances and Power of the legislative branch to: Impeach and remove a President or judge- House impeaches, or accuses of wrongdoing; then Senate holds a trial to potentially remove them from office Confirm appointments- if Prez wants a specific person as a Justice, the Senate needs a majority vote to confirm, or approve the position Ratify treaties- Senate ratifies, or approves treaties (agreements between the US and other countries) Propose amendments

The Legislative Branch Checks Balances and Limits of the legislative branch: President can veto legislation. Congress can override with 2/3 vote Powers not given to Congress are reserved for the states Cannot pass ex post facto laws (law made that was meant to punish AFTER crime has occurred) Cannot pass Bills of Attainder (punishing someone without a trial) Cannot suspend the writ of habeas corpus (cannot detain or imprison someone unlawfully)

The Executive Branch Main responsibility *Enforce ◦ Article II the laws- Members President: Oath of Office Vice President: President of the Senate, 2 nd, little in Constitution Cabinet: Senior appointed officers of agencies/departments, tradition after Washington, SOS 4 th

The Executive Branch Qualifications How Long? At least 35 years old Natural born citizen Must be a resident of the U. S. for 14 yrs 4 year term Can serve two 4 year terms or a total of 8 years Elected How Elected by the Electoral College # of electors based on Reps+Sen (population) All but two states have a popular electionthe winner gets all that state’s votes (If no candidate wins a majority, the House of Representatives will pick the President) WATCH ELECTING A PRESIDENT IN PLAIN ENGLISH

The Executive Branch Roles of the President and powers Chief Executive – carry out or enforce laws, in charge of cabinet, appoint judges, give pardons, State of the Union address (speech) Chief Diplomat – leads foreign policy, make treaties, appoints ambassadors (people who represent the U. S. in other countries) Head of State – the face of the country (greets leaders, awards medals) Commander in Chief – can order troops into battle Legislative Leader – proposes ideas for new laws, vetoes bills (does not allow bills to become laws) or signs them in approval Economic Leader – plan the gov’t budget Party Leader – leads their political party (speeches, backs other politicians from their party)

The Executive Branch Powers President of the Like the Legislative branch, the Executive branch has enumerated (or expressed) powers and implied powers The President can issues Executive orders which are similar to laws or treaties, but do not need the approval of the Legislative branch… these are issued when time is of the essence (when something needs to happen quickly)

The Judicial Branch Main responsibility Systems courts of *Interpret the laws based on the Constitution*-Article III There are 2 systems of courts: ◦ Federal – disputes about laws that apply to the ENTIRE U. S. ◦ State – mostly deal with disputes about state laws ◦ WATCH GOVERNMENT MADE EASY: JUDICIAL BRANCH

The Judicial Branch U. S. District Courts Members District How 94 Key many Powers Court Judges U. S. District Courts – at least 1 per state (larger states like CA *4* have more) District court=trial court Original jurisdiction – hears case for first time ONLY court where WITNESSES testify and JURIES determine verdicts (outcome of case) They hear both CIVIL (disputes among citizens) and CRIMINAL (relating to crimes committed)

The Judicial Branch U. S. Court of Appeals Members Appeals Judges How 13 total appeals courts: Key many Powers ◦ 12 U. S. Courts of Appeals– which cover a particular area called a “circuit” ◦ PLUS one in Washington D. C. called the U. S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit Some people who lose their case at the district court level may appeal to the next level: court of appeals Appellate jurisdiction – power to REVIEW a decision from a lower court ◦ Looking to see if previous court made a mistake---NOT to redetermine whether someone is guilty or innocent (was previous trial FAIR and was law interpreted correctly? ) ◦ Cases heard by 3 judge panel, NO jury

The Judicial Branch U. S. Supreme Court Members How Key many Powers 9 Supreme Court Justices (one chief justice, 8 associate justices) Appointed by Prez, approved by Senate No qualifications (no age, citizenship or residency requirements) Appointed for LIFE, no term limits ONE court (it is SUPREME, highest court in land) Sees cases with both original AND appellate jurisdiction ◦ ORIGINAL: in cases involving diplomats (representatives of other countries or disputes between states) ◦ APPELLATE: reviews cases that are thought to go against the Constitution (JUDICIAL REVIEW) Gets about 7, 000 case requests per year, CHOOSES between 100 -150 cases to actually hear