UNIT 1

POLITICAL SYSTEM OF THE USA

US Government
The operation of the US government is based on the US Constitution
which was adopted by Congress in 1789.
Under the federal system of government some of the most important
powers are given to the federal (or national) government. The rest of the
powers are exercised by the states. The national government is composed of
three branches: the executive, the legislative and the judicial. Certain pow-
ers are given to each of the branches but these powers overlap in such a way
that the powers of one branch are limited by the powers of the others. This
arrangement is known as the system “of checks and balances”. It is the basic
part of the structure of the American governmental system. No person or
institution can have unlimited authority. Each branch of the national gov-
ernment shares or limits some of the powers of the other branches.
The system of “checks and balances” is clearly illustrated by the presi-
dent’s relations with the Congress. The president proposes legislation but
the Congress does not have to enact it. He cannot put a treaty into effect
without approval by two-thirds of the Senate. In 1973 the legislature limited
the President’s powers as commander-in-chief by prohibiting command-
ment of armed forces abroad for combat without specific congressional ap-
proval. The Senate must approve most of the president’s appointments to
the executive and judicial branches.
Another example of “checks and balances” is that the Congress must au-
thorize money that is used to pay for programs which are administered by
the executive branch. In this way the legislature exercises an important
check on the executive branch and the power of the president. The financial
authority or spending power of the legislature checks the spending power of
the president.

A system of “checks and balances”

The Constitution provides for three equal and separate branches but
each is to some extent dependent on the other two and there is a partial in-
terweaving of their functions.

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 Executive Branch
President:
– suggests legislation to Congress
– issues executive orders, rules and regulations with the force of legis-
lation
– may veto legislation passed by Congress
– appoints federal judges
– may grant pardons from punishment for offences against the United
States

Legislative Branch
– appropriates for Executive
– may create or abolish Executive Departments
– may impeach and try members of the Executive Branch
– may override a Presidential veto
– the Senate must approve Presidential appointments and treaties
– appropriates funds for the Judiciary
– may create or abolish lower federal courts
– may impeach and try members of the Judiciary
– decides how many justices may sit in the Supreme Court

Judicial Branch
– may declare Congressional legislation unconstitutional
– may declare any Presidential or Executive action unconstitutional

The national government’s power is not limited by states’ power. The

only powers the states have are those the Federal government has not re-
served for itself. But in a dispute the Federal government can and will use
military force if necessary, e. g. integration of schools in Little Rock, Ar-
kansas in the 1850s.
The powers of the national and state governments are limited by certain
constitutional guarantees of civil liberties for individual citizens. These
guarantees are known as the Bill of Rights. They are amendments to the
original constitution. They forbid the government from restricting or limit-
ing such civil liberties as freedom of speech, of religion, and of the press,

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and they guarantee to all citizens (at least in principle) certain legal proce-
dures and rights.
The powers of the federal (national) government include the right to
declare war; the right to tax; the right to borrow and coin money and to re-
gulate its value; the right to regulate commerce between the states; the right
to maintain a postal system.
Every state has its own constitution. It also has the three-branches-of-
government structure. State chief executives are called governors, and state
legislators are usually known as representatives and senators.
The powers of the state are to control education, regulate corporations
and businesses within the state, determine most election procedures, and
regulate local governments. The states also make and administer civil (citi-
zens’ private rights) and criminal laws.
The Constitution has been amended 26 times. An amendment may be
proposed by the federal legislature or by a constitutional convention, or a
meeting of representatives from two-thirds of the states. In either case the
amendment must be approved by three-fourths of the state legislature.

The Executive Power

The President as chief executive is the most important government fig-
ure. The President negotiates foreign treaties and appoints government
heads. He commands the armed forces, sends and receives diplomatic offi-
cials. In effect, he makes foreign policy. As head of the executive branch he
sees to it that laws enacted by the legislature are carried out. He is also the
leader of his political party. The president and the vice-president are the on-
ly officials chosen in a nation-wide election.
According to the Constitution a president’s office is limited to two terms
of 4 years each. It also describes how a president can be removed from of-
fice (impeachment procedure).
The executive branch consists of 13 departments and many independent
agencies. The department heads (most of them called secretaries, except the
Attorney General) form the president’s cabinet. The president has many
sources of advice and assistance – both private and public, including repre-
sentatives of the departments and agencies. He also relies very much on
members of his own White House staff.

