Lesson III. Structure and Design of the U.

S
Federal Government
 Structure and Design of the U.S Federal Government
The Legislative Branch

The Executive Branch

The Judicial Branch

-The U.S. government works in layers with different
responsibilities at
the national, or federal level;
the state level; and
local levels, including cities, villages, and counties.

-The federal government works across all 50 states, and its

decisions and actions affect everyone.

-States have their own constitutions, similar to the U.S.

Constitution.

-State governments also are quite powerful in shaping the lives of

people in their states.
-Federalism, which is a basic principle of the U.S. Constitution, means that
power is shared between the national and state levels of government.

-Dividing power between federal and state government protects the rights
of individual states, but also allows national government to enforce
certain rights of citizenship.

-The Constitution gives some powers only to the national government,

some only to state government, and some to both.
For example, only the federal government can declare war.
States are given the power to establish schools.
Both federal and state governments can levy taxes and set up court
systems.
-The structure of the U.S. federal government is based on a
principle called the separation of powers.

-Three branches of government at the federal level

The Constitution divides the federal government into three
branches:
the executive branch (the president),
the legislative branch (Congress), and
the judicial branch (the court system).

-Each with different roles to play. In this way, power is

divided.

The powers of each branch are described in the Constitution.

French political

philosopher

He believed that this division

of power promoted liberty.

The idea of separation of

powers is one of the main
components of modern
constitutional government
Legislative Branch

 The Congress
 Composed of two houses
(Bicameral legislature)

 Senate (Upper house)

 House of
Representatives(Lower house)
Congress (chief legislative body of the United States)
The power of Congress are listed in Article I of the Constitution
These listed power are called enumerated powers, although the elastic clause
allows Congress to stretch its powers to fit specific situation as needed. Some
enumerated powers held by the Congress-
Power to tax
To regulate commence and the currency
To introduce bills
To declare war
To maintain army and navy
To admit new states into the Union
To improve treaties
To impeach the president
The legislative branch consists of two houses of Congress:
 Senate or the upper house

 House of Representatives or the lower house. Bicameral legislature

 Unicameral legislature are typical in small countries with unitary system of government
(Denmark, Sweden, Israel, and New Zealand)

 These two houses are equal in power

 Senate (Upper House)
 Composed of senators who represent each
of the several states, with each state being
equally represented by two senators,
regardless of their population
 Serving staggered terms of six years, with
fifty states presently in the union, there are
100 U.S senators
 Senate chamber is located in Washington
D.C
 House of Representatives
(Lower House)
 Composed of representatives, serve two years terms
 Members of the house are elected from districts that
include a roughly equal number of voters
 The districts are redrawn every 10 years based on
the result of a census
 States with populations larger contain more
electoral districts and more members to the house
 Ex. As of the 2010 census, the largest delegation is
that California, with fifty three representatives; the
smallest is shared by seven states; Alaska, Delaware,
Montana, North Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming
each with a single representative
 Executive Branch
 Includes the President and Vice President
 President
 Head of the government is elected by the people for four
years term and may serve no more than two terms(1951
the 22nd amendment of constitution limiting a president to
two terms of office, was ratified)
 Article II of the constitution outlines the responsibilities of
the president include-
 serving as commander-in-chief of the armed forces
 Appointing the judges to the Supreme Court
 Nominating major executive officers
 Executing and enforcing laws enacted by Congress
 Vetoing bills sent by the Congress
 Congress can override the president’s veto of a law with a
two- thirds vote of both houses
 Constitution gave the power to negotiate and sign treaties
with other countries
 These treaties must be ratified by two- third vote of the senate
 Three qualifications for being elected president (i). a candidate
must be at least 35 years old (ii). Must be natural born citizen of
the United States (iii). Must have lived in the country for a
minimum of 14 years
 Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. is an American politician who is the
46th and current president of the United States.

 The vice president assumes the presidency if the president is

unable to complete a term (for e.g. If he/she becomes disabled or
dies)
 Support the President, 4 year terms, can be elected unlimited
times, nominated by the president approved by the Senate
Kamala D. Harris (vice
president of USA)
46th U.S. President
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. is an
American politician who is the 46th and
current president of the United States. A
member of the Democratic Party, he
previously served as the 47th vice
president from 2009 to 2017 under
President Barack Obama and
represented Delaware in the United
States Senate from 1973 to 2009.
• Within the three branches of government are many people who play important roles in
the running of the country.

• The cabinet is a group whose role is to advise the president on subjects related to each
member’s office.

