The USA National Qualifications

1. The USA National Qualifications

2. Today we will… • Describe the 3 branches of government in the USA. • Describe the 3 levels of government in the USA and explain the powers that each level has. • Identify what ethnic groups in the USA make most political progress. • Examine the gender and ethnic make up of the US Government and explain why some groups are underrepresented in the US Government. • Assess the extent to which political progress has been made by different groups in US politics.

3. Success Criteria • I can describe the 3 branches of government in the USA. • I candescribe the 3 levels of government in the USA and explain the powers that each level has. • I can identify what ethnic groups in the USA make most political progress. • I can examine the gender and ethnic make up of the US Government and explain why some groups are underrepresented in the US Government. • I can assess the extent to which political progress has been made by different groups in US politics.

4. 3 Branches of Government • The US constitution outlines the system of government in the USA. • There are 3branches of government.

5. The Legislature The Executive The Judiciary Government in the USA Explains and interprets the laws and the constitution of the country Makes the country’s laws Administers the country (runs the country) The President and The Vice-President The Supreme Court and Federal Courts Appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate Voters Elect

6. The Government of the USA Match the correct heads and tails to make four accurate statements about the American Government. HEADS • The American Government has three branches… • The Legislative Branch refers to the people who… • The Executive Branch is headed by the… • The Judicial Branch is basically the … TAILS …court system that operates in the US. …of government- Legislature, Executive and Judiciary. …President of the USA, and it carries out the laws passed in Congress. …make the laws in the US, known as the Congress (The House of Reps and the Senate)

7. The Government of the USA • What is an Act of Congress?? • What is a Bill?? • How many Senators are there? • How many member of the House are there? • The President can send ________ abroad but he cannot officially declare _______.

8. The Executive Branch • The President, the Vice President and his cabinet exercise the EXECUTIVE function of government • The President and his staff are empowered to carry out the laws which are made by Congress. • The President and Vice President are elected every 4 years. • A person may only be President for 2 terms total (8 years) Election years: 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020

9. The Executive Branch • Besides running the country on a day to day basis, it is also the President’s job to represent the USA internationallyand he makes the majority of decisions about the USA’s foreign policy and military matters. • For example, Donald Trump pulled the USA out of an international nuclear weapons deal with Iran in 2018. Donald Trump pulls USA out of nuclear deal

10. The Legislative Branch • The LEGISLATIVE Branch contains the people who make the vast majority of laws at the Federal level in America. • These are the Senate (Senators)and the House of Representatives (Congressmen/women), collectively known as Congress. • The majority of representatives in the USA will belong to either the Democratic Party (such as Nancy Pelosi) or the Republican Party (such as Senator Mitch McConnell from Kentucky). How does Congress work?

11. The Legislative Branch • Key Terminology • Bills = proposals for laws that have yet to be passed by Congress. • Acts = Bills which have been passed into law by the two houses of Congress. • For example, in 2018 the Congress passed a bill into law called the Natural Disasters Tax Relief Act. This law means that ordinary citizens have an extra 60 days to deal with official tax matters if a natural disaster has been declared in the area they live, meaning they can focus on their personal safety first. What does Congress do? 100 Senators Senators serve 6 year terms. Approx. 1/3rd are elected every 2 years. 435 Reps Congressmen/women serve 2 year terms. They are elected both at the same time as the President and during “mid-terms”.

13. Judicial Branch • The JUDICIAL branch of government(The Supreme Court) determine whether a law passed is allowed by the Constitution, i.e. if it is constitutional. • The Supreme Court consists of 9 judges (commonly known as Supreme Court Justices) who are appointed by a President when a previous judge dies or retires. • President Obama appointed Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court in 2009. She is the first Hispanic to sit on the Supreme Court. He also appointed Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court in 2010.