5
 The executive departments
Department Head of department
1 State Secretary of State
2 Treasury Secretary of the Treasury
3 Defense Secrerary of Defense
4 Interior Secretary of the Interior
5 Justice Attorney General
6 Agriculture Secretary of Agriculture
7 Commerce Secretary of Commerce
8 Labour Secretary of Labour
Secretary of Health and Human
9 Health and Human Services
Services
Secretary of Housing and Urban
10 Housing and Urban Development
Development
11 Transportation Secretary of Transportation
12 Energy Secretary of Energy
13 Education Secretary of Education
Almost three million civilians work in the departments and agencies of
the executive branch. This number exceeds the total, employed by Ameri-
ca’s seven largest corporations. These government employees make up the
federal bureaucracy. These are civil servants who are hired under a system
in which merit and training are supposed to be the basis of employment and
promotion. There are approximately ten thousand civil service job classifi-
cations which range from a bridge engineer to a clerk . 10% of these federal
employees work in Washington D.C., 6 % work outside the U.S.; the rest
are located throughout the 50 states.

The Legislature
The legislative branch of the federal government is represented by Con-
gress. There are two houses of Congress: the Senate and the House of Repre-
sentatives. The Senate is composed of 100 voting members, two from each
of the voting states. They are elected for a six-year term and the number of
their terms is unlimited. The House of Representatives has 435 voting
members in addition to two representatives ftom Puerto Rico and the Dis-
trict of Columbia who are not entitled to vote. The members of the House
are called representatives or congressmen (or congresswomen). They are
elected for a two-year term. Many members of the Congress are regularly

6
reelected, and so some of them serve for over 20 years. The number of rep-
resentatives from each state depends on the state population. Every 10 years
the U.S. Census reports the distribution of the population throughout the
entire country. The congressional seats are then re-distributed accordingly.
California claims the largest delegation. New York ranks second. Alaska,
Nevada and some others have only one representative.
Within Congress there exist party leaders who are selected by congres-
sional party caucuses (party meetings).
Either house – the Senate or the House of Representatives – may offer a
bill (but only the House proposes finance bills). All bills are immediately
referred to a legislative committee. These committees are organized by spe-
cial areas such as education, agriculture, and foreign affairs. Each commit-
tee is made up of representatives of both parties and each committee has its
own staff.
The committee responsible for a particular bill holds hearings on it. Ex-
perts appear before the committee and offer suggestions and opinions about
the bill. After the hearings the Committee reports its recommendations to
the House. These recommendations may include suggested changes in the
bill, or the committee may propose an entirely new one. Committee recom-
mendations are of great importance because when the legislators vote on a
bill, they usually follow the Committee report. If a Committee chooses not
to consider the bill, the bill dies. It is nearly impossible for a bill to reach the
House or Senate floor without first winning committee approval.
Following the committee action the bill is debated on the floor of each
house. Then the vote is taken. A voice vote, the most common and the
quickest, involves a general chorus or “Yeas” or “Nays”. The chairperson
decides which side has the majority. In a roll-call vote each vote is recorded
separately. If a bill is defeated in either house, it dies. If the House of Repre-
sentatives and the Senate approve similar bills with some different provi-
sions, both bills go to a conference committee, in which selected legislators
work to adjust the differences.
The bill becomes law following one or several steps by the president.
He may approve the bill and sign it; he may sign the bill with a statement
expressing his disapproval, or he may simply not sign the bill, in which case
it automatically becomes law after ten days. But if the president wants to
prevent the bill from becoming law, he vetoes it. But the proposal may still
become law if two thirds of each house of Congress then vote for it, thus
overriding, or defeating the president’s veto. This doesn’t happen often. The
president may also use the “pocket veto” by withholding his signature with-
in ten days of congressional adjournment.