• This group includes not only the Vice President of the United States but also the heads
of executive departments, including
• the Attorney General and
• the secretaries of Agriculture,
• Commerce,
• Defense,
• Education,
• Energy,
• Health and Human Services,
• Homeland Security,
• Housing and Urban Development,
• Interior,
• Labor,
• State,
• Transportation,
• Treasury, and
• Each of these officials is appointed by the president
and then confirmed by the Senate and is
responsible
• for running a major federal agency and
• for carrying out the day-to-day operations of the federal
government.

• Each cabinet member takes the title of “Secretary”

of his or her department, with the exception of the
head of the justice department, who is known as
the Attorney General.

• Following the vice president, the Speaker of the

House, and the Senate President pro tempore,
the cabinet members are included in the line of
succession to the presidency in the order in which
their departments were created.
• Each of the departments and
agencies over which the cabinet
members preside takes
responsibility for a different set
of government functions.

• The Department of Agriculture is

responsible for ensuring the
safety of food and regulating
farming.
• The Department of Commerce is
responsible
• for improving the living standards
of the citizens of the country
through economic development,
and
• for regulating trade, banking, and
the economy.

• The Census Bureau is a part of

this department, as is the Patent
and Trademark Office.
 Department of
Defense
Is the largest
government agency
and includes the
armed forces of the
United States. This
department, which is
headquartered at the
Pentagon in
Washington, D.C,
helps protect the
security of the
country.
• The Department of Education is
responsible for
• promoting student achievement
and
• making sure that all students
have equal access to a quality
education.

• This department administers

financial aid for students and
gathers data on schools in order
to guide improvements for
education in the United States.
• The Department of Energy
regulates utilities and is
responsible for
• ensuring the security of the
country’s power supplies.

• It also promotes new technology

to conserve energy resources.

• The department provides funds

for scientific research in this
area.
• The Department of Health and
Human Services includes
• the Food and Drug Administration
(FDA),
• the Centers for Disease Control
(CDC), and
• the National Institutes of Health and
Administration on Aging.

• This department works to ensure

the health of U.S. citizens and
administers Medicare and
Medicaid, which provide health
insurance to approximately 25%
of Americans.
• The Department of Homeland Security
was established following the terrorist
attacks of 2001 and is responsible for
security within the United States, and
for patrolling the borders.

• This department was created by

combining 22 executive branch
agencies.

• It includes
• the Immigration and Naturalization
Service,
• the U.S. Secret Service,
• the U.S. Coast Guard, and
• the Transportation Security
Administration.
• The Department of Housing and
Urban Development (HUD)
promotes affordable home
ownership for U.S. citizens and
makes sure that there is no
discrimination against those
trying to purchase a home.

• It provides mortgage and loan

insurance, administers public
housing, and offers assistance to
the homeless.
• The Department of the Interior
works to protect, conserve, and
nurture national resources,
including national parks and
wildlife.

• This department manages about

20% of the land in the United States
and protects endangered species.

• Agencies such as the Fish and

Wildlife Service and the Bureau of
Indian Affairs fall under the
responsibility of this department.
• The Department of Justice is the largest
law office in the world.

• It is responsible for enforcing the laws

and for protecting the interests of U.S.
citizens.

• It works to ensure public safety, control

crime, and seek justice for individuals
who are guilty of committing crimes.

• It includes a total of 40 organizations,

including
• the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI),
• the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and
• the Drug Enforcement Administration
(DEA)
• The Department of Labor
enforces labor laws in the United
States and protects the safety and
rights of workers.

• The programs of this department

deal with job training, minimum
wage levels, unemployment
insurance, and discrimination in
hiring.
• The Occupational Safety and
Health Administration (OSHA)
and
• the Bureau of Labor Statistics are
part of this department.
• The Department of State is
responsible for diplomatic
relations with other countries
and works to develop and
implement the foreign policies of
the president.

• This agency and its representatives

reflect the United States as part of
the worldwide community.

• The Secretary of State, who leads

this department, is the president’s
top advisor on foreign policy
• The Department of
Transportation is responsible for
maintaining and ensuring the
safety of the nation’s
transportation network.

• It was responsible for

establishing the Interstate
Highway System, and it includes
• the Federal Highway
Administration,
• the Federal Aviation
Administration, and
• the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration.
• The Department of the Treasury
collects taxes, manages federal
finances, produces coins and
currency, and oversees the
financial and economic
stability of the United States.

