Transcript Constitution Study Guide

Constitution Study Guide
The Three Branches of Government
Executive
Legislative
Judicial
Enforces the
countries laws
Law making branch
of our government
Judges whether
laws follow the true
meaning of the
Constitution
Headed by the
President
Congress
Serves a 4 year term
The Senate
The House of
(6 years)
Representatives
(2 years)
Also includes: Army,
Navy, Air Force,
Marines, Coast
Guard, National
Guard, The Police,
His Cabinet
Headed by the
Supreme Court
(appointed for life
or until they
decide to retire)
Also: the U.S.
court system and
it’s supporters
Major Constitutional Amendments
The first 10 are called: “The Bill of Rights”
(not now…. In a little bit….)
First…..
The Civil War Amendments
All were ratified (approved) at the end of the Civil War
• 13th Amendment
• 14th Amendment
• 15th Amendment
• All slaves would now be
free.
• Formers slaves were
now American citizens
(and should be treated
equally).
• Former slaves had the
right to vote (men).
Others
• 16th Amendment
(43 years after 13/14/15th)
Congress can collect a tax
on people’s income.
18th Amendment (1919):
Prohibition: Illegal to make,
sell, or transport alcohol in
any way.
21st Amendment:
(1932)
Did away with the
18thAmendment.
More…
• 22nd Amendment:
No one can ever be elected
President more than twice.
24th Amendment:
Poll taxes are illegal.
And…
•
25th Amendment:
1.
If the President can’t be in
power, the Vice President
takes over.
If there’s no Vice
President, the President
can name a new one
(approved by the Senate)
If the President is sick, he
can temporarily give power
to the Vice President.
2.
3.
• 26th Amendment:
Lowered the voting age from
21 to 18 (in 1971)
The 27th Amendment
• Congress cannot vote itself a pay raise – any
pay raise only counts for the next Congress
Now….
The Bill of Rights
1st Amendment
(lists 5 freedoms people have by being here)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Freedom of religion: you can be any religion you wish
– or none if you wish (goes back to the Church of
England being tied in directly with the British
government).
Freedom of speech: as long as it is true
Freedom of the press: as long as it’s true
Freedom of assembly: people can get together for
any reason (peaceful, or even in protests)
Freedom of petition: the government should help you
out if you “petition” them (ask them).
2nd Amendment
• People have the right to
“keep and bear arms”
•
•
•
•
•
•
This was written 230 years ago
The question today is what they
really meant:
For hunting?
For protection?
For rebelling against your
government if you need to?
Guns are much different today
than in 1776
3rd Amendment
• Soldiers cannot stay in your home without your
permission
• This comes from colonial times – when the British government
couldn’t afford food and places to stay for all it’s soldiers in the
colonies – so they sometimes could live in citizen’s homes and
those people “supported” them.
4th Amendment
• Police need a search warrant to enter your home.
• Police need a court order to take any of your
property.
5th Amendment
• No one can be tried for the same crime more than
once.
(except – criminal and civil cases are different)
• No-one can be forced to testify against themselves.
(You are innocent until you’re proven guilty)
• The government can’t take your property without
paying a fair price for it.
(Such as your land to build a new…)
• People must have fair trials.
6th Amendment
•
1.
2.
3.
If you are charged with a crime… you have the
right to:
a jury trial
a speedy trial
know why you’ve been arrested
7th Amendment
• A person involved in a lawsuit can have a jury trial if
they want one
8th Amendment
• Bail cannot be too high
(the amount of money you pay to get out of jail)
• Fines and punishments for crimes must be fair and
proportionate.
9th Amendment
• There are many rights that aren’t put into the
constitution.
10th Amendment
• Powers not given to the United States government in
the constitution, are given to the states and the
people .
(Has to do with Reserved Powers, Implied Powers, etc…
which we’ll look at later)
The Right to Vote
To register to vote:
• Elections are done
through the County
Clerk’s office.
• You have to register
to vote at least 30
days before the
election
• You must be an
American citizen
(born in the U.S. or
born to American
parents)
• You must be at least
18 years old on
election day.
• You must have lived
in the state for at least
30 days
Voting today:
• Anyone over 18 -
unless
• You’ve been
convicted of a felony
• If you have a mental
illness that keeps you
from making good
decisions
The Flag
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Red: for sacrifices made for this country
White: A new and fresh beginning
Blue: color of loyalty
13 stripes: original 13 colonies
50 stars: 50 states today
Presenting: In the middle, highest, first
Disposing: destroy by giving to the VFW lodge
Governmental Powers
The 6 different powers:
1.
2.
3.
3 Delegated Powers: given
to the national government
by the Constitution.
Expressed Powers:
Powers written in the
Constitution.
Implied Powers: Not
written, but implied in the
Constitution.
