英美国家概况 14.pptVIP

Chapter 14 State Government and Party Politics The Constitution The Three Branches of Government Congress Political Parties President Election The Constitution The system of government is laid down in the Constitution of the United States, which was framed in Philadelphia in 1787 and ratified in 1789. American constitution is called “a living constitution”, in that amendments can be added to it. The Principles of Constitution The federal system --meaning there is a division of powers between the federal government and the state government. The Separation of powers --meaning there is also a division of powers among the three branches of the federal government. The Three Branches of Government The legislative branch represented by Congress The executive branch represented by the President The judicial branch represented by the Supreme Court Checks and Balances Congress The bicameral system: The Senate The House of Representatives The Senate Each of the 50 states elects two Senators. The term for Senators is six years, but one third of them are elected every two years. A senator must be over 30 years old and must have been an American citizen for at least nine years. The Senate Building The House of Representatives The number of representatives from each state is fixed according to the size of the population the state has. The total number of Representaatives has been fixed at 435. At present there is one Representative for over 500,000 people, but a state with a population less than that should elect one. The House of Representatives Political Parties The two parties established in 1789. the Federal Party the Republican Party Alexander Hamilton VS Thomas Jefferson The two parties emerged in the middle of the 19th century. the Democratic Party the Republican Party The Party Policies Simple-majority electoral system, like the American one, tend to cause a nation’s politics to be dominated by competition between 2 parties. The 2 great American parties are R