AMERICAN GOVERNMENT

Group of Member

I Wayan Suparta
(1301305086)
I Putu Bayu Perdana Putra
(1301305088)
Putu Denny Mahardika
(1301305089)
I Gde Pasek Kamajaya (1301305101)

History
The outline of the
government of the
United States is laid
out
in
theConstitution.
The
government
was
formed
in
1789, making the
United States one
of the world's first,
if not the first,

History (cont.)

The United States government is

based
on
the
principle
of
federalism, in which power is
shared
between
the
federal
government
and
state
governments.
The
details
of
American federalism, including
what
powers
the
federal
government should have and how
those powers can be exercised,

History (cont.)

The government of the United States is

based on awritten constitution, the
shortest in the world in fact. This
constitution consists of a Preamble, seven
Articles, and 27 Amendments. From this
document, the entire federal government
was created. It is a living document whose
interpretation has changed over time.The
amendment processis such that while not
easily amended, US citizens are able to
make necessary changes over time.

Three Branches of Government

The Constitution created three separate
branches of government. Each branch
has its own powers and areas of
influence. At the same time, the
Constitution created a system ofchecks
and balancesthat ensured no one branch
would reign supreme. The three branches
are:

CONSTITUTI
ON

Congre
ss
House of Senate
Represent
Supreme Court
Presid
Vice
President
ative
ent

Legislative
Branch

Legislative Branch

This branch consists of the Congress

which
is
responsible
for
making
thefederal laws. Congress consists of
two houses: the Senate and theHouse
of Representatives.

Legislative Branch
(cont.)

House of Representatives
The House currently consists of 435
voting members, each of whom
represents acongressional district.
The number of representatives each
state has in the House is based on
each state's population as determined
in the most recent United States
Census.

Legislative Branch
(cont.)

Senate
In contrast, the Senate is made up of
two
senators
from
each
state,
regardless of population. There are
currently 100 senators (two from each
of the 50 states), who each serve sixyear terms. Approximately one third of
the Senate stands for election every
two years.

Executive
Branch

Executive Branch

TheExecutive
power
lies
with
thePresident of the United States
who is given the job of executing,
enforcing, and administering the laws
and government. The Bureaucracy is
part of theExecutive Branch.

Executive Branch (cont.)

President
The executive branch consists of
President and those to whom
President's powers are delegated.
President
is
both
thehead
stateandgovernment, as well as
militarycommander-in-chiefand
chiefdiplomat.

the
the
The
of
the

Executive Branch
(cont.)

Vice President
The Vice President is the secondhighest executive official in rank of
the government. As first in theU.S.
presidential line of succession, the
Vice President becomes President
upon the death, resignation, or
removal of the President, which has
happenednine timesin U.S. history.
Under the Constitution, the Vice
President isPresident of the Senate.

Judicial Branch

Judicial Branch

The judicial power of the United

States is vested in the Supreme
Court and thefederal courts. Their
job is to interpret and apply US laws
through cases brought before them.
Another
important
power
of
theSupreme Courtis that ofJudicial
Reviewwhereby they can rule laws
unconstitutional.

Judicial Branch
(cont.)

Supreme Court adjudicates "cases and

controversies"matters pertaining to the
federal government, disputes between
states, and interpretation of the United
States Constitution, and, in general, can
declare legislation or executive action
made at any level of the government
asunconstitutional, nullifying the law and
creatingprecedentfor future law and
decisions.

Six Foundational Principles

Popular Sovereignty- This
principle states that the source of
governmental power lies with the
people.
Limited Government- Since the
people give government its power,
government itself is limited to the
power given to it by them.
Separation of Powers- As stated
previously, theUS Governmentis
divided into three branches so that

Six Foundational Principles (cont.)

Checks and Balances- In order to

further protect the citizens, the
constitution set up a system of checks
and balances.
Judicial Review- This is a power that
allows the Supreme Court to decide
whether acts and laws are
unconstitutional.
Federalism- One of the most
complicated foundations of the US is

Political Process
While
theConstitutionsets up
the
system
of
government, the actual
way in which the offices
of Congress and the
Presidency are filled are
based upon the American
political system. Many
countries
have
numerouspolitical
parties(groups of people
who join together to try

Elections
Electionsoccur in the United States at
all levels including local, state, and
federal.
There
are
numerous
differences from locality to locality
and state to state. Even when
determining the presidency, there is
some variation with how theelectoral
collegeis determined from state to
state.

Checks and
Balances of the
Legislative Branch

May overridepresidential vetoeswith a twothirds vote

Has the power over the purse strings to
actually fund any executive actions
May remove the president through
impeachment
Senate approves treaties
Senate approvespresidential appointments

Checks and Balances of the

Executive Branch

Veto power
Ability to call special sessions of
Congress
Can recommend legislation
Can appeal to the people concerning
legislation and more

Checks and Balances of

the Judicial Branch

Judges, once appointed for life, are

free from controls from the executive
branch
Courts can judgeexecutive
actionsto be unconstitutional
through the power ofjudicial review.

ustration about American Governme

Courtesy by:

Any Question ?