Inherent Powers: Powers a
government has just
because they’re the
government.
• Reserved Powers: powers
only the states can use.
• Concurrent Powers: shared
by both the states and the
federal government.
Given to the Federal Government
by the Constitution
How to remember: Delegated means put in charge of
something
Examples: make treaties and deal with foreign policies,
take control in emergency situations
Written out in the Constitution
How to remember: If you express yourself, you say / write
exactly what you want
Examples: the power to declare war, build and arm an army,
Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, National Guard
Not written, but implied in the Constitution
How to remember: Implied means suggested
Examples: the ability to make money, establish post
offices, regulate interstate trade (between states),
protection of savings, use of energy resources
Powers a government has, just because
they’re the government.
How to remember: Inherent is like inherit and if you inherit
something, you get it just because of who you are
Examples: getting new territories, deciding who can come
into the country
Powers only the states can have
How to remember: Reserved means saved for someone else
Examples: driving age, marriage age, conduct local and state
elections, take care of public health and safety, regulate intrastate
business (within the state), elections of local officials
• Shared by both the states and
the federal government
How to remember: current is like swimming along with the
current
• Examples: paying and collecting taxes, building roads, borrowing
money, establishing court systems, making and enforcing laws,
spend money for the general welfare of people, use private property
for public use (with just compensation)
How to Change / Amend the
Constitution
Amendments:
(changes or additions to the constitution)
1st
a new amendment must be
proposed (suggested)
Could happen by:
•2/3 of both houses of
Congress approve a
proposal.
or…
•A special convention
requested by 2/3 of the
states
2nd
the amendment must be ratified
(approved)
Could happen by:
•Approved by legislatures of 3/4
of the states
or…
•Approved by special
conventions in 3/4 of the states
It’s not easy
to change the Constitution
• Getting 2/3 or 3/4 of a group of people to agree on
anything is tough – it takes 38 out of 50 states to ratify
an amendment.
• And… the people make the real final decision.
• Most amendments are done through state legislatures.
• One thing that can never be changed: each state gets 2
Senators
The other side of the sheet
People to Remember
President: Barrack Obama
Vice President: Joe Biden
Secretary of State: Hillary Rodham Clinton
Governor of Illinois: Pat Quinn
Illinois Secretary of State:
Jesse White
Senator from Illinois:
Dick Durbin
Senator from Illinois:
Mark Kirk
Positions in County
Government
County Clerk
Message from the Clerk
The Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court is responsible
for maintaining a record of all traffic, civil, criminal and
juvenile cases filed and heard in Lake County. On a daily
basis, the office interacts with the public and attorneys
performing several functions including the collection and
disbursement of traffic and criminal fines, civil fees, child
support and the processing of passport applications.
Office staff is also responsible for recording filed
documents and attending court for the purposes of
maintaining a record of all proceedings.
Sheriff
Sheriff's Office
Mark C. Curran Jr.
•
The Lake County
Sheriff's Office exists to
serve the community by
protecting life and
property, by preventing
crime, by enforcing the
laws and incarcerating
offenders of the laws,
and by maintaining order
for all citizens.
Assessor
•
•
•
The Chief County Assessment Office is the coordinating arm for all tax
assessment activity for Lake County's 280,210 real estate parcels.
Oversees the work of local township assessors and acts as a resource to
these local offices, yet the township assessor has the primary responsibility
for valuing property for assessment purposes.
.
Mission Statement
To ensure that the property valuation responsibilities in the property tax
cycle are accomplished in an efficient and timely fashion. In order to meet
this end, the CCAO serves as a resource to both taxpayers and the property
assessment professionals in Lake County.
Treasurer
The mission statement of the Lake County Treasuer's Office is
to safeguard taxpayer cash in the possession of the Lake
County Government through honest and competent
stewardship by actively managing banking relationships and
by investing temporary surpluses. Further, the Lake County
Treasurer's Office, as the Ex Officio County Collector, will bill,
collect, and distribute real estate taxes to Lake County taxing
bodies in a timely and efficient manner, providing excellent
customer service to taxpayers by telephone, internet and
direct personal contact.
Coroner
•
The Lake County Coroner's Office
exists to serve the community by
providing timely Medico-legal death
investigations in a professional and
courteous manner, while ensuring
the highest level of compassion,
dignity and respect for the
deceased and their families.
Through collaborative efforts that
value recognized best practices,
advances in technology and
training, our efforts will serve those
who can no longer serve
themselves. We will also care for
the living by providing historical
data, identifying trends and offering
recommendations to help prevent
deaths of similar circumstances.
