How The Us Government Works

Federal Courts And Judicial Agencies

The Constitution gives Congress the authority to establish other federal courts to handle cases that involve federal laws including tax and bankruptcy, lawsuits involving U.S. and state governments or the Constitution, and more. Other federal judicial agencies and programs support the courts and research judicial policy.

Confirmation Process For Judges And Justices

Appointments for Supreme Court Justices and other federal judgeships follow the same basic process:

• The president nominates a person to fill a vacant judgeship.
• The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing on the nominee and votes on whether to forward the nomination to the full Senate.
• If the nomination moves forward, the Senate can debate the nomination. Debate must end before the Senate can vote on whether to confirm the nominee. A Senator will request unanimous consent to end the debate, but any Senator can refuse.
• Without unanimous consent, the Senate must pass a cloture motion to end the debate. It takes a simple majority of votes51 if all 100 Senators voteto pass cloture and end debate about a federal judicial nominee.
• Once the debate ends, the Senate votes on confirmation. The nominee for Supreme Court or any other federal judgeship needs a simple majority of votes51 if all 100 Senators voteto be confirmed.

How The State Government Works Powers Of State Government

In this blog, we are going to learn how the state government works. India is a union of states. It has 28 states and seven union territories. To carry on the smooth functioning of the states is an uphill task. Hence, there is a need for a state government. The constitution of India describes the organization, powers, and functions of the state government.

How The State Government Works?

The organization of the state government includes the governor, the state legislature, and the state council of ministers. At the top is the governor, then we have an Executive containing the chief minister and his council of ministers. And at the other end is the state legislature. The state legislature is further divided into legislative assembly and legislative council.

Powers of the state government

In the federal system, the government for the entire country is known as the union government while that for every state is known as state government. Both governments operate within the limits set for them by the constitution. The state governments make their policies considering the needs of their respective states. The union government cannot take away the powers of the state governments without their consent, nor can it interfere in the affairs of the state government.

The constitution has made a clear-cut division between the powers of the two governments. Three lists- the union list, the state list, and the concurrent list contain the details of these powers.

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The Branches Of Government

The Constitution was written to fix the problem and make sure the U.S. government works. Its first duty was to make a fair government. They did that by making three branches of government: one to make the laws, one to enforce them, and one to judge them.

History taught them that making any one of these branches too powerful caused big problems, so they set up rules where any branch could be checked by the other two branches. This creates a balance between the branches. We call this the system of checks and balances.

There are many parts of the government. Think of a tree with three large branches. These are the three main branches of the government. But each of these tree branches has even smaller branches. Lets look at the three main branches of the U.S. government.

Standard Reference Data May Be Copyrighted

Heres another exception to the general rule that US government works are in the public domain. The government may claim copyright in any standard reference data that the Secretary of Commerce prepares or makes available under the Standard Reference Data Act .

What the heck is standard reference data? Its technical data having to do with chemistry, physics, biotechnology, industrial fluids and chemical engineering, materials properties, and so on. The purpose of the standard reference data program is to make evaluated scientific and technical data readily available to scientists and engineers for use in technical problem solving, research, and development.

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Us Government Works To ‘cocoon’ Old Nuclear Reactors

Costs to clean up a massive nuclear weapons complex in Washington state are usually expressed in the hundreds of billions of dollars and involve decades of work

SPOKANE, Wash. — Costs to clean up a massive nuclear weapons complex in Washington state are usually expressed in the hundreds of billions of dollars and involve decades of work.

But one project on the Hanford Nuclear Reservation is progressing at a much lower price.

The federal government is moving forward with the cocooning of eight plutonium production reactors at Hanford that will place them in a state of long-term storage to allow radiation inside to dissipate over a period of decades, until they can be dismantled and buried.

Its relatively non-expensive, Mark French, a manager for the U.S. Department of Energy, said of cocooning. The cost of trying to dismantle the reactor and demolish the reactor core would be extremely expensive and put workers at risk.

The federal government built nine nuclear reactors at Hanford to make plutonium for atomic bombs during World War II and the Cold War. The site along the Columbia River contains America’s largest quantity of radioactive waste.

