Warm UP

If you came to school tomorrow and there were no

rules or procedures, how would you feel? Ex: You could

go anywhere in the building, eat anything in the cafeteria, or

watch T.V.

http://10.200.10.53/videos/26180/chp923665_700k.asf

Why Three Branches of Government?

Framers wrote the Constitution to provide for three separate branches of government. Each has its own responsibilities and at the same time they work together to make the country runs smoothly and to assure that the rights of citizens are not ignored or power is abused.

Three Branches of Government

Job: Make LawsJob: Carry out laws Job: Make laws

Constitutional

Bicameral

Legislative Branch

The legislative branch of government is made up of the Congress. Article I of the Constitution established this branch and gave Congress the power to make laws. Congress has two parts, the House of Representatives and the Senate. (bicameral!!!)

Legislative Branch

The U.S. Congress

                                                                                                           

The House of RepresentativesIn the House, representation is based on the number of people living in each state. The more people that live in a state, the more representatives allowed. Each member represents a congressional district.

The U.S. House of Representatives• Total number of Representatives for our country is

435.• Texas has 32 representatives• Baines Middle School is in District 22 • and our Congressman is

• Pete Olson.

• They serve 2 year terms• Each sessions last 140 days

Texas State House of Representatives• 150 State Representatives districts

House of Representative Requirements

• Must be 25 years old• Live in Texas for

two years or more• Live in the district• U.S. citizen

Head of the HouseIs the Speaker of The HouseJohn Boehner

The SenateEach of the 50 states sends 2 people to the Senate, so there are a total of 100 senators. This means that each state has equal representation in the Senate.

U.S. SenatorsRequirements

• Senator John Cornyn

• Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson

• They serve 6 year terms

Texas State Senator

• 31 Senate districts

Requirements to be a Senator

• Be at least 30 years of age• U.S. Citizen• Must live in state for at least 9 years• Must live in district

Head of U.S. SenateIs Vice PresidentHead of Texas SenateIs lieutenant governor

Executive BranchThe President is the leader of the country and Commander in Chief of the military. The President enforces the law.

Executive Branch• President and Vice President must:• be a natural born citizen of the United

States • be at least 35 years old • have lived in the U.S. for at least 14

years • In addition, the 22nd Amendment to

the U.S. Constitution states that a President may not serve more than 2 terms of 4 years each, even if they have only served as President for 2 or more years of one of those terms

Governor of Texas• Governor must :

• elected by the citizens every four years.

• be at least 30 years old

• resident of Texas for the five years immediately before the election

Judicial Branch The judicial branch of government is established in Article III of the Constitution with the creation of the Supreme Court. 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.

Supreme Court

• 7,500 cases that are sent to the Supreme Court each year, only about 80 to 100 cases are accepted

• The Supreme Court is made up of nine Justices. One of these is the Chief Justice.

• appointed by the President and must be approved by the Senate.

• Justices have their jobs for life, unless they resign, retire, or are impeached by the House and convicted by the Senate

Court System• Justice of the Peace: minor offenses• Punishable by fines$$$$$$• Civil cases: deals with less than 1,500• Municipal Court: mostly traffic violationsCounty Court: A judge heads this and also serves as the

head of the county government. Judge Elected Heard civil cases that deal with fines up to $100,000 Misdemeanors District Court: Main trial court Felony cases Divorce Disputes over land ownership Judge elected

Texas Courts

• Appeal court: Texas has 14 court of appeals

• Hear appeals from both civil and criminal cases

• Appeal courts do not hear testimony, they review written records of trial and listen to brief arguments from lawyers from both sides.

• Texas and Oklahoma are the only two states that have more than one high court of appeal. The two last resort courts are Texas Supreme court and Court of Criminal Appeals

Texas Courts• Texas Supreme Court: hears appeals from civil and

juvenile cases. • This court is made of a chief justice and eight

justices.• Court of Criminals Appeals: Highest Court of

Appeals for criminal appeals• Made of nine judges• Hears all cases in which person is on death row• Rare but you can appeal courts decision to U.S.

Supreme court • Judged on both courts must have 10 years of

experience being a judge or attorney

State Government

• Austin is the Capitol of Texas• 32 delegates in the Texas House of

Representatives• 2 Senators from Texas• Responsible for taking care of the needs of the

state that the National Government does not take care of through the collection of taxes. (i.e. state colleges, states highways, issue driver’s licenses, maintain state parks)

Any Questions?