Artis Yancey,
Lake County Coroner
State’s
Attorney
•
The State's Attorney has the
exclusive and statutory responsibility
for prosecuting violations of the
criminal laws of the State of Illinois, •
as well as many other regulatory
laws of the state and county
including traffic regulations. He is
also the lawyer for Lake County
providing legal advice, defense of
court actions, and filing and
presentation of cases brought by, or
against, Lake County.
Michael J. Waller
He is also the lawyer for Lake
County providing legal advice,
defense of court actions, and
filing and presentation of cases
brought by, or against, Lake
County. The State's Attorneys
Office is divided into four main
parts, the Executive Staff, the
Criminal Division, the Civil
Division and the Administrative
Services Division.
Judges
• Message from the Chief
Judge
•
Victoria Rossetti, Chief Judge
Lake County Courthouse
The judges and support staff of the
Circuit Court of the Nineteenth
Judicial Circuit of the State of
Illinois are committed to serving the
public by providing a fair and
efficient system of justice that
fosters the public trust and
confidence. We work toward
accomplishing this mission by
continually improving the facilities,
programs, and services provided to
the people of Lake and McHenry
Counties.
Being President
(qualifications and facts)
To become President:
• You must be at least 35 years old
• You must be a natural born citizen of the United States
(born here or of American parents).
• You must have lived in the United States for at least 14
years.
Other things presidents have in common
• Most have been well
educated (especially
recently).
• About two thirds have
been lawyers.
• Most have been married.
• Most have been
protestants.
• Most started out in small
towns or in the country.
• Most were very active in
politics for a long time
before they were elected.
• About 2/3 were VicePresident before they
became President
(8 of them because the
previous President died
while in office).
Types of Elections
(and election “terms”)
Political Parties
Major
• Democrats
• Republicans
Others
(Minority Parties)
http://www.politics1.com
/parties.htm
Some others are
Non-Partisan (no party)
Primary and General Elections
• An election to nominate
(name) candidates to run
for office.
• For example: there may
be 5 different Democrats
wanting to run for office,
so in a primary, they’ll
vote to see which one of
the 5 will be the one to
run.
• The election that decides
who will be the one who
actually wins and takes
office.
Closed / Open Primaries
• You must be registered
as a member of a political
party to vote.
• Democrats could only
vote for primary
Democrats.
• Would keep the other
side from voting for
someone who wouldn’t
beat their candidate.
• Every registered voter
can vote – no matter
which political party they
belong to.
Split tickets
• Voting for people in more
than one political party
(splitting your vote a
couple of ways).
• Example: voting for a
Republican President and
a Democratic Governor
• In some primaries, you
cannot vote a split ticket.
The Judicial System
2 kinds of court “systems”
• Federal Court: Federal laws
• Robbing a bank
• Terrorist activities
• Crossing state lines while
committing a crime
• Kidnapping
• State Courts: State Laws
•
•
•
•
•
Speeding
Divorces / Custody
Writing bad checks
Shoplifting
Drug / Alcohol offenses
• Local courts are part of the
state court system.
There are 3 basic kinds of laws
Constitutional Law: things that are written
out in the constitution.
Statutory Law: laws made by lawmakers.
Common Law: Based on past court
decisions and experience over the years.
2 different kinds of court cases
• Criminal Case: when a
person is accused of
breaking a law
• Civil Case: deals with
problems between 2
people
Congressional
Powers and Duties
Duties of Congress
• Main duty: to make laws (along with the president).
Both houses of Congress and the President must
approve a new law for it to take effect.
• Congress can impeach the President and other federal
officials (put them on “trial” for doing something wrong).
If they’re guilty, they could even remove them from
office.
• May create new Agencies to do a certain job for the
government, and decide how much money they get to do
this new job.
The Senate also has
some additional powers:
• Approves or disapproves of people appointed by the
President to certain positions (like… Supreme Court
Justices).
• Approves or disapproves of official agreements between
the United States and other countries.
Steps in Making a Law
How a bill becomes a law
The idea is introduced
to either the
Senate - or the
House of Representatives
Someone has an idea
Goes to the House
Goes to the Senate
Sent to a
committee of a few
Representatives
Discussed
in committee
Hearings are held
where the whole House
discusses and
debates the bill
Sent to a
committee of a few
Senators
If it passes
both houses,
it goes to the
President
Discussed
in committee
Hearings are held
where the whole Senate
discusses and
debates the bill
If that bill gets to the President:
President gets the bill
(has 3 choices)
1. Says yes…
it becomes a law
3. Waits 10 business days
and Congress adjourns
(ends their meetings)
2. Vetoes the bill
(says “NO”)
The bill and
the President’s reason
for refusal
go back to Congress
2/3 of Congress
vote to pass it still,
it becomes a law
Congress could decide
it won’t possibly pass
and may just “let it go”
Does not become a law
(this is a “pocket veto”)
Any other things?