Реферат political system of usa
Обновлено: 06.07.2024
The nation's capital, Washington, D.C., has the 10th largest metropolitan population in the country, with a population of over 3.9 million. Laid out by the French architect Pierre L'Enfant in the late 18th century, it was the world's first city especially planned as a center of government.
The city of Washington, in the District of Columbia along the Potomac River, is the capital of a federal union of 50 states. When the United States declared its independence from Great Britain on July 4,1776 (now celebrated as a national holiday), there were 13 original states—each one sovereign, each wanting to control its own affairs. The states tried to keep their sovereignty and independence within a loose confederation, but their attempt proved ineffectual. Therefore, in 1789, they adopted a new Constitution establishing a federal union under a strong central government.
The original 13 states were grouped along the Atlantic Coast. As the frontier moved westward, large areas of what is now the continental United States were added by purchase, treaty and annexation. As each state was settled, governments were first organized as territories and later entered the Union as states when their territorial legislatures petitioned the Congress for admission. There are now 50 states. Alaska and Hawaii, the last states to enter the Union, did so in 1959.
Under the Constitution, the states delegated many of their sovereign powers to this central government in Washington. But they kept many important powers for themselves. Each of the 50 states, for example, retains the right to run its own public school system, to decide on the qualifications of its voters, to license its doctors and other professionals, to provide police protection for its citizens and to maintain its roads.
In actual practice, and in line with the American tradition of keeping government as close to the people as possible, the states delegate many of these powers to their political subdivisions—counties, cities, towns and villages. Thus, at the lowest political level, residents of small American communities elect village trustees to run their police and fire departments, and elect a board of education to run their schools. On the county level, voters elect executives who are responsible for roads, parks, libraries, sewage and other services, and elect or appoint judges for the courts. The citizens of each state also elect a governor and members of the state legislature.
In addition to the 50 states and the District of Columbia, citizens of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, the Virgin Islands and American Samoa vote in federal elections. United States possessions include the Pacific Islands of Wake, Midway, Jarvis, Howland, Baker, Johnston Atoll and Kingman Reef. The United States administers the Republic of Palau under United Nations auspices. Two entities, The Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands, have become sovereign self-governing states in free association with the United States.
Under the Constitution, the federal government is divided into three branches, each chosen in a different manner, each able to check and balance the others.
The Executive Branch is headed by the President, who, together with the Vice President, is chosen in nationwide elections every four years (in every year divisible by four). The elective process for a U.S. President is unique. Americans vote for slates of presidential electors equal to the number of Senators and Representatives each state has in Congress (a total of 535 persons). The candidate with the highest number of votes in each state wins all the electoral votes of that state. The presidential candidate needs 270 electoral votes to be elected; if no candidate has a majority, the House of Representatives makes the decision. (In all other state and local elections, voters cast their votes directly for the candidate or referendum on that particular ballot.) Any natural-born American who is 35 years old or older may be elected to this office. The President proposes bills to Congress, enforces federal laws, serves as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and, with the approval of the Senate makes treaties and appoints federal judges, ambassadors and other members of the Executive Departments (the Departments of State, Defense Commerce, Justice, etc.). Each Cabinet head holds the title of Secretary and together they form a council called the Cabinet.
The Vice President, elected from the same political party as the President, acts as chairman of the Senate, and in the event of the death or disability of the President, assumes the Presidency for the balance of his term.
The Legislative Branch is made up of two houses: the Senate and the House of Representatives. The 435 seats in the House of Representatives are allocated on the basis of population, although every state has at least one representative. Each state elects two members of the 100-member Senate; a Senator's term of office is six years.
Both houses must approve a bill for it to become law, but the President may veto or refuse to sign it. If so, Congress reconsiders the bill. If two-thirds of the members of both houses then approve it, the bill becomes law even without the President's signature.
The Judicial Branch is made up of Federal District Courts (at least one in every state), 11 Federal Courts of Appeals and, at the top, the Supreme Court. Federal judges are appointed by the President with the approval of the Senate; to minimize political influences, their appointments are for life. Federal courts decide cases involving federal law, conflicts between states or between citizens of different states. An American who feels he has been convicted under an unjust law may appeal his case all the way to the Supreme Court, which may rule that the law is unconstitutional. The law then becomes void.
In order to amend the Constitution, Congress must pass the proposed amendment by a two-thirds majority vote in each house, and three-fourths of the states must concur. In more than 195 years, the Constitution has been amended 26 times. The first 10 Amendments— the Bill of Rights—guarantee individual liberties: freedom of speech, religion and assembly, the right to a fair trial, the security of one's home. Later amendments chronicle America's struggle for equality and justice for all of its people. These amendments abolish slavery, prohibit any denial of rights because of race, grant the vote to women and to citizens of the District of Columbia and allow citizens to vote at age 18.
