Us government

• Who were the people involved?– Edmund Randolph, a delegate from Virginia.

• How many houses were there?– It was a bicameral, which was made up of two houses.

• How is representation determined?– The representation was determined by population. The bigger

the population, the more the representatives. The smaller states thought this would make the larger states get more power.

• Who favored the plan and why? – Larger states favored this because they got more power. They

have the larger population, so they have even more power.

• Who were the people involved?– William Paterson, a New Jersey delegate.

• How many houses were there?– It was a unicameral legislature. This is a one-house

legislature.

• How is representation determined?– It gave each state an equal number of votes, so it’s

an equal voice.

• Who favored the plan and why? – Smaller states favored this because it ensured they

have just as much power as other states.

• Who were the people involved?– Roger Sherman, a delegate of Connecticut founded this plan.

• How many houses were there?– There would be two houses in this plan.

• How is representation determined?– Each state would get two representatives in the senate, which was

the upper house.– The House of Representatives, the lower house, determined how

many representatives there were by the population of a state.• Who favored the plan and why?

– Smaller states liked this because there would be two representatives in the senate. This gave even power to the states.

– Larger states liked this because representatives in the House of Representatives were determined by population. The larger states had a bigger population.

• What is it? – This made sure only three fifths of a states population

of slaves counted when determining representation.

• Why do we need it?– We need this because the Southern states had lots of

slaves that made up their population, and the North did not have many slaves, so this made sure the South could not count all of its slaves as their population. This also made sure the South didn’t get more power.

Job:Their job is to write laws, confirm presidential appointments, approve treaties, grant money, and declares war.Head:The head of the legislative branch are the head of Senate and the head of the House of Representatives. The head of the Senate is the vice president and the head of the House of Representatives are speaker or the leader.Houses:The two houses are the House of Representatives and the Senate.The House of Representatives has 435 members.The Senate has two senators for each state.Requirements:To be a member in the House of Representatives, you have to be at least 25 years old, live in the state where they were elected, and have been U.S citizens for seven years.To be a senator in the senate, you must be 30 years or older, and have been U.S. citizens for seven years.Important Facts:A member in the House of Representatives serves two-year terms.Apportionment is a system that keeps the number of members at 435. A senator serves six-year terms.Members can serve an unlimited number of terms.

Job:Their job is to propose laws, administer the laws, command armed forces, appoint ambassadors and other officials, conduct foreign policy, and make treaties.Head:The head of the executive branch is the president.Requirements:To be a president or a vice president, you have to be born a U.S. citizen, and at least 35 old. They also have to have been a U.S. resident for 14 years.Important Facts:A president can have up to two four-year terms.A vice president can have as many four-year terms as the people want.If a President dies, resigns, or is removed from office, the vice president takes over as president.The House of Representatives can Impeach a president. Impeachment is to vote to bring charges of serious crimes against a president.

Job:Their job is to interpret the Constitution and other laws, and review lower-court decisions.Head:The head of the judicial branch is the Supreme Court.Requirements:There are no requirements. You can serve for life.Important Facts:Each state has at least one of the 94 district courts.If someone thinks a trial was unfair, they can go to the court of appeals. If they think it was fair, the original decision remains. If it you lose, you could go to the Supreme Court.Even thought the Supreme Court gets thousands of cases, it can only go through about a 100 cases per year.

SummaryIn the Des Moines District, there was a rule made that states that you can not wear an armband to school, and you will be suspended if you do not take it off when asked to do so. Three students wore armbands and they got suspended. They said that this action violated their right of speech. There was a court case in 1969

DecisionMore people voted for the students and said that they should have freedom of speech. Students argued that these armbands were also a form of speech, so the school’s rule was violating the first amendment. This does not distract other students from learning also. The school allowed other political symbols, so why not these armbands?

SignificanceThis case went so far that schools now had the right to take part in political protests. It asked if students should be allowed to wear political symbols in school.

SummaryThis was one of many court cases that challenged racial segregation in schools. This particular case was Brown v the Board of Education. It was against the Topeka school board. The schools offered the same things, but segregation made them different.

DecisionThe court decided that doing this was making schools not equal. They saw this was not following the constitution. The court also saw that this created feeling within people and that this was upsetting them. Brown won 9-0 in this case.

SignificanceThis case got rid of courts earlier perspective on racial segregation and helped with further movement on it. It also helped expand civil rights.