14. President Trump appointed Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court in 2017. • He controversially appointed Brett Kavanagh to the Supreme Court in 2018 following allegations that Judge Kavanagh had sexual assaulted a female when he was younger. • There were also serious allegations against Judge Kavanagh that he was not suitable as a S.C Justice as he is not impartial in his judgements. • More than 2400 law professors from across the USA officially objected to Kavanagh’s appointment. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqTmfYQ02t8

15. Describe, in detail, the purpose of two political institutions of the government of a world power you have studied. (6 marks) One branch of the USA government is the legislative branch. The legislative branch makes the laws for the entire country and it is commonly referred to as the Congress.The Congress is split into two different parts; The House of Representatives, which has 435 members and the Senate which has 100 members. In 2018, the Congress passed a law called the Natural Disasters Tax Relief law to help ordinary American citizens following natural disasters. • Judicial • Executive

16. Separation of Powers/ Checks and Balances • Americans believe that it is dangerous for the powers of the 3 branches of government to be concentrated in the hands of one person. • This is why each branch of government is kept separate from the others as set out in the Constitution. This is known as the separation of powers. • There are many checks and balances built into the Constitution to prevent any one group from becoming too powerful.

17. Separation of Powers/ Checks and Balances • For a bill to become law in the USA, it has to pass both Houses of Congress (House of Reps and the Senate) and be signed by the President. • Even then, the Supreme Court might see it as unconstitutional (meaning the law does not match up with the basic principles of the Constitution.) • Therefore, each branch of government can act as a check on the power of the other two.

20. Branches of the US Government – what have you learned? • As you watch this clip, write in your jotter anything you don’t understand so you can ask the teacher once the clip is done. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuFR5XBYLfU&t=19s

21. Levels of US Government Federal Government State Government City/ County Government

22. Federal Government • The Federal Government deals with matters concerning foreign affairs and the entire country. • The Federal Government is based in Washington DC. Its leader is the President (Currently Donald Trump – Republican). A President is elected every 4 years. • Part of the Federal Government is called Congress – Congress is split into the Senate (100 Senators) and the House of Representatives (435).

23. Powers of the Federal Government • The Armed Forces • The Post office • The currency of the USA ($$$) • Disputes between states • Foreign relations, including declaring war and international aid

24. State Governments • Each of the 50 states has its own government. • The person that runs the state is called a Governor • California’s current Governor is Gavin Newsom (Democratic Party). • Each state elects its own version of Congress – State Senate and State House of Representatives. • The State Government can pass laws on matters that only effect the people of that state e.g. on education, driving standards, housing etc. Gavin Newsom, Democrat.Current Governor of California Kim Reynolds, Republican. Current Governor of Iowa

25. Powers of the State Governments • Local laws e.g. age you can drink alcohol, age you can drive a car etc. • Punishments e.g. whether the state uses the death penalty; the length of sentence given to criminals • Provision of roads, schools and local taxes.

26. City/County Governments • Although each of the states has its own government, these states still have a lot of people in them or cover a large area. • The states are divided into smaller areas called counties or townships (a bit like our councils). • The leader of the city/ county government is the Mayor e.g. L.A’s mayor is Eric Garcetti (Democratic Party).

27. Explain, in detail, why one political institution or group has dominance over decision-making in a world power you have studied. (8 marks) In the USA, the President (part of the Executive branch) has many powers that allow him to dominate the Congress such the power to veto. The President has the power to veto any bills put forward by the Congress by refusing to sign them. The President may decide to veto a bill if he believes the proposed law is not in the best interests of the American people. For example, in 2015, President Obama vetoed a bill which would have allowed a brand new pipeline to be built across many northern states. • Powers of the President • Checks and balances • State governments/ Separation of Powers

28. Starter Task Match the correct % to the correct grouping to show the ethnic make-up of the US population. White 13.3% African American Hispanic 1.3% 5.9% Asian/Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (API) 17.8% Native American 61.3%

29. Representation at Federal Level

30. TASK - Fact file – Presidents by race/ethnic group and gender to 2016/ ethnic/ gender make up of congress 2014/2014/2016/2018 • In the post on the blog you are going to see a fact file on the number of American Presidents that there have been and the number of minority groups in the US Congress in 2012, after the mid terms in 2014, following the 2016 election and the 2018 mid-terms. • Copy the tables into your jotter. • With your shoulder partner, discuss any of the statistics that stand out for you and write these in your jotter (Pay particular attention to the differences in the make up of Congress between 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2018.)

