Big Government Flashcards
Check prisons to make sure there are no abuses. This department is also responsible for enforcing the laws of the land. This department contains many lawyers who represent the U.S. in the courts.
Justice
If you need a report on which colleges are rated among the top in the country, which department would you contact? This department is also responsible for helping people attain student loans.
Education
You believe gasoline prices are too high and would like to know the progress with research on alternative fuels. This department inspects and maintains all nuclear power plants in the U.S.
Energy
You believe the environment in your workplace is unsafe. What department would you report this problem to? This department requires all workplaces to have a poster placed in a lunchroom or prominent place. This poster explains what rights workers have and contains information on current minimum wage rates.
Labor
If you need a loan for your small business what department would you contact? This department promotes American business around the world and tries to negotiate trade agreements with other countries that are beneficial to American businesses.
Commerce
If you were poor and needed a place to live, which department would you contact? This department issues low-interest loans to poor people so they can find an adequate place to live.
Housing and Urban Development
If you got bad meat, poultry, and/or eggs at the supermarket, what department would you contact? This department also has programs which helps addicts (drug and alcohol) achieve treatment for their substance problem. Many of the commercials made to deter people from using drugs and alcohol are produced by this department. This department also runs the Obamacare exchange.
Health and Human Services
This department checks meat, poultry, eggs, milk, and crops prior to these products being shipped to the supermarkets and wholesalers. This department also ensures poor people receive food stamps. Lastly, this department also helps farmers use their land efficiently and assists farmers who are having problems with their crops.
Agriculture
If you had a complaint about an airline company which department would handle this? This department also conducts crash tests on automobiles sold in the U.S. and gives these cars/trucks a star rating (up to five stars).
Transportation
This department recruits people into the armed services and trains them. This department also creates and develops weapons to be used in combat.
Defense
This department negotiates treaties with other nations and also tries to promote good relations with other countries in the world. Ambassadors representing the U.S. in other countries belong to this department. If you wanted to know if a country was safe to travel to which department would provide you with this information?
State
This department is consistently redesigning U.S. currency to protect it from counterfeiting. This department is also responsible for monitoring the financial state of the U.S. and is responsible for collecting federal taxes.
Treasury
This department is responsible for protecting and preserving the U.S. National parks. If you were a Native American living on a reservation and had a problem which department would you go to for help?
Interior
If you served in the Iraq and Afghan wars and were suffering from post traumatic stress disorder which department would you go to for help? This department is also responsible for providing prescriptions and medical support for former soldiers.
Veterans Affairs
If you thought your next-door neighbor was making fake IDs for possible terrorists entering the country illegally which department would you contact to report this? This department is responsible for checking luggage and people who fly on planes.
Homeland Security
Who is in the office of the presidency?
- The Executive Office of the President (EOP)
- The Cabinet
What is the position with the most power in the EOP?
The White House Cheif of Staff
What are the 2 methods most presidents use to organize their Executive Office of the President staff?
- The circular/wheel method
- The pyramid method
How many people are in the president’s cabinet?
15
Who are the people in the cabinet selected by?
The president; needs to be approved by the Senate
What are members of the cabinet called?
Secretaries
What is the Attorney General the head of?
Head of the Justice Department
- Investigates all significant accidents in many modes of transportation
- Conducts special investigations concerning accidents and safety studies
- Recommend actions and measures to prevent future accidents
NTSB - National Transportation Safety Board
- They plan for, respond to, and help people recover from both natural and human-made disasters
- They help alleviate areas of the country dealing with disaster through support, funding, rebuilding, providing supplies, and temporary housing
FEMA-Federal Emergency Management Agency
- They provide insurance for people who deposit funds in financial institutions (ex. banks)
- They do not cover all funds like stocks and investments based on the stock market like mutual funds, stocks, and retirement accounts.
- They insure up to $250,000
FDIC-Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
- They investigate violations of federal law
- They provide assistance to federal, state, and local governments and will offer support to foreign countries
- They hold fingerprint and DNA evidence
FBI-Federal Bureau of Investigation
- They regulate and make rules for any mode of transportation that transports goods across the U.S.
- They regulate trains, trucks, buses, boats, express companies etc…
- They regulate the certification of carriers
- They ensure shipping rates are fair to the public
ICC-Interstate Commerce Commission
- They were created to administer and enforce all federal election laws
- They have six commissioners
- They oversee all elections in the U.S.
- They lack power due to their small size
FEC-Federal Election Commission
- They prevent and protect public health by researching and monitoring food, drugs, cosmetics, and medical devices.
- They approve or do not approve medications, vaccines etc…
- They do not study vitamins, supplements, and dietary products
FDA-Food and Drug Administration
- They investigate, enforce, and protect investors in the stock market
- Their goal is to provide fair and equal trading opportunities in the stock market
- One of their main goals is to prevent insider trading (this allows people to invest in the stock market with knowledge typical Americans do not have)
SEC-Securities and Exchange Commission
- They regulate television, radio, satellite, and cable communications in the U.S.
- They try to uphold morality and values in communications
- They try to encourage competition among providers
FCC-Federal Communications Commission
- They protect human health by safeguarding and protecting natural resources including air, water, land, and animals
- They also sponsor and conduct research needed to protect the environment
EPA-Environmental Protection Agency
- They try to prevent unlawful discrimination in the workplace
- They try to provide fair opportunity for all in the workplace
- They investigate and enforce violations of federal work laws
EEOC-Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
- They try to save lives, prevent injuries, and protect the health of workers in the U.S.
- They try to ensure safe and healthy working conditions for employees
- They also provide training, education, and assistance for employers and workers
OSHA-Occupational Safety and Health Administration
- They help keep American families and people safe by reducing the risk of injury or death from products purchased in the U.S.
- They issue mandatory standards to ensure products sold to U.S. citizens are safe
- They ban harmful products from being sold in the U.S.
- They regulate a large range of goods from microwaves to children’s toys
CPSC-Consumer Product Safety Commission
- They regulate, research, and enforce a system of air traffic control and navigation for aircraft
- They aim to provide the most safe and efficient air transportation in the world
FAA-Federal Aviation Administration
- They try to prevent, detect, and respond to diseases that could affect the U.S.
- One of their main goals is to prevent diseases from coming to the U.S. from other countries
CDC-Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
When the national government is made up of various agencies and bureaus which serve many different functions for the country
Big Government
Government marked by the spreading out of authority among numerous offices and bureaus staffed by non-elected officials
Bureaucracy
Pros of Big Government
- Provides services for citizens
- Protects the nation
- Provides many jobs
- Takes a load off of the President
- Protects peoples’ rights
Cons of Big Government
- Expensive - taxes needed to pay for it
- Many scandals can occur due to the
the large size of the government - Red tape - much delay/barriers and
confusion about who does what job - Bureaucrats can drag their feet and
not do what the President wants - Spoils system-hiring friends
- Invades people’s rights
- Hard to fire bureaucrats
