United States : Current Political Structure

The government of the United States of America is a federal constitutional republic. In layman 's terms, this means that the country 's national, central government and the smaller, unitary governments of the fifty states are co-equal in their power, and that the citizens of America have a say in public policies by electing representatives who voice their respective opinions. More importantly, both the central government and the state governments are subject to the supreme law of the Constitution. Under this document, the central government is set up into three branches (the legislative, executive, and judicial) that are meant to check each other and balance out power. Their cooperation insures that the national government 's control is appropriate, and does not infringe upon the rights of the average American citizen.

The Constitution is the framework for today's modern US government (National, n.d.). "Defines the scope and limit of government power” (National, n.d., par. 2). The United States federal government today still follows the structure in the constitution. This shows that, as Adams said, "the three-and-a-half month convention (was) 'the greatest single effort of national deliberation that the world has ever seen” (Constitution, 2017, par. 4). "The United States Constitution has secured an unprecedented degree of human freedom, upholding the rule of law, securing the blessings of liberty, and providing the framework for the people of America to build a great, prosperous, and just nation unlike any other in the world" (Constitution, 2017, par. 1). Citizens in countries without a Bill of Rights like the United States’ don’t have the same freedoms as Americans. Without the Constitution, businesses would not run like they do today; schools could force beliefs on students; people wouldn’t be able to express themselves. Even though the Constitution is over 200 years old, it has retained its core values, while also adapting to the time (History, 2009). With a simple yet arduous process, the Constitution can be amended to stay with the times. There have been 27 amendments total to the United States Constitution. The first ten amendments, the Bill of Rights, are the most famous. These freedoms in the

The structure of our American Government was founded in the Constitution of the United States. The Constitution was written to be the “supreme law of the land,” and produces a democratic republic, where citizens govern themselves (Our American Government, n.d). The purpose of our government, is to “establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessing of liberty to ourselves and our posterity” (Our American Government, n.d.). For our country to accomplish this purpose our Founding Fathers created three principles, “inherent rights, self-government, and separation of powers” (Our American Government, n.d.). The government was developed to ensure order in society and protect its citizens, but with all systems, there is strengths and weakness, let’s examine those strengths and weakness. Let’s first look at the strength and weakness of the U.S. Constitution.

the founding document of our nation’s laws and government. Within its texts, the Constitution outlines the operations and existence of all three branches of government, Executive, Legislative, and Judicial, as well as their functions and interdependence. The constitution also includes the Bill of Rights, and all other amendments that serve as a basis for any law created in our country at either the federal or state level. While semi-extensive, the main rights we share are those from the bill of rights, which

The U.S. Constitutional Rights are laws that guarantee the basic rights for the citizens.There are twenty-seven Constitutional Amendments in total, but 10 of them represent The Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights ensures the basic individual protections such as freedom of speech and religion. The Bill of Rights became part of the Constitution in December 15, 1791 by George Mason.

First, United States Constitution establishes a system of government named “representative democracy”. In a representative democracy or indirect democracy, the power to govern comes from the people, who have the highest power. The government works for the people and protects their rights; this is “Popular Sovereignty”. The people elect representatives to make laws. Laws made in the United States must follow

The structure of our American Government, was founded in the Constitution of the United States. The Constitution was written to be the “supreme law of the land”, and creates a federal democratic republic, where citizens govern themselves (Our American Governement, n.d). The purpose of our government, is to “establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessing of liberty to ourselves and our posterity” (Our American Government, n.d.). For our country to achieve this purpose our Founding Fathers created three main principles, “inherent rights, self-government, and separation of powers” (Our American Government, n.d.). Government was developed to ensure order in society and protect its citizens, but with all systems there are strengths and weakness, let’s examine those strengths and weakness. Let’s first look at the strength and weakness of the U.S. Constitution.

The federal government, as stated before is divided into three branches: the legislative, executive and judicial. The federal constitution lays out the powers of these branches, however vaguely. The executive branch is made up of one president that is decided by an electoral college. The legislative branch is divided into two, the House of Representatives and the Senate. The president’s and congress’s powers are described in broad terms, causing issues among different interpretations. This forces the third branch, the judicial branch to step in and use their discretion to decide what powers belong to who and if they are legal. The Supreme Court is made up of one Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices who all hold office for

The United States’ government is constructed in Federalism. Federalism is a method of government that allows two or more individuals to have control over the same region. Each citizen in the United States is subject to the laws of their city, county, state and federal government.(Dictionary) The United States’ federalist government’s power is divided between the federal government and the state and local governments. The United State’s Constitution is the structure for our federalist government. In the Constitution, the federal government is identified as the highest governmental power and recognizes that the American people are subject to several different powers. The separation of these powers are called, checks and balances, which separate the three branches;legislative, executive, and judicial branches.to prevent actions by other branches.

In 1787, the Constitution was established in order to set forth and establish the government. Later in 1791 the states called for further Constitutional protections which caused the first 10 amendments to the Constitution known as the Bill of Rights to be established. The Bill of Rights dictated the basic rights afforded to all American citizens. Over the years legal professionals have argued and attempted to manipulate the exact meaning of each of the amendments. One amendment that has created issues for law enforcement is the Fourth Amendment which provides protection against unreasonable searches and seizures and requires a judicial warrant be supported by probable cause. This amendment has numerous

The separation of power throughout the united states government prevents one part of the government from becoming so strong that it can infringe on the freedom of the governed (Bernstein 24). The united states government is a representative republic. A representative republic is a type of democracy where the people elect representatives to vote for them in the nations matters, rather than having every person vote on every single election and issue. The U.S. government is separated into three main branches, the executive, the legislative, and the judicial. Each branch has its own powers and weaknesses and they must all work together to govern the country (Bernstein 24).

In the constitution there are 27 amendments/changes. The purpose of the 27 amendments is to change the law to solve new issues that were not around when the Constitution was written. Of the 27 amendments, the first ten, are known as the Bill of Rights which went into effect December 15, 1791. The Bill of Rights guarantees the individual rights of citizens. The constitution; written in 1787 exists to serve the states, protect people, and restrain the government. The constitution replaced the articles of confederation.

The political system that runs the United States of America is a result of the Constitution, Amendments and the Civil War. As mentioned before, there are 50 states that help govern the nation along with the national government, referred to as the Federal Government. The Federal Government is comprised of three branches: Legislative Branch, Executive Branch and Judicial Branch. These three branches were developed to satisfy the principle known as ‘separation of powers’. This is the idea that no one institution has too much power. This also means that no individual member can be more than one institution. The principle of ‘checks and balance’ also falls under this idea. Each branch has limited authority to act on its own. With that being said, each branch regulates the other two and vies-a-versa to a certain extent. The House of Representatives and the Senate make up the Legislative Branch. Together they make the laws of the nation. There are two senates per state, meaning 100 senators in the Senate House, and today in the 11th Congress there are 435 members. All congress members are elected by their respective states into either the Senate or House of Representatives.

1.Analyze the evolution of the American political system. Be sure to include one individual or document that influenced the Constitution and one change in the federal system.

The United States fits the criteria of and functions as a modern nation-state due to many reasons; one of which is the constitution, which states, “…for the people by the people”. The U.S. government has an organized government; they are separated into three branches: executive, legislative, and judicial. It is also organized into three levels: federal, state, and local. The United States includes all of its fifty states, nearby areas of ocean, and other areas, such as Puerto Rico and Guam,