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 How a bill becomes a law
House of Representatives
1. A bill is introduced, numbered, printed...
2. ...and referred to a committee which studies it and issues a report to
the full House...
3. ...which debates the bill and votes for or agaist passage.
Senate
4. The bill, now called an “act”, is delivered to the Senate; here, too, it is
assigned to a committee...
5. ...debated and voted on, perhaps with amendments. Since Senate and
House versions must be identical, it is referred to...

A Conference Committee
is composed of equal numbers of of members from each house. When dif-
ferences have been resolved, the new bill goes back to both houses for ap-
proval... and then to the President who may either sign it into law or veto it;
if vetoed, Congress can override.
Congress also performs the function of investigation, which involves
examination of government activities to determine if the executive branch is
performing its duties properly and if new legislation is needed.
Congress also plays an informative role. It informs the public about dif-
ferent and important subjects, such as crime or space exploration. The most
widely publicized Senate investigations in the 1970s was the “Watergate
hearings”, when a special Senate committee investigated charges of illegal
activities by members of the White House staff during President Nixon’s
administration. In the 1980s the so-called “Iran-gate” hearings drew wide-
spread attention.

The Judicial Branch

There is a Supreme Court of the United States, the members of which
are appointed for life by the president with Senate approval and federal
courts which are created by Congress.
The Supreme Court is composed of nine judges, who are called jus-
tices. It is the highest court in the nation. It interprets the laws and r e-
views them to determine whether they conform to the U.S. Constitution.
If the majority of justices rule that the law in question violates the Co n-

8
stitution, the law is declared unconstitutional and becomes invalid. This
process is known as judicial review. All lower courts follow the rulings
of the Supreme Court.
Federal courts have the power to rule on both criminal and civil cases.
Criminal action under federal jurisdiction includes such cases as treason,
destruction of governmental property, counterfeiting, hijacking, and narcotic
violations. Civil cases include violations of other people’s rights, such as
damaging property, violating a contract, or making libelious statements. If
found guilty, a person may be required to pay a certain amount of money,
called damages, but he or she is never sent to prison. A convicted criminal,
on the other hand, may be imprisoned .
The Bill of Rights guarantees a trial by jury in all criminal cases. A jury
is a group of citizens – usually 12 persons – who make the decision on a
case.
The lowest federal court is the district court. Each state has at least one
district court. Cases from such a court may be reviewed by the next higher
court, and the U.S. Court of Appeals.
For the first 75 years of Supreme Court history the most important cases
involved conflicts over the authority of the national government. From the
middle 1800s until the late 1930s the major decisions of the court concerned
economic regulation – control of business activities and setting economic
policy by the federal government. During the past 50 years the most impor-
tant Supreme Court cases have concerned civil rights, civil liberties, and
issues of criminal law. Recently, cases involving environmental and con-
sumer law have been gaining importance.
Most state judges are elected for limited terms. State courts handle crim-
inal and other cases that do not come under federal jurisdiction.
The often ambiguous line between state and federal authority has re-
sulted in recurring conflicts between federal and state officials throughout
American history.

Commentary
Party caucus – an assembly of party members and representatives nor-
mally relating to nominations of party leaders and selection of platform
agendas.

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 Vocabulary
1. Translate the following word combinations from the text:
To pass a constitution To hold hearings
A federal system of government To take a vote
To exercise power A voice vote
The legislative branch A roll-call vote
The judicial branch To adjust differences
A system of checks and balances To veto a law
To put a treaty into effect To authorize money
To draw a widespread attention To administer a program
Judicial review To exercise a check on
A case of treason To check the spending power
A case of counterfeiting Civil liberties
To damage property To violate a contract
To negotiate a treaty To make a libelious statement
To appoint government heads To pay damages
To command the armed forces Environmental and consumer law
To choose in a nation – wide election To remove from office
To gain importance
To come under federal/state jurisdic- Recurring conflicts
tion
To be entitled to vote

