The Branches of Government & The Constitution Flashcards
What branch of government interprets the nation’s laws and settles disputes?
Judicial Branch
What branch of government creates and approves of the nation’s laws?
Legislative Branch
What branch of government carries out the laws of the nation?
Executive Branch
What is the Legislative Branch also called?
Congress
How is Congress formed?
Congress is divided into two parts. The Senate and the House of Representatives.
What does Congress do?
1 - They write the bills.
2 - They have power in foreign affairs.
3 - They can collect taxes and create a system of currency.
What are foreign affairs?
It’s the business that the US has with other nations.
What is a bill?
A bill is a document that is waiting for approval before it can be made into law.
What is a law?
A law is an official document stating a rule the nation needs to follow.
What happens if the President signs the bill?
The bill becomes a law.
What happens if the President doesn’t sign the bill?
Congress can override the president’s decision by voting for the bill’s approval by a two third’s majority vote.
What is the Senate made of?
The Senate is made of two representatives from each state.
What is the President’s Cabinet?
It’s a group of people that works directly with the president for key jobs (defense, national intelligence, education, housing, etc.)
Who needs to approve the President’s cabinet?
The Senate
What other things does the Senate approve?
US Ambassadors and federal judges.
How is the number of representatives per state in the House of Representatives decided?
It is decided by the number of citizens in each state. The states with higher populations will get more representatives in the House.
What is “to impeach”?
To impeach is to charge a government official with a crime or misconduct.
Who can impeach?
The House of Representatives
Who is the Head of the Executive Branch?
The President of the United States of
What did the Continental Congress decide?
They decided they wanted a system of checks and balances.
What is checks and balances?
The system under which each branch of government limits, or checks, the powers of the other branches.
What can the President do regarding people who committed crimes against the nation?
He can PARDON them, or forgive from a punishment.
Who heads the Judicial Branch?
The Supreme Court
What does the Judicial Branch do?
It interprets the nation’s laws and upholds the meaning of the Constitution, as well as settles disputes between the states or territories.
How many judges or justices are in the Supreme Court?
Nine judges
What is the leader of the nine judges in the Supreme Court called?
The Chief Justice.
Who appoints the Supreme Court Justices?
The President appoints them and they are approved by the Senate.
How long does the job of Supreme Court Justice last?
It is a lifetime job. They serve until they choose to retire or are impeached or found guilty of breaking the law.
What are the Articles of the Confederation?
They are the nation’s first set of laws.
When were the Articles of the Confederation used?
During the Revolutionary War.
What were the limitations of the Articles of the Confederation?
1 - It could not elect a president to rule over the states
2 - It could not tax the states to pay back debts to France and Spain
3 - It had no established court in order to settle disputes
4 - In order to pass any laws, the states had to vote 9 out of 13.
When did the Constitutional Convention happen?
May 1787
What was the Constitutional Convention?
It was a meeting to improve the Articles of Confederation.
What did the Constitutional Convention end up doing?
They ended up creating a new document.
Were all the states represented at the Constitutional Convention?
No, all states were there except for Rhode Island.
What where some things decided at the Constitutional Convention?
1 - George Washington was elected President of the Continental Congress.
2 - James Madison designed the plan of government
3 - Benjamin Franklin kept the peace between argument
4 - Morris wrote the final draft of the Constitution.
5 - The delegates agreed to a federal system
What is the Constitution?
It is a document that describes and outlines how the government should work.
How many parts does the Constitution have?
Three main parts
What are the three main parts of the Constitution?
Preamble, Articles and Bill of Rights.
What is the Preamble?
It is the introduction to the Constitution. It explains the purpose and the major goals the document tries to achieve.
What do the Articles do?
They outline the three branches of government as well as the powers and responsibilities that each branch must fulfill.
What is the Bill of Rights?
The Bill of Rights is the first ten amendments that have been added to the Constitution since its ratification, and any other amendments that have been added since.
Why is the Constitution known as a “living document”?
Because it is able to be changed as needed to mirror the changes in history.
When was the Constitution signed?
September 17, 1787
When did states approve the Constitution?
One year later, 9 out of 13 states approved the Constitution.