The reactors are now shut down and sit like cement fortresses near the southeastern Washington city of Richland. Six have already been cocooned for long-term storage, and two more are headed in that direction. The ninth reactor was turned into a museum as part of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park.

Federalism In The United States

The U.S. Constitution establishes a government based on “federalism.” This is the sharing of power between the national and state governments.

This power-sharing form of government is the opposite of “centralized” governments, under which a national government maintains total power. In it, certain powers are given to states if it is not a matter of overarching concern to the nation.

The 10th Amendment to the Constitution outlines the structure of federalism in just 28 words: The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

These governmental powers of federalism are thus classified as enumerated powers specifically granted to the U.S. Congress, reserved powers granted to the states, and concurrent powers shared by both the federal government and the states.

Some actions, such as printing money and declaring war, are exclusive to the federal government. Others, like conducting elections and issuing marriage licenses, are responsibilities of the individual states. Both levels can do things like establish courts and collect taxes.

The federalist system allows the states to work for their own people. It is designed to ensure state’s rights and it does not come without controversies.

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Closure Of Pennsylvania Avenue

On May 20, 1995, primarily as a response to the of April 19, 1995, the closed off Pennsylvania Avenue to vehicular traffic in front of the White House from the eastern edge of Lafayette Park to 17th Street. Later, the closure was extended an additional block to the east to 15th Street, and East Executive Avenue, a small street between the White House and the .

After , this change was made permanent in addition to closing E Street between the South Portico of the White House and . In response to the , the road was closed to the public in its entirety for a period of two days.

The Pennsylvania Avenue closing has been opposed by organized civic groups in Washington, D.C. They argue that the closing impedes traffic flow unnecessarily and is inconsistent with the well-conceived historic plan for the city. As for security considerations, they note that the White House is set much farther back from the street than numerous other sensitive federal buildings are.

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The federal government built nine nuclear reactors at Hanford to make plutonium for atomic bombs during World War II and the Cold War. The site along the Columbia River contains America’s largest quantity of radioactive waste.

The reactors are now shut down and sit like cement fortresses near the southeastern Washington city of Richland. Six have already been cocooned for long-term storage, and two more are headed in that direction. The ninth reactor was turned into a museum as part of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park.

While World War II ended in 1945 and the Cold War ended in 1989, the United States is still paying billions of dollars per year for the disposal of the nuclear waste produced by the atomic weapons that played a big role in ending those conflicts. The biggest expense is dealing with a massive volume of liquid wastes left over from the production of plutonium, a key ingredient in nuclear weapons.

While the liquid wastes stored in 177 underground tanks will take decades of work and hundreds of billions of dollars to clean, efforts to secure the nine plutonium reactors are much closer to completion.

The last two reactors, shut down in 1970 and 1971, are about to enter the cocooning stage, when they are covered with steel and cement to prevent radioactivity from escaping into the environment, French said.

Every five years, workers enter the reactor building to make sure there are no leaks or rodent or bird infestations, he said.

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Learn More About Civics

The study of our government is called Civics, and its a fascinating topic. Its also an important one. Since we all have to follow the rules of the government, its important to know what the rules are, how theyre decided, and who enforces them.

Our Constitution is where the three branches of the government look at each others work to see if its fair and equal, and it has been keeping the country running for over 200 years. So far it has worked pretty well!

Here are some other pages about how the U.S. government works and about U.S. history:

American Indian Tribal Government Structure

Our Government officially recognizes 574 Indian tribes in the contiguous 48 states and Alaska. The US observes tribal sovereignty of the American Indian nations to a limited degree, as it does with the states sovereignty. American Indians are US citizens and tribal lands are subject to the jurisdiction of the US Congress and the federal courts. Like the states, the tribal governments have a great deal of autonomy with respect to their members, including the power to tax, govern, and try them in court, but also like the states, tribes are not allowed to make war, engage in their own foreign relations, or print and issue currency.

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State Tribal And Local Governments

State governments have the greatest influence over most Americans’ daily lives. The Tenth Amendment prohibits the federal government from exercising any power not delegated to it by the Constitution as a result, states handle the majority of issues most relevant to individuals within their jurisdiction. Because state governments are not authorized to print currency, they generally have to raise revenue through either taxes or bonds. As a result, state governments tend to impose severe budget cuts or raise taxes any time the economy is faltering.