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The United States of America is a federal republic consisting of 50 states. Each state has its own government («state government*). In some ways the United States is like 50 small countries.
The government of the USA act according to the Constitution which was signed by the first thirteen representatives of thirteen original American states in 1787. The document was written in 1787 and since that time twenty six Amendments have been added. The first ten Amendments were simply rights or the Bill of rights. According to the Constitution the USA is a republic. So, the officials of any rank are elected by US citizens. Every citizen has rights which can not be violated.
The Constitution proclaims a federal system of government which keeps both the states and the federal power from getting too much power. It means that the federal government is given certain powers, for example, to make peace or war, to issue money and to regulate the trade and so on.
The federal power is located in Washington, D.C. It is based on legislative, executive and juridical branches of power.
The legislative power is vested in Congress, which consists of two houses: the Senate and the House of Representatives, There are 435 members in the House of Representatives and 100 senators in Congress. Each state elects two members for the Senate.
The executive branch is headed by the President who is assisted by the Vice President. The President enforces federal laws, serves as commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. The President can veto a bill unless Congress by a two-thirds vote shall overrule him. The Vice President, elected from the same political party as the President, acts as chairman of the Senate, and in the event of the death of the President, assumes the Presidency. The President of the USA is chosen in nationwide elections every 4 years together with the Vice.-President. The President can not be elected for more than two terms. The Cabinet is made up of Department Secretaries. The most important of them is the Secretary of State, who deals with foreign affairs.
The judicial branch is made up of Federal District Courts, 11 Federal Courts and the Supreme Court. Federal judges are appointed by the President for life.
Federal courts decide cases involving federal law, conflicts between citizens of different states.
Политическая система США
Правительство США действует согласно конституции, которая была подписана первыми тринадцатью представителями тринадцати первоначальных американских штатов в 1787 году. Документ был написан в 1787 году и с того времени было внесено 26 поправок. Первые десять поправок были просто права человека, или билль о правах. Согласно Конституции, США является республикой. Таким образом, должностные лица любого ранга избираются американскими гражданами. Каждый гражданин имеет права, которые не могут нарушаться.
Конституция провозглашает федеральную систему правления, которая удерживает государственную и федеральную власть от превышения полномочий. Это означает, что федеральному правительству даны некоторые полномочия, например, решать быть миру или войне, печатать деньги и регулировать торговлю и т. п.
Федеральная власть расположена в Вашингтоне, округ Колумбия. Она основывается на законодательной, исполнительной и юридической ветвях власти.
Законодательной властью наделяется Конгресс, который состоит из двух палат: Сената и Палаты представителей. В Конгрессе 435 членов Палаты представителей и 100 сенаторов. Каждый штат выбирает двух членов для Сената.
Исполнительная ветвь возглавляется президентом, которому помогает вице-президент. Президент подписывает федеральные законы, является главнокомандующим вооруженными силами. Президент может наложить вето на законопроект, но две трети всех голосов Конгресса, выступающие против решения президента, отменяют его. Вице-президент, избранный от той же самой политической партии, что и президент, действует как председатель Сената и в случае смерти президента принимает президентство. Президент США вместе с вице-президентом избираются на общенародных выборах каждые четыре года. Президент не может быть избран больше, чем на два срока. Кабинет состоит из секретарей департамента. Наиболее важным из них является госсекретарь, который занимается внешней политикой.
Судебная ветвь состоит из федеральных окружных судов, 11 федеральных судов и Верховного суда. Федеральные судьи назначаются президентом на пожизненный срок.
Федеральные суды занимаются рассмотрением случаев, где нарушен федеральный закон, а также конфликтов между гражданами различных штатов.
Конституция была поправлена 26 раз. Билль о правах гарантирует личные свободы: свободу слова, религии и так далее. Более поздние поправки отменили рабство, предоставили право голосования женщинам и цветным и дали право на голосование гражданам, достигшим 18 лет.
1. What is the main document of the USA?
2. When was the Constitution of the USA signed?
3. How many Amendments have been added to the Constitution since 1787?
4. What does the Constitution proclaim?
5. What powers is the federal government given?
6. Where is the federal government located? .
7. Where is the legislative power vested?
8. How many members are there in the House of Representatives?
9. Who is the head of the executive power in the USA?
10. How often do the President's elections take place?
11. Who deals with foreign affairs in the USA?
12. What does the Bill of Rights guarantee?
The United States of America is a federation of 50 states and one district — District of Columbia. The capital city is Washington D.C. Each state is different from all the others. It has its own state government, laws, education, taxes and customs.
