For the American Government Class - Assignment Example

Assignment for the American Government Question a. Describe the organizational structure of the federal bureaucracy. In the federal bureaucracy, there is a bureaucracy branch that administers implements and regulates federal programs and is known as the executive branch, congress and courts have their own bureaucracies. Each member of congress has a member of staff who manages the office and in the drafting of legislature. Members of the congressional committee also have their own staff similar to the congressional budget office, office of technology assessment. b. What are the differences between departments, agencies, and bureaus? Departments are pieces of a business, that is, a business can be divided into several departments, to make it easier to manage, an agency part of a large bureau and a bureau is the highest in the chain of command. c. How is the federal bureaucracy staffed, and how has this changed since the nineteenth century? In the 19th century, the presidents could hire and fire staff of the federal bureaucracy as they saw fit, this created an office, which was filled with the president’s allies and friends, but no work was being done. Today the staffs do not have to be hired by the president only, but the senate must come in and approve of them, as well. Question # 2 a. What did Justice Meyer mean by "ancient liberty?" He means that it is necessary to consider ancient and active liberty this is the liberty to engage in active and constant involvement, in collective power, this is when considering the resolution of a case. b. Discuss his three basic views, in detail, with regard to the constitution. Make sure to include and discuss the framework he writes that the constitution creates. Justice Meyer did not have the same view on the exclusive power of the president to remove officials from the executive branch; he did not have the same view with the governance on the matter in the fulfilling of the constitution. He saw where the law had been violated and laid his claims, c. Finally, do you think judges should take public opinion or societal changes into account when ruling on the constitutionality of a statute or practice? If yes, what evidence of public opinions and standards should matter? If no, what risks are there in doing so? No, the judges should be independent in the way they carry out their work without the influence of the public or the influence of the public opinions. The risk in doing this is that people will have a negative attitude towards the judiciary and this could mean trouble for the courts Question # 3 a. What are the Constitutional powers of the president? The President as the following powers under the constitution; i. He serves as commander in chief of the U.S armed forces ii. Receive foreign ambassadors iii. Convene special sessions of congress iv. Ensure that all federal laws are faithfully executed v. Commission offices of the armed forces vi. Grant pardon and reprieves from federal offences vii. Wield the “executive power” viii. Appoint officials to lesser offices. b. What are some of the presidents important powers? i. The most two important presidential powers are; ii. He serves as commander in chief of the armed forces iii. The power to appoint the nine justices of the supreme court, subject to confirmation by the senate c. What are the checks upon the president’s powers? The congress has the power to impeach decisions made by the president; the congress also controls the budget and must approve or decline the president’s choice of justices of the supreme courts. Question # 4 a. What was the reason for creation of the 9/11 Commission? This is the national commission on terrorist attacks upon the United States; its purpose is to prepare a full report on the circumstances that surround the September 11 attacks on the United States. It is the mandate of the commission to provide recommendations for guard against such repeated attacks. b. Explain the suggestions and proposals that came out of the commission. The commission came up with various proposals for the United States government; all this proposals are to ensure that the country does not see a repeat of 9/11 ever again. The proposals touched on security and elements of national security. c. Were the changes that came from the commissions work considered to be effective? Why or why not? The changes that came from the commission were effective science the United States government has already started the implementation of these proposals. This means that the government is taking the commission seriously. Thus, all the proposals that came from the commission have proved to be effective. Question # 5 a. Define Judicial Review. What case set the precedent for this Supreme Court power? Judicial review is the review of the actions of a government official or any other legally appointed person by a court. The case that set this judicial precedent is the Marbury v Madison case. b. Who was the Chief Justice when this check on the other two branches was established? The chief justice during the establishment of this precedence was Chief Justice John Marshall. c. How far do Judicial Reviews tentacles extend? What authority does the Supreme Court have and over whom or what? The judicial review powers of the courts extend over the executive and legislative branches of the federal government. The Supreme Court has authority over the lower courts and can overrule any decision that is made in the other courts. Question # 6 a. Name the departments that make up the Presidents Cabinet. State Treasury Defense Justice Interior Agriculture Commerce Labor Health and Human Services Housing and Urban Development Transportation Energy Education Veterans Affairs Homeland Security b. Who appoints each cabinet head? How are they confirmed and by whom? The president appoints the head of each cabinet department this is subject to confirmation by the senate, and they do this via a meeting after the president has chosen the desired person. c. Name all of the current secretaries of the Presidents Cabinet. State - Hillary Clinton Treasury - Timothy Geithner Defense - Leon Panetta Justice - Eric Holder Interior - Ken Salazar Agriculture -Tom Vilsack Commerce - John Bryson Labor - Hilda Solis Health and Human Services - Kathleen Sebelius Housing and Urban Development - Shaun Donovan Transportation - Ray LaHood Energy - Steven Chu Education - Arne Duncan Veterans Affairs - Eric Shinseki Homeland Security- Janet Napolitano Question # 7 a. Why do Bureaucracies Exist? Bureaucracies are created, by the government, to carry out a broad range to tasks and so as to provide the necessary services and act as experts in certain areas of policy. b. Where are the most vital agencies located and who are they? The metropolitan water district is the most vital; agency in the country, it is located in southern California. c. In what ways does the President direct agencies and bureaucracies? The president can do this through the issue of executive orders, directives, memoranda and other forms of direct action. d. In what ways does Congress promote Bureaucracy? The congress has the duty to hold oversight meetings whenever there is a problem that requires their attention. They try to write legislation that can be administered responsibly. Question # 8 a. What is the constitutional role of the vice president? Does the Constitution suggest specific duties? The role of the vice president is to be the head of the senate and have no vote unless the senate is equally divided. The constitution defines this role under the Article 1, Section 3, Clauses 4 and 5. b. Over the past 25 years, discuss the roles of specific vice presidents as they related to their specific presidents. Were these men given specific tasks? If so, what were they for each man? The vice presidents in the last 25 years played their roles according to the constitution of the United States and none of them can be said to have had a specific task. c. Who was dubbed the "skeptic-in-chief" and why? Joe Biden was due to his belief that the al-Qaeda would be accepted in Afghanistan if the Taliban’s had regained control. Question # 9 a. What have First Ladies traditional roles been limited too? The position of the first lady is not an elected position, and it carries no official duties. However, she plays some crucial role in the white house some being; she plays the role of host, organizes, and attends official ceremonies and functions of the state with the president or on behalf of the president. b. Who was the first lady who was widely criticized in the first half of the twentieth century because of her activist tendencies? Eleanor Roosevelt Question # 10 a. Explain the way that the Federal Court System is structured. The federal court system is dived into three; the Supreme Court that is the highest court in the federal judiciary, the district courts which are the trial courts of the federal judicial system, and the appellate courts. b. How are Justices in all Federal Courts appointed and who confirms them? They are appointed by the president of the United States and confirmed by the senate. c. Who is currently considered to be the swing vote on the Supreme Court? Controversial issues in the court are sometimes decided using the 5-4 vote system of the Supreme Court, the person who vote’s number five is called the swing vote since the person does not always vote with either side of the court. Works cited Schmidt S, Shelley C, Bardes A, Ford E. American government and politics today, 2011-2012. Boston: Cengage Learning, 2011. Print. Read More