The Three Branches of Government

________(1)_________ appropriates funds for the government to function, but the ________________(2)_________________ spends the money.

1) Congress 2) executive branch

The judiciary has _____________(1)_____________, but the executive ___________________(2)____________________.

1) great authority 2) commands the military

There are currently ________ executive departments, including the Department of Justice, the Department of Education, the Department of the Treasury, and many others.

15

The president can veto bills passed by ___________________, but ___________________ can override the veto and impeach the president or federal judges.

Congress

The constitution names the president commander in chief and gives

Congress the sole authority to declare war and to fund the military.

enumerated powers

a list of items, found in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution, that set forth the authoritative capacity of Congress

At best, different parties in each branch can craft careful compromises; at worst, there is "gridlock"—

a political traffic jam in which all forward progress comes to a halt.

In order to create a limited government, the Founders

assigned different powers to each branch and gave each ways to check the power of the others.

A great deal of the president's power comes from the fact that the voters elect a president

based on what they believe he or she will accomplish in office.

In 1913, the 17th Amendment was ratified, which

called for the direct election of senators by popular vote.

Each branch can

check, or control, the power of the other two.

elastic clause

clause in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution that gives Congress the right to "make all laws necessary and proper" to carry out the powers expressed in the other clauses of Article I.

Judges hold office for life unless they

commit a crime.

Both the executive and legislative branches sometimes come into

conflict with the judicial branch.

These enumerated powers include

economic matters—the powers to levy taxes, to borrow money, to coin money, to punish counterfeiting, and to regulate commerce. They also include issues of national defense, including the power to police the high seas, to declare war, to raise and support armed forces, and to organize the militia.

Article III of the Constitution

establishes the federal court system.

Once a bill becomes law, the ___________________________ must carry it out and enforce it.

executive branch

The _______________ _________________ also includes numerous federal agencies, boards, commissions, government corporations, and advisory boards that carry out specific executive functions.

executive branch

A president can also

fire officials in the executive branch, make agreements with foreign nations, and take emergency actions to save the nation.

The Constitution says the president has the power to

grant pardons, to make treaties, and to appoint ambassadors, Supreme Court justices, and other government officials.

By contrast, the Senate

has the same number of representatives from each state.

Much of the judicial branch's power comes from the courts' ability to

interpret the Constitution and to overturn laws that violate the Constitution. This process is called judicial review.

The ability of the branches to limit one another results in a certain amount of conflict. One source of conflict stems from the congressional responsibility to monitor how the executive branch enforces the laws. Sometimes the two branches quarrel over the way the president interprets the will of Congress in the bills it has passed, and when this happens, the federal courts may be called upon to

interpret the intent of Congress on a case-by-case basis.

The Constitution allows Congress to limit the Supreme Court's jurisdiction, but Congress does not often use that authority because

it would challenge the independence of the judiciary.

Quite often, the president proposes a ______________________________ and works with legislators to have it enacted.

legislative agenda

The structure and functions of government as laid out in the Constitution

made it impossible for one person—or even a small group—to have absolute power.

So that the president does not become too powerful,

many of the executive powers require cooperation with Congress. For example, the president (and the Secretary of State, the head of the State Department) has the power to negotiate treaties with foreign countries, but he or she needs the Senate to approve those treaties before they become law.

Congress is also given the power to

naturalize citizens and establish post offices and courts.

The constitution had to be ratified, or approved, by ____________________ of the thirteen states.

nine

Congress can respond to a Supreme Court ruling by

passing a new law that clarifies meaning or by proposing an amendment to the Constitution.

The legislature is responsible for _________(1)_________ and is divided into two houses:

passing laws (1) the House of Representatives and the Senate.

The _________________ is the head of the executive branch, which includes numerous executive departments that carry out or enforce the laws passed by Congress.

president

Likewise, the power of Congress is limited by the need for

presidential approval.

Congress passes laws, but those laws generally must be

signed by the president.

Representation in the House is based on each

state's population

One of Madison, Hamilton, and Jay's most persuasive arguments was that the Constitution balanced power between

states and the national government and created three separate branches of government to divide its powers.

By creating three branches of government and dividing power among them,

the Constitution assured that the branches would need to cooperate to take many important actions. The division of power and checks and balances also creates conflict among the branches as they limit one another.

In practice, ______________________________ often provides plans for the laws that Congress considers.

the executive branch

The Constitution creates three branches of the national government:

the legislative branch (Congress), the executive branch (the president and administrative departments and agencies), and the judicial branch (the federal courts).

The House

the voice of the people, directly elected by popular vote

The Founders knew that the legislative branch would be very important, but they also feared that it might abuse its power; therefore,

they gave Congress limited and expressed powers, or powers directly stated in the Constitution.

If the president vetoes a bill, Congress needs a __________________ majority to override it.

two-thirds

The courts can determine what federal laws mean and overturn them if they are

unconstitutional.

The Constitution created the federal court system,

which hears cases about the U.S. Constitution, federal law, foreign treaties, international law, and bankruptcies. In this dual-court system, each court has the authority to hear certain kinds of cases, which is known as the court's jurisdiction.