The USA Constitution establishes a stronger federal government empowered to collect taxes, conduct diplomacy, maintain armed forces, and regulate foreign trade and commerce among the states, but most importantly, it establishes the principle of a balance of power. It means that the power in the USA is divided into three branches — legislative, executive and judicial, each one acts independently and has powers (checks and balances) over the other.
In the USA political system, the highest legislative body is the Congress, which consists of the two chambers. The lower one is the House of Representatives; the upper one is the Senate.
The President of the USA is the chief executive with the functions of the head of state and the commander-in-chief of armed forces. The highest judicial authority is the Supreme Court.
In the USA political system, there are two main parties: the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. The Democratic Party is the oldest party in the world, which was created in 1828. The donkey has become its unofficial symbol, which speaks of stubborn overcoming any difficulties. The Republican Party has been operating since 1854; its unofficial symbol is the elephant, which shows power.
Перевод:
Политическая система США
Соединенные Штаты Америки – это федеративная президентская республика, состоящая из 50 штатов и одного федерального округа Колумбия. Столица США – Вашингтон. Каждый штат отличается друг от друга своим собственным правительством, законами, образованием, налогами и традициями.
Конституция США устанавливает сильное федеральное правительство, уполномоченное взимать налоги, осуществлять дипломатическую деятельность, поддерживать вооруженные силы и регулировать международные сделки и торговлю между государствами, но, самое главное, устанавливает принцип разделения властей. Это означает, что власть в США делится на три ветви власти — законодательную, исполнительную и судебную, каждая из которых действует независимо друг от друга и обладает своими полномочиями (сдержек и противовесов) над другой.
В политической системе США высшим органом законодательной власти является Конгресс, состоящий из двух палат. Нижняя – Палата представителей, верхняя – Сенат.
Президент США — глава исполнительной власти США с функциями главы государства и главнокомандующего Вооруженными силами.
Высшим органом судебной власти является Верховный Суд.
В политической системе США существуют две основные партии: демократическая и республиканская. Демократическая партия США – старейшая партия в мире, которая создана в 1828 году. Ее неофициальным символом является осел, что говорит об упрямом преодолении любых трудностей. Республиканская партия США действует с 1854 года, ее неофициальный символ – слон, что показывает мощь.
Полезные слова и выражения:
To be different from – быть отличным от
To collect taxes – взимать налоги
To conduct diplomacy — осуществлять дипломатическую деятельность
To maintain – поддерживать
To regulate foreign trade and commerce — регулировать международные сделки и торговлю
Head of state – глава государства
Commander-in-chief of armed forces — главнокомандующий вооруженными силами
The legislative power of the US is vested in the Congress of the USA. The Congress was created by Article I of the Constitution, adopted in 1787. It consists of two chambers - the Senate and the House of Representatives.
The Senate is made up of 100 members (2 from each state), elected for a term of 6 years. One third of the Senate is elected every 2 years. To be elected a Senator, a person must be at least 30 years old and have been the citizen of the USA for at least 9 years.
The House of Representatives comprises representatives from each state, elected for a two-year term. The number of representatives from each state depends on its population, but every state is represented. To be elected a representative, a person must be at least 25 years of age and have been a citizen of the USA for at least 7 years.
The presiding officer of the Senate is the Vice-President of the USA. The presiding officer of the House of Representatives, the Speaker, is elected by the house. The work of preparing and considering laws is done by the committees of both Houses. There are 15 standing committees in the Senate and 19 in the House of Representatives.
The Congress assembles at least once a year.
The executive branch of the government consists of the President, the Vice-President and the Cabinet. The President’s term of office is four years, together with the Vice-President, chosen for the same term. The President is the head of the executive branch of the government; he appoints the members of the Cabinet. The Cabinet advises the President on many matters and is composed of the heads of ten executive departments: Secretary of State, Secretary of Treasury, Secretary of Defence and others.
The judicial branch of the government is headed by the Supreme Court which settles disputes between the states. The Supreme Court may veto any law passed by the Congress if it contradicts the Constitution of the USA.
The United States is a federal Union, and the President is the head of the Federal government which deals with international problems and national matters. But every state has its own constitution and the state government headed by the Governor and managing their local affairs. Their laws and decisions must not contradict the Constitution of the USA.
The US national flag - Stars and Stripes - is red, white and blue. Thirteen stripes represent the original 13 states of the US; the 50 stars represent the current number of states.
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