Judicial

Executive

Legislative

Massachusetts Government United States Government

Judicial

Executive

Legislative

Find out more about the Massachusetts Government

Find out more about the United States Government

Find out more about the Massachusetts Government

IntroductionFind out more about the Massachusetts Government

Find out more about the Massachusetts

That’s right! Massachusetts and the United States each have a government. As we progress through Civics, there is much to learn about each of these! On your note page, take notes on both the MA and US governments

Before clicking on either the RED or BLUE box. Give 3 clicks to learn a few introductory facts about each government.

United States Government

Judicial

Executive

Legislative

U.S Congress

435 Representatives 100 Senators

President (1) Vice-President (1) Cabinet (15

members)

Supreme Court (9 judges)

Appeals Courts

District Courts

Give 2 clicks for more detailed knowledge on the set-up of the United States Government

Click this button to return to introduction page

US Overview

Click this button to read more about the U.S. Legislature

Click this button to read more about the Judicial Branch

Hit the web - click this button for lots of detail on the U.S. government

Click this button to read more about the Presidency

435? Hit the web to learn about the person who represents Lexington…

The U.S. Congress The primary duty of Congress is to write, debate, and pass bills, which are then passed on to the president for approval.The Constitution grants Congress "all legislative powers" in the national government. Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution lists a wide range of congressional powers, including: * Coining money.* Maintaining a military.* Declaring war on other countries.* Regulating interstate and foreign commerce.Congress also controls federal taxing and spending policies—one of the most important sources of power in the government. The Constitution also gives Congress the authority to "make all laws which shall be necessary and proper," an implied source of power sometimes called the Elastic Clause.

There are, however, some congressional powers that are rarely used such as the ability to impeach an official and amending the United States Constitution.

In addition to the power described above, Congress shares powers with the president in matters such as, framing U.S. foreign policy and control over the military. For example, while the president negotiates treaties, they are only put into effect once the Senate approves them. Also, while Congress can declare war and approve funds for the military, the president is the commander-in-chief of the military.

A new Congress begins in January every two years following congressional elections, in which voters choose all representatives and a third of the senators. The entire House membership faces re-election every two years, but the Senate is a continuing body because there is never an entirely new Senate. Since the First Congress, which met from 1789 to 1791, all Congresses have been numbered in order. The 113th U.S. Congress began in January, 2013. Congress meets once every year. Usually the session lasts from January 3rd to July 31st, but it can last much longer.

For the most part, the House and Senate each meet in their respective chamber in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. However, on rare occasions, they will meet together for a joint session of Congress in the House chamber. For example, a joint session will be called to count electoral votes for presidential election.

Back to Intro Page

Back to U.S. Gov. Page

See some pictures from the Congress

See some visuals that explain Congress

Judicial Branch The judicial branch of government is established in Article III of the Constitution with the creation of the Supreme Court. This court is the highest court in the country and is empowered with the judicial powers of the government. There are lower Federal courts but they were not created by the Constitution. Rather, Congress deemed them necessary and established them using power granted from the Constitution. Courts decide arguments about the meaning of laws, how they are applied, and whether they break the rules of the Constitution. A court's authority to decide constitutionality is called judicial review. If the Supreme Court rules that a law made by Congress does not “fit” with the rules of the Constitution, the law is declared unconstitutional and it is “thrown out”.

Judicial review puts the Supreme Court in an important role in the American political system. It is the referee in disputes among various branches of the federal, as well as state governments, and is the ultimate authority for the most important issues in the country. For example, in 1954, the Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education banned racial segregation in public schools. The ruling started a long process of desegregating schools and other institutions.

The Supreme Court is made up of nine Justices. One of these is the Chief Justice, currently this is John Roberts. They are appointed by the President and must be approved by the Senate. Justices have their jobs for life, unless they resign, retire, or are impeached.

U.S. Judicial

Click here to go back to the Introduction page

Click this button to return to U.S. page

To the left is the U.S. Capitol Building - It is where the House of Representatives and Senate meet. It is not the White House!

Here is the view of the House “chamber” when most seats are filled!

Back to IntroPage

Back to U.S. Gov. Page

Back to Congress reading

Republican John Boehner of Ohio is the Speaker of the House in the U.S. House of Representatives – he began working in this role in January 2011.

