1. Chapter 7 The President and the Executive Branch

2. Chapter 7 Section One The President and the Vice President

3. The Presidency is the top political position and is considered the most important job in the world Qualifications for Being President – at least 35 – Native born citizen – A resident of the US for 14 years A president receives $400k per year

4. Every 4 years the elections take place We elect our President through the Electoral College To win one must receive at least 270 of the 538 electoral votes They then serve a 4 year term

5. No President has served more than two terms except FDR The 22 nd Amendment limits a president to two terms or a maximum of 10 years Live in the White House during this time

6. The Vice President The Vice President is elected with the President The Constitution does not give the VP much power – Preside over the Senate breaking a tie if needed He does take over the Presidency if the President dies or is removed from office The Presidential Succession Act decided the line of succession

7. Chapter 7 Section Two The President’s Job

8. The President’s primary job is to execute and carry out the laws passed by Congress He can veto bills Call Congress into special Sessions Serves as Commander and Chief Make treaties- a formal agreement between two or more countries (with Senate approval) Appoint government officials (with Senate approval) Pardon people committed of Federal crimes

9. Appoints Supreme Court Justices- usually ones that share their views

10. One way the President carries out his duties is through Executive Orders- a rule or command that has the force of law Most Executive orders take care of small administrative problems, some however have larger impacts https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUDSeb2zHQ0

11. Every year the president gives his State of the Union Address to Congress – Discusses important issues – Informs of new issues he’d like Congress to take up ;

12. The President is the Chief Diplomat of the US He is key to determining how the US relates to other countries He is also the Commander and Chief- he is given the authority to back up his decisions with force if necessary Congress must declare war but the President orders the troops into battle

13. Congress has only declared war 5 times The President has sent troops into action over 150 times, however This threatens the system of checks and balances – Korea and Vietnam The War Powers Resolution helped bring this under control by limiting the amount of time troops can be in an area to 60 days without Congress’s approval

14. Chapter 7 Section Three Making Foreign Policy

15. Foreign Policy- is the nation’s overall plan for dealing with other nations There are 3 ways the President does this 1)The basic goal of this is National Security- the ability to keep the country safe from attack or harm No government can meet any other goal of this is not met

16. 2) The President is also in charge of trade The President is responsible in part for our economic well- being, trade with other nations can help our economy grow Trade Sanctions- efforts to punish another country with trade barriers Embargo- an agreement among a group of nations to cease all trade with a certain country

17. 3) The President also promotes world peace If other nations are at peace it is less likely that the The rest of the world looks towards the President to see how he reacts The President also sends money to other countries as Foreign Aid

18. Chapter 7 Section Four Presidential Advisors and Executive Agencies

19. The President is assisted in his job by the Executive Office of the President The White House Office works directly for the President and all information goes through them before reaching the President Chief of Staff is the most important advisor to the President

20. First Lady The Constitution does not mention the president’s spouse The First Lady usually work towards a cause Nancy Reagan fought drugs, Hillary Clinton wanted improved healthcare, Michelle Obama fought obesity

21. Chapter 8 The Judicial Branch

22. Chapter 8 Section One The Federal Court System

23. Equal Justice for All Our Justice System is based upon this important ideal Everyone is innocent until proven guilty In the 1940s the Supreme Court declared it Constitutional to detain thousands of Japanese

24. The courts decide if something is legal or not whether it’s between two private parties, the government and a private party, or the state government and federal government Even if a person has broken the law they are entitled to a public trial and a lawyer If they can’t afford a lawyer one is appointed for them

25. Article III of the Constitution establishes the Supreme Court The Federal Courts have Jurisdiction- the authority to hear and decide cases- over certain types of cases

26. Cases Involving the Constitution Violations of Federal Crimes – Kidnapping, tax evasion, counterfeiting Cases between States Foreign Governments and Maritime Law State Courts have jurisdiction over all other matters

27. Chapter 8 Section Two How Federal Courts are Organized

28. US District Courts All federal cases must begin in district courts Each state has at least 1 district court District Courts hear all the facts of the case, call witnesses and juries rule based upon evidence

29. US Court of Appeals If someone loses their case they can appeal They review the case and see if the lower courts made a right decision The US has 12 courts of appeal that cover certain geographic districts or Circuits

30. A panel of three judges review the cases They either – Uphold the decision – Reverse the decision – Remand it and sent it back to the lower courts for review They do not decide guilt or innocence but rather if the case proceeded fairly

31. The appeals court will then write an Opinion explaining their ruling Precedents then set up a model for other judges Their decisions are usually final but can be appealed to the Supreme Court

32. The Judges There are no qualifications set forth in the Constitution for being appointed a Supreme Court Justice President often appoint people in their party and see this as an opportunity to effect the country even after their term is up These judges are appointed for life- to avoid public or political pressure

33. Chapter 8 Section Three The United States Supreme Court

34. The Justices decisions often effect citizens as much as they do Congress or the President The Supreme Court is removed from politics and special interest groups

35. Power of the Court The interprets the meaning of laws The determine whether something the government does in Constitutional The SC has a duty to stay true to the Constitution and interpret it accordingly “The Constitution is what the Supreme Court says it is”

36. Limits on the Courts’ Power The Court can only make decisions on cases that come to it They have to be actual legal cases and not just whether or not something is Constitutional

37. Chapter 8 Section Four Deciding Cases in the Supreme Court

38. How Cases Reach the Supreme Court Each year the courts get 7000 applicants Each week the justices review cases and decide what to review 4/9 must agree on the cases importance l

39. Each case is presented in a brief- a written argument presenting each side’s argument Next they present an oral argument The Justices then have a conference in secret to make a decision 5/9 must agree on the decision after which they write an opinion explaining their decision They then announce their opinion to the public

40. The Law is to be the most important influence in the judges decisions Social Conditions also play a role though – Plessey vs. Ferguson maintained segregation in the 1890s – Brown vs. BoE overturned that in the 1950s Judges personal opinions always play a huge role