Propose / enact / veto legislation

Create / abolish departments
Declare legislation unconstitutional
Carry out law
See to it that
Be made up of
Sign the bill
Prevent the bill from becoming a law
Perform one’s duties properly
Become invalid

Words
To overlap, v Legislature, n Ambiguous, adj
To override Amendment Executive

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 To rule (on a case) Ruling
To imprison Convict
To govern Governor
To amend Legislator
To execute Treasury
To refer(to) Bureaucracy
To adjourn Census
To conform(to) Hearing(s)
To guarantee Adjournment
2. Find in the text the English words and phrases corresponding to
the following Russian equivalents:
Принять конституцию; исполнительная власть; законодательная
власть; судебная власть; осуществлять контроль над какой-либо вет-
вью власти; гражданские права (свободы); гарантировать правовые
процедуры и гражданские права; вести переговоры о заключении дого-
вора; назначать глав ведомств; командовать вооруженными силами;
выбирать президента и вице-президента на общенациональных выбо-
рах; снимать с поста; иметь право голоса; открытое голосование; по-
именное голосование; найти компромисс; наложить вето на закон; пе-
ресмотр (судом) принятого решения; дело о государственной измене;
дело о подделке документов; нанести ущерб чьей-л. собственности;
нарушить контракт; сделать клеветническое заявление; находиться в
ведении законодательства штата.
3. Match the word in A with its definition in B:
А. 1) interweave; 2) veto; 3) override; 4) amendment; 5) imprison;
6) execute; 7) governor; 8) treasury; 9) census; 10) legislation / leg-
islature; 11) bureaucracy; 12) adjourn; 13) guarantee; 14) ruling;
15) convict; 16) approve; 17) overlap; 18) ambiguous; 19) rule;
20) counterfeit; 21) treason.
В. 1) copy (handwriting, coins, etc.) in order to deceive; 2) official
counting of the population; 3) a person being punished and impri-
soned; 4) weave together (one with another); 5) constitutional right
to reject to forbid; 6) refuse to agree with or accept; 7) put a convict
into prison; 8) carry out a plan, a command; 9) a person ruling a
country or directing public affairs; 10) govern a country; 11) having
more than one interpretation; 12) partly cover or coincide; 13) de-
partment of state controlling public revenue; 14) assembly making
laws; 15) ensure; 16) privileged stratum of higher officials inter-
wined with the ruling class; 17) stop or be stopped for a time;

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 18) decision made by a person in authority; 19) agree or confirm;
20) change proposed or made to a rule; 21) betrayal of one’s country
or its ruler.
4. Give answers to the following questions:
a) What document is the operation of the US government based on?
b) How are the powers of the government distributed between the feder-
al government and the state governments?
c) What are the three branches of the national government?
d) What is the system of “checks and balances”? How is it exercised?
e) In what way does the legislature exercise a check on the executive
branch?
f) What limits the powers of the national and state governments?
g) What is known as the “Bill of Rights”?
h) What is the procedure for introducing an amendment to the Constitu-
tion?
i) What are the duties of the President?
j) How can the work of the executive branch of the federal government
be described?
k) What are the functions of the Senate and the House of Representa-
tives?
l) How is the procedure of passing a law organized?
m) Under what circumstances does a bill become a law?
n) How does the Supreme Court function?
o) What is the judicial review?
p) What crimes are called “civil”?
q) What is the structure of the state government?
5. Draw a scheme showing the operation of the US government. Try
to present the interdependence of the powers exercised by each branch.
Speak about it.

