Branches of Government
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Achieve3000, June 27, 2008). In 1787, U.S. leaders wrote the Constitution. They finished it on September 17. It had taken a whole summer of hard work to write. Leaders wanted the U.S. to be different from most other countries. They wanted the country to be run by its people.
Leaders decided that the U.S. would have three different government branches. Each branch would check up on the other branches. That way no branch would become too powerful. This is known as "checks and balances."
The Legislative Branch
The legislative branch is made up of two houses of Congress. They are the Senate and the House of Representatives. Voters in each state choose the lawmakers for each house. Each lawmaker must answer to the people. If not, the lawmaker might be voted out the next time.
Congress writes and votes on laws. It decides how to raise taxes. It also decides how the country will spend and borrow money. Only Congress can send the U.S. to war. The president cannot go to war unless Congress agrees.
The Executive Branch
The president is the head of the executive branch. He is in charge of all U.S. departments. He also tells the army what to do. In addition, the president deals with other countries. Sometimes he goes to other countries. But sometimes the president cannot go himself. Then, he sends other people. Who picks these people? The president picks them. The Senate must agree on them.
The executive branch sees that laws are carried out. How is this done? First, Congress and the president pass a law. Then, the executive branch makes sure that people know about the law.
The Judicial Branch
The judicial branch is made up of the U.S. Supreme Court. It also includes other U.S. courts. The Supreme Court is the country's highest court. It has nine judges. Each judge is named by the president and voted on by Congress. Supreme Court judges keep their seats for life.
The Supreme Court looks over other court cases. Then, it makes decisions about them. The court sometimes decides whether laws follow the Constitution. What if a law goes against the Constitution? Then, the court can get rid of that law.
A Government of Many
The Constitution created a country that is run by the people. It is not run by just one ruler. The power was divided among three branches. The U.S. has been run this way for over 200 years.
Dig Deeper
As you read in the Article, the writers of the U.S. Constitution wanted the American government to have three branches. They did not want any one person or group to have too much power. Leaders wanted a government "of the people."
It was an age when many European nations were ruled by kings and queens. Still, this idea of a democratic government was not new. It was based on popular ideas of the time.
The period between 1700 and 1800 was known as the Age of Enlightenment. Enlightenment thinkers believed that reason could be used to understand human nature. From this, they formed ideas about war, religion, and more. They also formed ideas about government. Philosophers of the time studied kingdoms. They tried to understand how they worked. They wanted to know if they were in harmony with human nature.
John Locke was an English philosopher. He lived in the 1600s. His writings encouraged many Enlightenment ideas. Locke believed that people must give up some rights under government rule. This, he believed, was for the good of all. However, Locke also believed that some rights should never be taken away. Those included the right to life, liberty, and property. Locke believed that government powers should be separated. He saw this as a way to make sure people had rights. These ideas may sound familiar. That's because the Founding Fathers believed Locke was right. They were thinking about his ideas while forming the U.S. government.
Question for the day
Question for day 1:
Think about the news story. Why did the writers of the Constitution create "checks and balances"?
a. So that the Supreme Court could not raise and spend taxes
b. So that the president would sign bills into law
c. So that all U.S. leaders were paid fairly
d. So that no branch of the government became too powerful
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Question for day 2:
How is the U.S. government different from the governments of most countries?
a. The U.S. government has only one branch, not many branches.
b. The U.S. government does not pay any of its leaders.
c. The U.S. government does not ask anyone to pay taxes.
d. The U.S. government is run by the people, not by one leader.
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Question for day 3:
The news story says:
Congress writes and votes on laws. It decides how to raise taxes. It also decides how the country will spend and borrow money. Only Congress can send the U.S. to war. The president cannot go to war unless Congress agrees.
Read the paragraph above. To decide must be to __________.
a. Hear
b. Choose
c. Learn
d. Question
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Question for day 4:
The president can do all of these except _________.
a. Name judges to the Supreme Court
b. Deal with other countries
c. Decide if laws follow the Constitution
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Quiz Day 5
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