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The people of the USA live in a representative democracy which means they vote for people to make decisions for them Representative Democracy

Most democracies have a system of ‘representation’ Representative Democracy A constitution is a set of rules by which a country is governed The US Constitution describes what the government can do in America The document gives the powers to the different parts of government The US Constitution was signed in 1787 and outlines the rights of the people in the USA – Bill of Rights The Constitution is divided into a series of Articles Did you know?

Representative Democracy The US Constitution has a section called the Bill of Rights which lays out some of the rights and responsibilities of American citizens Check for Model Answer

One Federal Government: 1.The Federal Government makes laws for all the people in the USA 2.It is responsible for: The Armed Forces The Postal Service US currency Relations with foreign countries Let’s look more closely at who represents the American people Representative Democracy Government in the USA: 50 State Governments: 1.State Government has power over issues which only affect that State including: Local laws such as age of consent and age of compulsory education Capital Punishment Local Taxes Provision of schools and roads

Federal Government That person is: 1.President 2. Senator 3. Representative or Congressman/woman Representative Democracy So the American people have two types of representatives: State Governments: That person is: 1.A Governor 2.State Senators 3.State Assembly Members

US Government: President President of the USA George W Bush He is the most powerful man in the USA and possibly the world He lives in the White House in Washington DC The Constitution says that Presidents shall be elected every 4 years Presidents are only allowed to serve for 2 terms

US Government: President Anyone born in the USA and is 35 years of age or over A person who has lived in the USA for at least the last 14 years before election can stand as a candidate for President US Constitution Who can become the President?

US Government: President President George W Bush has had a controversial time as the American President – not everyone has supported his decisions He has often been criticised in the media especially over the war in Iraq

US Government: President Click on to find out more about the White Househttp://

Representative Democracy What we already know: 1.There are two types of representatives in the USA: One Federal Government and 50 State Governments 2.The President is in charge of running the whole country Now let’s look more closely at Federal Government (National Government)

Legislative BranchExecutive BranchJudicial Branch Makes laws Congress House of Representatives (435) Senate (100) Carries out laws White House President and Vice-President Interpret and apply laws Supreme Court Branches of US Government

Separation of Powers There are 3 branches of government WHY? So power is not ‘in the hands’ of just one person Legislative Branch Executive Branch Judicial Branch For a bill to become a law it has to pass both Houses of Congress and be signed by the President It might then not even be accepted as a law if the Supreme Court says it is unconstitutional Each branch of government can therefore act as a check on the power of the other two

Branches of US Government Separation of Powers The timings of elections is arranged so that the electorate (voters) can change the balance of power should any one group become dominant If the electorate are unhappy about the work of the President, after two years they can elect a House of Representatives and enough Senators to prevent him or her making laws they do not like Checks and Balances Checks and balances are built into the Constitution to stop any one group from becoming too powerful

Representative Democracy Federal Government That person is: 1.President 2. Senator 3. Representative or Congressman/woman Senators are elected by the people of a state Each state has two Senators to represent the people in that state There are a 100 Senators A Senator is elected for 6 years but every two years one-third of the Senate is up for election

Representative Democracy Federal Government That person is: 1.President 2. Senator 3. Representative or Congressman/woman It costs a lot of money to be elected as a Senator – candidates spend a great deal of money on TV advertising and other methods of campaigning Senator’s tend to be rich – so do they really represent the poor people of America? Hillary Clinton, wife of ex-President Bill Clinton is the New York Senator She spent $29.3 million on her election campaign in 2000 – she won the election

Representative Democracy Federal Government That person is: 1.President 2. Senator 3. Representative or Congressman/woman The people who are elected to sit in the House of Representatives are known as Representatives or Congressmen/women There are 435 Representatives – they can represent between 600,000 and 700,000 people A Representative is elected for two years Women and Ethnic minorities tend to be better represented in the House of Representatives than in the Senate House of Representatives

Representative Democracy State Governments: That person is: 1.A Governor 2.State Senators 3. State Assembly Members A State Governor is in charge of running the state A Governor has to work with the State Senate and State Assembly to pass laws Arnold Schwarzenegger is the State Governor for California – he was elected in 2004