Political System of the USA

The USA is a federal republic, consisting of fifty states, each of which has its own government. In some ways, the US is like fifty small countries. Every state has its own governor, its own police, and its own laws. The present Constitution was proclaimed in 1787 in Philadelphia.

Within the national government, power is divided into three branches: legislative, executive and judicial.

The legislative branch consists of Congress, which has two parts – the House of Representatives and the Senate. Congress’s main function is to make laws. The House of Representatives has 435 members (the number from each state depends on the size of the state’s population). And there are 100 senators (two from each state). The Capitol is the seat of the USA Congress.

The executive branch administers the laws (decides how the laws should be carried out). The President is the head of the executive branch and the country and is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. The President makes the most important decisions and chooses the ministers, the members of his cabinet. But the President cannot do just what he wants. The Congress must agree first. Americans choose a new President every four years. The residence of the President is the famous White House in Washington D.C., the capital city. In addition to the President, the Vice President, and their staffs, the executive branch consists of departments and agencies.

The judicial branch interprets the laws and makes sure that new laws are in keeping with the Constitution. There are several levels of federal courts. The Supreme Court is the most important. It has nine members who are appointed for life.

The system of checks and balances, established by the Constitution, is meant to prevent any branch from having too much power. Each branch has certain controls over the other branches. For example, Congress makes the laws, but the President can veto, or reject, a law and the Supreme Court can decide a law is unconstitutional.

The US has two main political parties – the Democratic and Republican parties. Many other smaller parties play little if any role. There are not clear differences between these two parties. The Republican tend to be more conservative and to have more support among the upper classes, while the Democrats tend to be more liberal and to have more support among the working classes and the poor.

Vocabulary

Armed Forces – вооруженные силы

Executive [ig'zekjutiv] – исполнительный

Legislative ['ledзisl∂ tiv] – законодательный

Judicial [dзu'di∫ l] – судебный

The Senate ['senit]

The Commander-in-Chief [k∂, ma: nd∂ rin't∫ i: f] – главнокомандующий

To interpret [in't∂: prit] – толковать

The Supreme Court [su'pri: m 'ko: t] – верховный суд

To reject [ri'dзekt] – отвергать

Democratic [, dem∂ 'kræ tik] – демократический

Republican [ri'p_^blik∂ n] – республиканский

Police [p∂ 'li: s] – полиция

Administer – управлять, вести (дела), снабжать

Exercise 1. Fill in the words:

1) The USA is a … ….

2) Every state has its own ….

3) The present Constitution was … in 1787 in Philadelphia.

4) Power is divided into three branches: …, …, ….

5) The … branch consists of Congress.

6) Congress is represented by … of … and ….

7) Congress’s main function is to ….

8) … is the seat of the USA Congress.

9) … branch administers the laws.

10) The President is the head of … branch and ….

11) The President is the …-in-… of the Armed Forces.

12) The functions of the President are ….

13) The residence of the President is ….

14) The … branch interprets the laws and makes sure that new laws are in keeping with the …

15) The … Court is the most important.

16) The US has two main political parties … and ….

Exercise 2. Answer the questions.

1) What can you say about political system in the USA in general?

2) How many branches is the government divided into?

3) What is the legislative branch represented by?

4) Who is the House of Representatives and the Senate represented by?

5) What are the functions of the Congress?

6) Who is the executive branch represented by?

7) What are the functions of the President?

8) How often is the President chosen?

9) What are the functions of the judicial branch?

10) What is the most important court? How many members is it represented by?

11) What prevents branches from having too much power?

12) What are the differences between two main political parties?