Democrat Harry Reid is the Majority Leader in the United States Senate.

Click to see some pictures and explanations relating to the U.S. Government’s Legislative Branch

2013 – Special Note click the yellow box on the left for detail…

Presidency

The President of the United StatesThe President is the head of the Executive Branch. The powers of the President of the United States are set forth in Article II of the Constitution. Some of these powers the President can exercise on his/her own. Others require the consent of the Senate or Congress as a whole. The following is a list of duties of the President of the United States:National Security Powers:

*Serves as the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. He can authorize the use of troops overseas without declaring war. To declare war officially, though, he must get the approval of the Congress.*Makes treaties with other nations; however, the Senate must approve any treaty before it becomes official.*Nominates ambassadors, with the agreement of a majority of the Senate.*Receives ambassadors of other nations, thereby recognizing those lands as official countries.

Legislative Powers:*Presents information on the state of the union to Congress.*Recommends legislation to Congress. Despite all of his power, the President cannot write bills. He or she can propose a bill, but a member of Congress must submit it for him.*Vetoes bills passed by Congress, if he/she does not think they should be laws*Approves laws passed by Congress.

Administrative Powers:*Take care that the laws be faithfully executed" -- Article II, Section 3*Appoints the heads of each Executive Branch department as Chief of the Government. He also appoints ambassadors, Supreme Court Justices, and other officials, with the agreement of the majority of the Senate.*Requests written opinions of administrative officials.*Fills administrative vacancies during congressional recesses.Judicial Powers:*Grants reprieves and pardons for Federal crimes (except impeachment).*Appoints Federal judges, with the agreement of the majority of the Senate.

Click this button to return to introduction page

Click this button to return to U.S. page

Massachusetts Government

JudicialExecutiveLegislative

State Legislature 160 Representatives 40 Senators

Both Reps and Senators have a “leader”. The “Speaker of the House” and the “President of the Senate”

Governor (1)

Lieutenant Governor (1)

Constitutional Officers (4)

Executive Council – this is an elected group that few people know about . They have some important powers (8)

Cabinet (10)

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (7 judges)

Lower State Courts

Click this button to return to introduction page

Mass Overview

Click to see some pictures of leaders of the Mass. Government

160 and 40? Hit the web and find out who your senator and rep are…

This is the Massachusetts State House. Both the Massachusetts Governor and the Massachusetts Legislature work here. Yes! Massachusetts has its’ own government!

Give 3 clicks to learn more about the structure of the Massachusetts government

Deval Patrick is Massachusetts’ governor. The Chief Executive of the Massachusetts government. He was elected Governor in 2006 and re-elected in 2010. He is the first black Governor of Massachusetts

Just like the U.S. government has a Speaker of the House, so does Massachusetts. Robert DeLeo is the current Speaker of the House of Representatives in the Massachusetts government.

More on Massachusetts Government

Back to Massachusetts overview

In the U.S. government, the Vice President is the “President of the Senate”. In the MA government the senators pick one of their 40 to be “Senate President”. Currently, that person is Therese Murray

Tim Murray is the Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts. He was elected with Deval Patrick in 2006 and 2010.

The U.S. Congress - A Closer Look• Must be 25 years old

• Serve a 2 year term

• Number per state is based on population

• All bills that involve spending money must start in the House

• Must be 30 years old

• Serve a 6 year term

• 2 senators from each state – no matter the population

• Senate has power to check on many decisions made by the President of the United States

Click once for more information

Click this button to return to U.S. page

Back to Congress reading

Who is your rep? The Massachusetts 5th….

As of the beginning of Curiosity Team Civics class, on December 9, 2013 – most Curiosity Team students and their families DO NOT have a representative in the United States House of Representatives!

The Representative for this area, called the Massachusetts 5 th Congressional District, (which includes Lexington), quit this job last summer. His name is Edward Markey, he quit in order to become one of Massachusetts’ 2 US Senators.

So, for the question: Who is the US Representative who serves the people of Lexington?

The answer on December 9, 2013 is “nobody” has this job.

However a special election is scheduled for Tuesday, December 10, 2013. The two main candidates are:

Katherine Clark and Frank Addivinol

Back to US Government page