Verified Document

Branches Of U.S. Gov't The Government Structure Term Paper

Branches of U.S. Gov't The government structure in the United States is divided into three distinct branches that work in conjunction to ensure that the country and its citizens are governed justly. These branches were established in Articles 1, 2, and 3 of the United States Constitution. Furthermore, each of these branches plays a major role in the development of public policy.

The executive branch of the government is made up of the president, vice-president, and fifteen Cabinet-level departments (Trethan, 2012). In this governing sphere, the president holds primary power; he, or she, has the power to choose the vice president, and also appoints Cabinet members who are subsequently responsible to head their respective departments. One of the most important functions of the executive branch is to ensure that "laws are carried out and enforced to facilitate such day-to-day responsibilities of the federal government as collecting taxes, safeguarding the homeland, and representing the United States' political and economic interests around the world" (Trethan, 2012). One of the ways that the executive branch influences public policy is through the President's appointment of Cabinet members. The President has the power to issue "rules, regulations,...

For instance, President Barack Obama issued Executive Order 13572 on April 29, 2011, which blocked the property of certain persons with respect to human rights abuses in Syria (2011 Executive Orders Signed by Barack Obama, 2012).
The legislative branch of the government is made up the Senate and House of Representatives. This branch of government is "charged with passing the nation's laws and allocating funds for the running of the federal government and providing assistance to the 50 U.S. states" (Trethan, 2012). The legislative branch of the government is responsible for translating what the public wants/needs into public policy in the form of laws and regulations. Despite his role in the executive branch, the President also plays a major role in the legislative branch as he holds the power to veto any bill that is passed by Congress, "and unless two-thirds in each house vote to override the veto, the bill does not become law" (Huisman, 2010). The most recent bill to be vetoed by President Obama was H.R. 3808 -- Interstate Recognition of Notarizations Act of 2010 -- that failed to pass in the House after Obama's veto (Bill…

Sources used in this document:
References

2011 Executive Orders signed by Barack Obama. (2012). National Archives. Retrieved 17 July

2012, from http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/executive-orders/2011.html

Bill Summary & Status, 111th Congress (2009-2010), H.R. 3808. (2012). The Library of Congress. Retrieved 17 July 2012, from http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z-d111:H.R.3808:

Brown v. Board of Education. (2012). National Park Service. Retrieved 17 July 2012, from http://www.nps.gov/brvb/index.htm
Huisman, J. (2010, September 14). An outline of American government. From Revolution to Reconstruction. University of Groningen. Retrieved 17 July 2012, from http://www.let.rug.nl/usa/GOV/ch3_p2.htm
Trethan, P. (2012). The branches of the government. Retrieved 17 July 2012, from http://usgovinfo.about.com/od/usconstitution/a/branches.htm
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

U.S. Automotive Industry Chosen Industry: Automotive Industry
Words: 9173 Length: 30 Document Type: Essay

U.S. Automotive Industry Chosen industry: automotive industry is the focus of this analysis. More emphasizes are made on the large -- scale automobile manufacturers. This is because of the inherently interesting industry as a result it being competitive and projected to go through a major restructuring due to globalization in the near days to come. The issue of decreasing oil reserves is the other reason that is going to trigger this

Helping Black Officers Achieve Their Full Potential in the U S Military...
Words: 8856 Length: 30 Document Type: Literature Review

AbstractNot only is the problem longstanding, it has been well documented time and again without any substantive progress. In fact, the representation of senior African Americans military leaders in the U.S. armed forces has remained essentially unchanged over the past half century despite purported efforts on the part of the U.S. government to effect meaningful changes in its personnel evaluation and promotion policies. Against this backdrop, it is vitally important

Government Outsourcing the Outsourcing of
Words: 10988 Length: 35 Document Type: Term Paper

A micro considers the interests and rights of the individual company as the primary concern. Both of these views are valid depending on the lens that one wishes to use. The problem arises when the government is forced to develop policies regarding procurement in this volatile debate. The government must decide whether to take a micro view, favoring the rights of companies, or a macro view that places the

Court System the Basic Structure of the
Words: 1077 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

Court System The basic structure of the United States legal system comes from the Constitution. Constitutions are living documents that lay down principles and rules, as well as overall functions of how law should be used within society. Constitutions tend to be macro in scope, in that they define responsibilities between the three organs of U.S. Government (Judicial, Legislature and Executive). Laws are individual (micro) edicts that are made to define

Federal Judicial Branch of Government
Words: 1627 Length: 5 Document Type: Term Paper

Justices can make public pronouncements on issues that are important to the federal judiciary - not specific cases that come before the court, but general political and social issues. For example, the Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, John Roberts, recently made a speech that warned about attacks against judicial independence. He was stating what the framers of the Constitution worried about hundreds of years ago when he said:

Veterans and Retirees Is the Government Keeping Its Promise
Words: 20729 Length: 75 Document Type: Research Paper

Veterans & Retirees; Is Government Keeping its Promise This study aimed at exploring the experiences and perceptions of Veterans belonging to Lousiana and Mississippi about three variables; the accessibility of organization; the accessibility of benefits and availability and adequacy of the facilities being provided by government through VA. The respondents were also asked to suggest whether there is a need for improvement and what should VA do to provide benefits and

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now