SummaryThis court ruling was about a man who was not told about his fifth amendment rights that whatever he says will be used against him in court, and the sixth amendment rights that he is allowed to have an attorney during interrogation. He was then arrested because of something he said. His argument was that he was not aware of his rights.

DecisionMiranda won 5-4 because court thought it was unfair to the people who speak out and not knowing their rights, their words are used against them in court. The court then made the Miranda rights, which made police officers have to tell a person that they have the right to remain silent, anything they say can and will be used in a court of law, and they have the right to an attorney. They must clearly state this before interrogation.

SignificanceThis allowed citizens who were being interrogated to know that their own words can be used against them, and they can have an attorney with them during questioning, and that they may get an attorney if they cannot afford one.

• Checks and balances is a system that makes sure there is no tyranny in the government. It prevents one part of the government by doing things by itself.

• The Judicial branch does have checks because they can call laws unconstitutional, therefore not allowing the law to be passed.

• Separation of powers was made so that one group could not abuse their power, so they split the powers between the three branches.

• An example of separation of powers is like when the house and senate want to pass a law, but the president does not like the proposed law, so he can veto it. But if the president likes the law and signs it, the Supreme Court can decide whether it is constitutional or not.

The Federal System

• Reserved powers– Reserved powers are

for the states.– A few examples of

these are creating local governments and holding elections.

• Delegated Powers– Delegated powers are

powers given to the national government.

– A few examples of these are the rights to coin money and regulate trade.

This Affects Me:• By letting me practice my own religion• By allowing me to protest against the governments

actions• By giving me the chance to ask the government to

change something in the government• By letting me say what I want to say about an issue• By letting me know I will not get in trouble with the

government for doing these things.

The 1st amendment prohibits the government from making laws that prohibit religious practices, your freedom of speech, freedom to the press, asking the government to change something, or protesting or assembling.

This affects me:• By letting me know I can own a gun when I am

older• By allowing elders around me keep guns for safety• By letting me know that well trained soldiers carry

guns so we are protected.

The 2nd amendment gives the right for people to buy and keep guns. And that well trained soldiers may carry guns

This affects me:• By letting me know that police can’t search my

house without showing me their warrant and not to let them in.

• Because my privacy is being invaded.• By knowing the police need a good reason to get a

warrant, so they can not just come to search my house whenever they want.

The 4th amendment says that your house may not be searched by government officials with out a warrant from court.

This affects me:• This lets me know that if one day I get arrested, I

must me given all my legal rights.• I know I can only be charged with a infamous crime

if the grand jury charges me with the crime.

The 5th amendment protects any person from being accused of infamous crimes, unless they are charged with the crime. They may not be a witness to themselves, and they still have their right of life, liberty, or property without the due process of law.

This affects me:• This lets me know that if I one day I get accused for

a crime, I don’t have to wait a few years to go to court. I have the right to have a fast trial.

The 6th amendment says that a person accused of a crime can have a fast public trial and the right to a jury.

The 13th amendment says that any person many not serve another person unwillingly. The only exception for this is if it was a punishment for a crime the person committed. This was originally made to prevent slavery.

This Affects Me:• By letting me know that no one can force me to

work for them when I do not want to work for them.• By letting me know that if I may need to work for

someone even if I don’t want to because I committed a crime and this is the punishment for that crime.

The 14th amendment says that every U.S. citizen gets an equal treatment in the court of law. The government may not take the rights of life, liberty, or property so it is fair for everyone.

This Affects Me:• By letting me know that if I get accused of a crime

and have to go to court, that I can rest assured that I am given equal rights like everyone else who comes to court.

• By letting me know the government will be fair to me and not treat me differently because of my race, religion, or social class.

The 15th amendment says that the government cannot give a vote to a U.S. citizen based on race, color, or other things.

This Affects Me:• By letting me know that when I turn older, the

government cannot say no to my vote just because of me or others around me being a different race or color.

The 18th amendment says that alcoholic beverages may not be brewed or drunk. The only exception is for religious purposes.

This Affects Me:• This does not affect most of us now, because the

21st amendment basically made it so that the 18th amendment was completely repealed, so none of it really affects us now.

The 19th amendment says that the government cannot say someone can’t vote just because of their sex.

This Affects Me:• By letting me know that men and women around

me can vote ant they cannot be denied a vote just because they are masculine or feminine.

The 26th amendment says that you have to be 18 years or older to vote.

This Affects Me:• By letting me know that I can’t vote until I am 18

years of age.• I know not to try to vote until I’m 18 otherwise my

vote will be denied.