16.American Political System.ppt.ppt

Mount Rushmore,Capitol Building,The White House,Supreme Court Building,Political System,US Political Institutions,I.The US ConstitutionII.The Executive BranchIII.The Legislative BranchIV.The Judicial BranchV.Political Parties,American Constitution,The Constitution of 1787-the oldest written constitution in the world,The US Constitution,Two CharacteristicsFederalism Separation of powers:checks and balances,Federalism,Federalism means the division of the powers of government between the nation and the state.Each American is subject to two governments:1)the government of his state and 2)the government of the Union.The states have the primary functions of providing law and order,education,public health and most of the things,which concern day-to-day life.The federal government at Washington is concerned with foreign affairs and with matters of general concern to the states,including commerce between the states.,The US Constitution,Separation of powers:checks and balances Separation of Powers It refers to the principle that the national government is split into 3 branches:legislative,executive and judicial.In the legislative branch,power is split further into 2 houses.,THE CONSTITUTION OF THE U,S,1787,Article 1.Sec.1.All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States,which shall consist of a Senate and a House of Representatives,Article 2.Sec.1.The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America.He shall hold his office during the Term of four years,THE CONSTITUTION OF THE U,S,1787,Article 3.Sec.1.The judicial power of the United States,shall be vested in one supreme Court,and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish.,THE CONSTITUTION OF THE U,S,1787,checks and balances,Separation of powers:checks and balances Checks and BalancesEach branch has part of the powers but not all the power.Each branch of government can check,or block,the actions of the other.The 3 branches are in balance.,Checks and Balances,Congress may pass a law,but the President can veto,or cancel it.Then Congress may pass the law again-this time by a 2/3 vote-and the president cannot veto it.But the law may still be cancelled if the Supreme Court decides it unconstitutional.The Congress can impeach(sack)the president or a Supreme Court judge,Checks and Balances,Examples,Article 4.The Congress,whenever two thirds of both houses shall deem it necessary,shall propose Amendments to this Constitution,THE CONSTITUTION OF THE U,S,1787,Amendment II,A well regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free State,the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed.,纪律严明的民兵是保障自由州的安全所必需的，人民持有和携带武器的权利不可侵犯。,The Three Documents That Made America,Political Principles of the U.S.Government,The separation of powersFederalismRespect for the constitution andthe rule of law,US Federal Government,The Legislative Branch,A Two-chamber(Bicameral)Congressthe Senate(Upper House)2/states 6-year termsthe Vice President the House of Representatives(Lower House)determined by population 2-year termsSpeakerQualificationsSenatorsMembers of the House of Representative,US Capitol Building,Powers of the House and SenateBoth Houses have the power to introduce legislation on any subject.The Senate has the authority to confirm presidential appointments of high officials as well as ratify all treaties.The House has power over revenue bills and brings charges of improper behavior of officials.,The Legislative Branch,How a Bill Becomes a Law,1.A member of Congress introduces a bill 2.Committees review and vote on the bill Committees are made up of small groups of senators or representatives.The committee may reject the bill and“table”it,meaning it is never discussed again.Or it may hold hearings to listen to facts and opinions,make changes in the bill and cast votes.If most committee members vote in favor of the bill,it is sent back to the Senate and the House for debate.,3.The Senate and the House debate and vote on the billSeparately,the Senate and the House debate the bill,offer amendments and cast votes.If the bill is defeated in either the Senate or the House,the bill dies.If a majority of both the Senate and the House votes for the bill,it goes to the President for approval.4.The President signs the billor not If the President approves the bill and signs it,the bill becomes a law.However,if the President disapproves,he can veto the bill by refusing to sign it.Congress can try to overrule a veto.If both the Senate and the House pass the bill by a two-thirds majority,the Presidents veto is overruled and the bill becomes a law.,How a Bill Becomes a Law,The Legislative Branch,Legislative functions-The most central is the passage of lawsFirst a bill is introduced;The bill is referred to a committee which studies it and issues a report to the House;The House debates the bill and votes for or against its passage;If passed,the bill,now called and“act”,is delivered to the Senate;If the Senate approves,it will send to the President who may either sign it into law of veto it;If the President vetoed,Congress can override the veto by a 2/3 majority.,The Executive Branch,The PresidencyThe form of government in the US is described as the“presidential system”.The president is head of the executive branch,head of the state,and commander of the armed forces.The First Citizen The First LadyTwo successive four-years terms,Qualifications for a US President,A natural-born American citizen at least 35 years old.Candidates for the Presidency are chosen by political parties before the presidential election,Executive powersissue rules,regulations and instructions,called executive orders.the Commander-in-chief of the armed forces.Legislative powersissue bills and political orders veto any bill passed by Congress and,unless 2/3 in each house vote to override the veto,the bill does not become law.,Presidential Powers,Powers in foreign affairsrelations with foreign nations.He appoints ambassadors and receives foreign ambassadors and other public officials.Judicial powersto give reprieves and pardons in federal criminal cases.offer a pardon to a group of people,an amnestyinfluence the judicial system by appointing federal judges and Supreme Court justices,Presidential Powers,The Executive Departments,The PresidentThe Cabinet The Vice-president13 departmentsState Dept.Treasure Dept.Defense Dept.Justice Dept.,The White House,The Judicial Branch,The structure:the Supreme Court,11 courts of appeals,91 district courts,3 courts of special jurisdictionThe Jury system and common law,The Supreme Court,the only organ that has the power to interpret the Constitution.a Chief Justice and 8 Associate Justices Judges are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.Impeached by the CongressOpening:1st Mon.Oct.middle of June,Interprets lawscan hear appeals from any federal court cases.to hear appeals from state court cases that involve the Constitution or national laws.may declare a law unconstitutional.may declare a presidential act unconstitutional,The Supreme Court,Two-party system Federalists vs.Democratic Republicans Whigs vs.Democrats the Republicans Vs.the Democrats,Political Parties,There will always be two-party system in the United States simply because it works well to get two names on the ballot for every office.,Political Parties,Different views of the 2 partiesOn economic issuesthe Democrats favor government intervention the Republicans stress the role of the market On social issues the Democrats support a strong social security systemthe Republicans oppose large governmental social security programs.,Political Parties,Electing President,1.Primary election(Feb.-June)2.The major parties hold conventions to choose candidates for President to determine the parties platforms3.The campaigning stage radio,television,newspapers,and personal communications4.Choose a slate of presidential electors who make up the Electoral College5.Tuesday following the 1st Monday in November(Election day),NOT POPULAR VOTE BUT ELECTORAL VOTES,Electoral college membership in the US,Electoral College,The electors of all 50 states and the District of Columbia(3 electors)-a total of 538 To be successful,a candidate for Presidency must receive at least 270 votes.If no candidate has a majority,the decision shall be made by the House of Representatives,with all members from a state voting as a unit.In this event,each state and the District of Columbia would be allotted one vote only.,The“winner-take-all”system,The candidate with the most votes in a state wins all of that states electoral votes The candidate who wins the majority of the Electoral College votes will be the president.,Who would be the president?,总统大选浮世绘,Obama在拉选票,各党支持者百态纷呈,较量,相互抨击,投票机,Inauguration ceremony,The presidential term of 4 years begins on January 20 following the November election.held on the steps of the US CapitolThe president publicly takes an oath of office,which is administered by the Chief JusticeThe oath-taking ceremony is followed by an inaugural address,in which the new President outlines the policies and plans of his administration.,Inauguration ceremony,2009,Inauguration ceremony,2009,Inauguration ceremony,2009,The Inauguration,Transitional Page,ELEMENTS,