31. 2016 US Government Facts:US Presidents

32. Minorities in Congress (2012)

33. Minorities in Congress 2014 (After the mid terms)

34. Minorities in Congress following the 2016 election

35. 116th Congress (2019-2021) is the most diverse Congress ever

36. 116th Congress (2019-2021) will be the most diverse Congress ever • In total, almost half of the newly elected Congressional representatives are not white men. • Among the most notable changes, given the recent cultural shifts in the wake of the #MeToo movement and the Brett Kavanaugh hearings, is the addition of 35 female lawmakers. • This brings the total number of women in the 116th Congress to a record 127, up from 107 in the 115th Congress.

37. Here's a quick breakdown of how Congress is set to change on religious, gender and racial lines in 2019: • 13 of the newly elected female representatives are non-white. • LGBT breakthroughs include Democrat members-elect ShariceDavids (D.-Kan.), the first LGBT Kansan elected to Congress, and KyrstenSinema (D.-Ariz.), the first openly bisexual person ever elected to the U.S. Senate. • The first Muslim women were elected to the House: Ilhan Omar (D.-Minn.), a Somali-American, and RashidaTlaib (D.-Mich.), a Palestinian-American. • Two Native American women were elected to the House: Deb Haaland (D.-N.M.) and Sharice Davids (D.-Kan.). • Ayanna Pressley (D.-Mass.) is the first black woman elected to Congress in Massachusetts. • Sylvia Garcia (D.-Tex.) is the first Latina to represent Texas in the House.

38. Those changes come almost entirely from Democrats; Republican members-elect are all white men except for one woman.

40. REPRESENTATION In the USA, Blacks and Hispanics have never been properly represented in Congress in proportion to their numbers in population. However, the situation has started to improve.

41. Task • On the next few slides there is information regarding the representation of different ethnic groups in the US Congress. • For each slide, make up a spider diagram containing information from the slides. • Once you have completed this your teacher will give you 3 minutes in your groups to discuss your spider diagrams.

42. African-Americans in Congress • Collectively called the Black Caucus • Very influential • Special interests as a group – look out for rights of African Americans • Currently all Democrats • Examples - Karen Bass, Bobby L Rush, Marcia L. Fudge

43. African-Americans in Congress • Despite the strength of the Black Caucus, Blacks are still under-represented in Congress. • African-Americans are 13% of the population • There has been one African American President – Barack Obama

44. Hispanics in Congress • Hispanics make up 17% of the population • Hispanics are still under-represented in Congress • Examples – Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Juan Vargas • Hispanics are participating much more in politics than in previous years

45. Asians in Congress • Asians make up 5.9% of the population • Asians are still under-represented in Congress with Examples – Judy Chu, Grace Meng, Mark Takano • Asians are participating much more in politics than in previous years

46. Native Americans in Congress • There are currently only 4 Native American Congressmen and NO Native American SENATORS. • Markwayne Mullin – Cherokee Nation (Oklahoma)

47. Political Progress? • Although the number of ethnics in the US Government has increased over the years, there is not equality in participation in relation to the population e.g. Blacks make up 13% of the US population yet only 9.3% of Congress. Hispanics make up 17% of the US population but only 7% of Congress. Asians make up 5.9% of the US population and 2.8% of the Congress.

48. Take the heading: Political Progress of Ethnic Minorities Copy and complete the table by putting the following information into the correct column of the table.

49. Many ethnic minorities cannot vote because they cannot fill in the complicated registration forms. • Many Hispanics cannot register to vote or stand as candidates because they are illegal immigrants. • The growing African American middle class participate in voting and show great support for the Democratic party. • Asian Americans believe participation through voting has helped many of them achieve the American Dream. • Many ethnic minorities now see voting as a waste of time as participation has not helped them get out of the poverty trap. • More role models- Barack Obama was elected in 2008. Number of African Americans elected to Congress is on the increase. • Hispanics do not have as many role models in important political positions as Blacks do – e.g.. Obama. • As Blacks and Hispanics are under-represented in the richest group of Americans, they may find it very difficult to get the financial backing required to run a national election campaign.

50. LESSON STARTER Give three reasons as to why ethnic minorities are under represented