Each state has its own written constitution, government and code of laws. The Constitution stipulates only that each state must have, “a Republican Government”. Therefore, there are often great differences in law and procedure between individual states, concerning issues such as property, crime, health and education, amongst others. The highest elected official of each state is the Governor, with below him being the Lieutenant Governor. Each state also has an elected state legislature , whose members represent the voters of the state. Each state maintains its own state court system. In some states, supreme and lower court justices are elected by the people in others, they are appointed, as they are in the federal system.

United States Supreme Court Building

The Supreme Court Building houses the . Also referred to as “the Marble Palace”, the building serves as the official residence and workplace of the and the eight . It is located at 1 First Street in , in the block immediately east of the and within a mile of the . The building is managed by the . On May 4, 1987, the Supreme Court Building was designated a .

The proposal for a separate building for the Supreme Court was suggested in 1912 by , who became Chief Justice in 1921. In 1929, Taft successfully argued for the creation of the new building, but did not live to see it built. Physical construction began in 1932 and was officially completed in 1935 under the guidance of Chief Justice , Taft’s successor. The building was designed by architect , a friend of Taft.

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How The United States Government Works

JENNIFER MUELLER

The Constitution establishes the United States government and lists the powers of each of three co-equal branches. Each branch has powers that check or balance the powers of the others, ensuring no single branch can overwhelm and subsume the others. The states and the people retain any powers not specified in the Constitution.

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• Interpreting Laws

Executive Branch Of The Us Government

The executive branch carries out and enforces laws. It includes the president, vice president, the Cabinet, executive departments, independent agencies, and other boards, commissions, and committees.

American citizens have the right to vote for the president and vice president through free, confidential ballots.

Key roles of the executive branch include:

• PresidentThe president leads the country. He or she is the head of state, leader of the federal government, and Commander in Chief of the United States armed forces. The president serves a four-year term and can be elected no more than two times.
• Vice presidentThe vice president supports the president. If the president is unable to serve, the vice president becomes president. The vice president can be elected and serve an unlimited number of four-year terms as vice president, even under a different president.
• The CabinetCabinet members serve as advisors to the president. They include the vice president, heads of executive departments, and other high-ranking government officials. Cabinet members are nominated by the president and must be approved by a simple majority of the Senate51 votes if all 100 Senators vote.

Executive Branch Agencies, Commissions, and Committees

Much of the work in the executive branch is done by federal agencies, departments, committees, and other groups.

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The US is a constitutional republic and representative democracy. Our Government is regulated by a system of checks and balances defined by the US Constitution, which serves as the countrys supreme legal document. In the US, citizens are usually subject to three levels of government: federal, state, and local. The original text of the Constitution establishes the structure and responsibilities of the federal government and its relationship with the individual states. The Constitution has been amended 27 times, including the first 10 amendments, the Bill of Rights, which forms the central basis of Americans individual rights.

Us Government Works: Everything Isnt Copyright Free

Where were we? Ah yes, US government works. The US government is one of the largest publishers in the world and, by law, works prepared by federal government officers or employees as part of their official duties are not copyrightable. That means thousands upon thousands of works, of all kinds written works, photographs and other images, films, software, and more are in the US public domain.

Theres so much great material its mind boggling. For example, government documents supplied by Former Treasury Secretary Paul ONeill to Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and author Ron Suskind enabled him to write this. You could use the same documents to create … well, thats up to you isnt it?

But not all US government works are in the public domain. Heres a brief overview of what you should be careful of.

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Federal Government Of The United States

Jump to navigationJump to searchAmerican Government State governments of the United States

The federal government of the United States is the national government of the United States, a federal republic in North America, composed of 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories and several island possessions. The federal government is composed of three distinct branches: legislative, executive, and judicial, whose powers are vested by the U.S. Constitution in the Congress, the president and the federal courts, respectively. The powers and duties of these branches are further defined by acts of Congress, including the creation of executive departments and courts inferior to the Supreme Court.