• It works with other agencies,

with the governments of foreign
countries, and with international
financial institutions to raise the
standard of living and encourage
economic growth worldwide.
• The Department of Veterans’
Affairs offers medical care for
veterans who are wounded or ill
and administers benefits to those
who have served in the armed
forces and to their families.
 The Judicial Branch
 The most powerful of the country
 Composed of nine justices who
are appointed by the president and
confirmed by the U.S Senate
 Justices serve for life
 Chief Justice is the head of the
elite group; the other are associate
justices
 The exact number of justices is
determined by Congress
 The supreme court of the United States is final court of appeal and
final expositor of the constitution of the United States
The highest judicial body in the country and leads the judicial branch of
the federal government
It is other referred to by acronym SCOTUS(Supreme Court of the U.S)
Article III of the Constitution, the supreme court is empowered to rule
on cases that involves a state and citizens from the different state,
controversies between states, and patent and copy right issues
The justices may, however, accept legal briefs, hear arguments, or ask
questions of the parties in the case
As federal judges, the justices serve during ‘good behavior,” which
means that justices have tenure for life unless they are removed by
impeachment and subsequent conviction
 In addition to the Supreme Court, the judicial branch also includes the United
States distinct court and United States Courts of appeal
 the distinct courts try most federal cases
The courts of appeal are responsible for reviewing appealed district
court cases
These courts must abide by the decisions and interpretations of the
Supreme court
Once the Supreme Court makes a ruling or interprets a law, the
interior courts must apply this interpretation to other cases
The Supreme court exercises the power of judicial review, where by
it can declare acts of Congress or the state legislatures unconstitutional
Executive, administrative and judicial actions also are subject to
review by the court
 Judicial Review
Judicial review is the power of the court to determine the
constitutionality of a governmental action
Can declare illegal, null and void, of no force and effect a government
action found to violate some provisions in the constitution
Judicial review allows for the judicial branch to decide on
punishments that government officials deserve
If the president broke the law the judicial review allows for a court to
decide what consequences the president deserves to have
No government official is above the law of the citizens
Marbury v. Madison
 John Adam (1797-1801)Federalist
 Just two days before his term as president ended
 He appointed several dozen federalist party
supporter to new circuit judges and justice of
peace (midnight judges)
 The outgoing U.S senate quickly confirmed
Adam’s appointments, but outgoing Secretary
of the State John Marshall was unable to
deliver all of the new judges commission
before Adam’s departure and Thomas Jefferson
(1801-1809) democratic republic inauguration
 One of the undelivered commissions belong to
William Marbury, a Maryland businessman who
had been a strong supporter of Adam and
federalist
 Jefferson believed the unbeliever
commissions were void and
instructed his Secretary of the
state James Madison, not to
deliver them
 In the late 1801,after Madison had
repeatedly refused to deliver his
commission, Marbury field a
lawsuit in the supreme court
asking the court issue a writ of
mandamus ( judiciary Act of
1789) forcing Madison to deliver
his commission
 In Marbury case, the court did not
order Madison to comply
 Section 13 of the Judiciary Act of 1789- the Court found
that the Act had expanded the definition of the supreme
court’s jurisdiction beyond what was originally set forth in
the U.S constitution
 the Court then struck down section 13 of the Act,
announcing that American Courts have to power to
invalidate laws that they find to violate the constitution – a
power now known as Judicial review
 Marbury v. Madison
Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809)
John Adam (1797-1801)Federalist
democratic republic( incoming
(outgoing president)
president)

appointed several dozen judges Secretary of the state James Madison, not
to deliver them

Supreme Court Review of

Secretary of the State John Marshall was unable to deliver all of the new
the Judiciary Act of 1789
judges commission

the Court then struck down section 13

undelivered commissions belong to William Marbury of the Act, announcing that American
Courts have to power to invalidate
Marbury field a lawsuit in the supreme court asking the court issue a writ of laws that they find to violate the
mandamus ( judiciary Act of 1789) forcing Madison to deliver his constitution – a power now known as
commission Judicial review
 Landmark Supreme Court Cases
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954)
Racial segregation
Originated in 1951, when the public school system in Topeka, Kansas,
refused to enroll local black resident Oliver Brown’s daughter at the
closest school to their home (only white student)
In May 1954, the Supreme Court issued a unanimous 9-0 decision in
favor of the Brown
The court ruled that “ separate educational facilities are inherently
unequal”, and therefore law that impose them violated the equal
Protection Clause of the fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution
All public school be desegregated (civil right act 1964, Voting right act
1965)
 Plessy v. Ferguson, was a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision ruling that
racial segregation laws did not violate the U.S. Constitution as long as the
facilities for each race were equal in quality, a doctrine that came to be known as
"separate but equal“
 The underlying case began in 1892 when Homer Plessy, a mixed-race man,
deliberately boarded a whites-only train car
 By boarding the whites-only car, Plessy violated Louisiana's
Separate Car Act of 1890, which required "equal, but separate" railroad
accommodations for white and non-white passengers.
 Plessy was charged under the Act, and at his trial his lawyers argued that judge
John Howard Ferguson should dismiss the charges on the grounds that the Act
was unconstitutional. Ferguson denied the request, and the
Louisiana Supreme Court upheld Ferguson's ruling on appeal. Plessy then
appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.
 In May 1896, the Supreme Court
issued a 7–1 decision against Plessy,
ruling that the Louisiana law did not
violate the
Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S.
Constitution
and stating that although the
Fourteenth Amendment established
the legal equality of whites and blacks
it did not and could not require the
elimination of all "distinctions based
upon color".
 Checks and Balances
The structure of U.S federal government is based on the separation of
power
The constitution divided into three branches (Executive, Legislative
and Judiciary)
This division prevents any one branch of the government from having
too much power
Its also means that if one branch abuse its power, the other two are
available to restrain it
Thus each branch checks the power of the other two
This is known as a system of checks and balances
Each branch also has the power to
act in ways that affect the other
branches, in a system called checks
and balances.

