under her guidance the 111th US Congress was said to be the most productive in the history of its conception. This means that she was
territory of the United States. The islands of Puerto Rico were acquired by the United States in 1898, where Spain ceded the islands to the U.S. In 1917, the Jones Act declared Puerto Rico to be an “organized but incorporated” territory of the United States, and granted US citizenship to all the residents who wanted it. An “unincorporated territory”, according to the US Supreme Court Insular Cases, of the Unites States is ‘a territory appurtenant and belonging to the United States, but not a part
Upon first examination, the idea of implementing term limits in Congress is appealing. In fact, the idea of term limits was initially discussed by our founders, though it was eventually decided that it should not be included in the Constitution (Newton-Small, 2010). The reasons for considering term limits have remained consistent since the beginning of the country, however, and include ensuring legislative turnover, limiting the abuse of the power of seniority, and decreasing the advantages given
The United States government system is very interesting and complexly designed. The state and federal government is a mirror of each other when it comes to the generics of the executive branch, legislative branch, and judicial branch, however, internally the state government has major differences on how the branches are conducted. Throughout this paper we will discuss the greatest difference between state and federal, which is the state cannot change or remove laws passed by the federal government
masters." In nineteen sixty-two the Supreme Court of the United States pronounced that a prayer recited in the public school was abusing our freedoms . In the court's opinion this was an act in violation to the first amendment, which calls for "a separation of church and state.'' This ruling was later extended to include the use of the Bible as well. A Supreme Court Justice, Hugo Black, put it in this often quoted statement "Neither a state or the Federal government can set up a church. Nor can
Across the Country Should we make all laws uniform across the country and eliminate state-to-state differences in policies? What can we gain from such a change and what would we lose? As our current system of laws exists, a single idea for a law can be applied differently to each individual state. Interpretations, enforcement, and the consequences of the law can vary within the United States as each separate state is allowed to create their independent laws as long as they remain constitutional
The Makeup of Congress When discussing the makeup of Congress, one must first look to the intent of the framers around creating a bicameral legislature. This would take me to the first section of our class regarding the debates the founding fathers had about equal representation of the states in the Congress. Edmund Randolph of Virginia was the first to offer a suggestion, known as the “Virginia Plan”, that addressed representation. His plan provided for a system of representation based on
The least common is the confederation. Confederations are unions of equal states, with some power being held at the national level. Generally, it has been found that conflicting interests lead to the breakdown of confederations. The third major system is the federal system. In a federal system, the national government holds significant power, but the smaller political subdivisions also hold significant power. The United States, Canada, Australia, and Brazil are examples of federal systems. Federal
fall or rise on any public statement by him. But is he the western world's most powerful politician? In America, the president is the best known of many politicians. This alone gives him a great deal of authority as many people within their own states cannot name their own representatives in the House, Senate or governor. The simple fact, that the president has the title of president gives him enormous authority and power in that he is the main figurehead within the whole of the massive American
decided to hunt Saddam Hussein. Secretary of State Colin Powell (directed by the U.S. government) reported in a speech given on Feb. 5, 2003 that Saddam had both the materials and the means to create weapons of mass destruction and also had links to the terrorists in al-Qaeda ("The Path to War"). This declaration led the United States declaring on March 17, 2003 that Hussein and his sons had 48 hours to leave the country or else the United States would take military action ("Iraq Timeline"). Hussein
overpowered central government. However, federalism in the United States is hitherto uncertain where the power lies in the contemporary political system. In this essay I will outline and explain how power relationship alternates between states and federal government. Moreover I will also discuss my perspective by weighing the evidence based upon resources. Based on these resources, it will aid me to evaluate the recent development in the federal-state relationship. Theoretically, in a Federal system the
Jack Sheldon’s, “How a Bill Becomes a Law” is lacking in several different ways. Not that the jingle doesn’t give you some sort of semblance of how a law is made. It just doesn’t give a detail account of the entire procedure. Very little is mentioned of how a bill is introduced to the House or the Senate. Legislation is handed to the clerk of the House or placed in the hopper. In the Senate, members must gain recognition of the presiding officer to announce the introduction of a bill during the morning
considerably from state to state (Bowman, Kearney, 2011). The governor of Texas is in general the most known state official and usually at the center of state government and politics. As such an important part of the Texas government, the governor has many powers, both formal and informal. The formal powers of the governor are powers inherent to the person who holds the office. These powers include: the power to veto, appointing powers, budgeting powers, and the power to reorganize state agencies and
display in the storefront of the eye of everyone. In the painfully, yet enjoyable essays, Eric Schlosser takes us on many numerous excursions through the war on marijuana, the lives of immigrant farm workers, and the very dirty sex industry in the United States. He paints a very graphic image of hypocrisy in the policies of the U.S. government by examining the power of the economy of the underground and the misuse of government resources in legislating morality to its public. . II. Major Issues In each
Exploring Constitutional Law. Exploring Constitutional Law, 2013. Web. 13 Nov. 2013. McMahon, Robert. "Balance of War Powers: The U.S. President and Congress." Council on Foreign Relations. Council on Foreign Relations, 1 Sept. 2013. Web. 13 Nov. 2013. United States Senate. "Official Declarations of War by Congress." United States Senate. United States Senate, n.d. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.
The preamble of the United States Constitution was almost an afterthought. It was not proposed or discussed on the floor of the Constitutional Convention. A delegate from Pennsylvania, Governor Morris, who drafted the final text of the Constitution, thought it up and drafted it at the last moment. The preamble helped to summarize the purpose of the Constitution. The Preamble did not, in itself, have any solid legal meaning or purpose. Preambles were not legal precedent or to be read as giving or
saw an increased focus on national security. Concerns of terrorism led to the Department of Defense working more closely with federal, state, and local agencies (Bowman, 2003). The military has always relied on civilian control, yet there are some characteristics that complicate the relationship between military and civilian society. In The Soldier and the State, Samuel P. Huntington argues that the nature of the military makes it incompatible with civilian society (Sarkesian, Williams, & Cimbala
the Congress and agent agencies. Congress has two parts, Senate and House of Representatives. Each Senate and House of Representatives have special jobs. Senates can say yes or no to any treaties that the president makes, they can hold a trial for a government official that may have done something wrong, and also say yes or no to any citizens the president recommends for jobs. Moreover, we have The House of Representatives. Representation is based on the number of people living in each state. There
Most individuals with a general background knowledge of the United States Federal Government system are aware that in order for a bill to become a law, it must first pass a majority vote in Congress. There is, however, a very important step in the legislative process that sometimes goes unnoticed. The committee system of the legislation process ensures that the appropriate attention is given to each bill introduced to Congress. Each member of both chambers are assigned to committees and subcommittees
Hevi yua ivir wundirid huw uar guvirnmint gut tu bi es urgenozid es ot os nuw? Will, ot wes nut elweys thet wey; wi asid tu nut hevi 3 brenchis uf guvirnmint loki wi du tudey. Thiy dicodid thet iech brench woll hevi cirteon puwirs tu meki uar cuantry ran smuuthly; end thos pruciss os cellid chicks end belencis. Wothuat thi 3 brenchis puwirs biong belencid, uar lofi es cotozins wuald bi cumplitily uat uf wheck end ancuntrullid. It os viry ompurtent tu knuw whoch brench hes whet puwir, end huw iech