For example, the president can veto laws made by

Congress.
Congress can override a presidential veto by
repassing the law with a two-thirds majority.

The Constitution is also now interpreted

to mean that judges can review laws and
declare them unconstitutional.
 Amending the Constitution

An amendment to the Constitution is an improvement, a correction or a revision to the
original content approved in 1788
To date, 27 amendments have been approved, six have been disapproved and thousands
have been discussed
These changes or additions to the constitution are called Amendment
The fact that the constitution can be modified allows the government to adapt to
changes that take place in the country
Article V, of the constitution prescribe how an amendment can become a part of
Constitution
Article V, provides two methods for amending the nation’s frame of government
• The amendment process, which is spelled
out in Article V of the Constitution, begins
one of two ways.

• Either Congress or a group of state

legislatures can propose a change.

• The president plays no role in the

process.

• The proposed amendment is presented to

the states in the form of a joint resolution.

• Each state governor then submits the

amendment to his or her state legislature.
After an amendment has been proposed,
three-fourths of the state legislatures
must ratify, or approve, the change
before it becomes law.

The only amendment to have been ratified

by all 50 states was the Twentieth
Amendment.

This amendment set the beginning and

ending dates for presidential and
congressional terms.
Lesson IV. Individual Rights and Civic Responsibilities

 Bill of Rights

 Civic Responsibilities
The Bill of Rights
• The first 10 amendments to the Constitution, which were proposed and ratified
by the First Congress, are known as the Bill of Rights.

• These amendments were proposed by James Madison in 1789 because several

states wanted the Constitution to provide stronger protection for individual
liberties.

• The amendments in the Bill of Rights

• place specific restrictions on the government’s power and
• guarantee certain rights and civil liberties to the citizens.

• These civil liberties include

• freedom of religion,
• freedom of speech,
• freedom of the press and assembly, and
• freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures.
 Amendment I

Freedom of religion
Freedom of speech
Freedom of the press
Freedom of assembly
Freedom of petition
Case- Taxes v. Johnson
- Johnson was convicted for burning
and American flag

- 5-4 decision in favour of Johnson

- Held that flag – burning is protected
symbolic speech
- Expression that is offensive or
abusive, particularly in terms of race,
gender, or sexual orientation. It is
currently protected under the first
amendment
Amendment II

Right to keep and bear

arms in order to maintain

a well- regulated militia

Case – District of Columbia v. Heller

-Heller sued the District of Columbia

-violated his second amendment right to keep a functional firearm in his
home without a license.
-The district court dismissed the complaint

 A case in which the Court found a District of Columbia law strictly

regulating gun ownership to be unconstitutional.
Decision, in 5-4 decision, the court struck down the laws, definitively
finding that the second Amendment protects an individual right to
possess a firearm for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-
defense in the home
 Amendment III

No quartering of soldiers

in private homes without

owner’s consent
Amendment IV

Freedom from

unreasonable searches

and seizers
Case-Mapp v. Ohio(1961)

 US Supreme Court
ruled in a 5-3 vote in
favor of Mapp
 The high Court said
evidence seized
unlawfully, without a
search warrant, could
not be used in criminal
prosecutions in state
courts
Amendment V
Right to due process of law;
freedom from self- incrimination
and double jeopardy

Case. Miranda v. Arizona (1966)

established the Miranda warring
and the right to remain salient
 Amendment VI

Rights of accused

persons, such as the right

to a speedy and public

trail by jury
Amendment VII

Right of trail by jury in

civil cases (family case,

divorce)
Amendment VIII

Freedom from excessive

bail and from cruel and

unusual punishment
Amendment IX

Rights in addition to

those stated in the

Constitution
Amendment X
Power reserved to the
states