PART II

POLITICAL PARTIES AND ELECTIONS

Politics in the United States has evolved into what is essentially a two-
party system. Due to geographical and ideological affinities members of one
party may find themselves more closely allied with members of the oppos-
ing party than with their own party. So the difference in political views and

12
programs is sometimes so vague that there seems to be more similarity in
the views of Conservative Democrats and certain Republicans rather than in
the views of Democrats and Republicans as such. So there is a lot of over-
lapping of philosophy and programs. Some American politicians claim that
it is the absence of sharp differences that ensures the political stability in the
country in the periods of the transfer of power from one party to the other.
Within each party political philosophies of citizens can be different but
they unite to gain political power which they would not be able to win sepa-
rately. Sometimes a special issue produces a third party, but the two major
parties often take over the issue and its supporters, ans so the third party
loses strength. During the 20th century several parties, such as the Socialist,
Socialist Labour, Communist and Prohibition Parties have been on the bal-
lot at one time or another. Sometimes relatively unknown candidates run for
president on one or another party’s ticket. But they have not shown sus-
tained strength.
Individuals who call themselves Democrats, Republicans, or Indepen-
dents do not pay membership dues, do not attend meetings, do not have
cards, as in other countries, but vote for the candidate with whom they want
to identify themselves. So very often it is not the party platform of a candi-
date that determines a citizen’s decision to vote or not to vote for him, but
the personal qualities of a candidate (charisma) or family traditions which,
as polls show, are the most important in determining party membership.
Historical reasons are also important. So, many people in the south have
remained Democratic since the Civil War, when a Republican administra-
tion led the victorious Nothern army against the southern forces. There is a
growing tendency among people to split their vote, which means that they
choose Democrats for some offices and Republicans for some other offices.
The number of those who vote the straight ticket is decreasing.
The parties are organized locally by states or counties. National political
parties become particularly active during election campaigns. The perma-
nent national political organizations are the Democratic and Republican
national committees which are chosen by state party organizations. The ma-
jor function of the national party committees is to organize national conven-
tions for choosing presidential candidates.
The elections process starts with the conventions which take place in the
summer of the election year. State delegates to these conventions are chosen
in various ways. About onethird of the states select their delegates at local
party conventions. The other states elect their delegates in primaries held
during the spring. Primaries are first, or preliminary, elections, in which

13
voters choose delegates who are pledged to support one of the announced
presidential candidates of their party.
The number of delegates at each national convention varies with the
number of voters in each state and certain party requirements (adequate re-
presentation of women, youth, minority ethnic groups, etc.).
The atmosphere of a national convention is theatrical. Delegates first
approve their party platform – statements of party positions on foreign poli-
cy, employment, education, and civil rights. The presidential candidate is
expected to support the platform in his campaign.Though the platform is
supposed to unite the party, controversial issues may come up. Most often,
however, a compromise is reached. This might take the form of excluding
the issue as a platform plank.
After the adoption of the platform, presidential candidates are nomi-
nated, which is followed by a lot of noise-making and demonstrations in
support of each nominee. Then each state reports to the chairman of the
Convention the number of votes cast for each nominee. The one who rece-
ives over 50 percent of the votes becomes his party’s presidential candidate.
Presidential campaigns begin very early and continue until the election
in early November when the candidates make final television appearances
and appeal for the votes. Presidential campaigns also include other major
expenses, apart from TV and radio and the press advertising, such as the
travel costs of the candidate and his staff, their salaries and campaign litera-
ture. Also such publicity items as campaign pins and bumper stickers are
widely used. All these tremendous campaign costs are financed with federal
funds with equal amounts of money for each major party, and they are not
allowed to spend more than that. But at the time of the primary campaigns
the competing candidates also receive private contributions. Every cam-
paign attracts hundreds of unpaid workers at the grass roots, or local politi-
cal level.
Candidates for state and federal offices are chosen in party primary elec-
tions (primaries). The rest are chosen at special party meetings. Winners of
primary elections meet in the final general elections.
But selection of the president involves an extra step, that is election by
the Electoral College, a procedure established by the Constitution. Electors
are representatives of each state party who vote on behalf of the voters of
their state several weeks after the national popular election. The number of
electors is based on the number of congressmen from the state. They are
chosen according to the laws of each state and are supposed to vote for the
candidate who has won the majority of votes in that state. Although the na-

14
tional popular vote may be very close, one candidate may receive an over-
whelming majority of Electoral College votes. So in 1960 John Kennedy
received 49,7 percent of the popular vote and more than 56 percent of the
Electoral College votes. In 1976 Jimmy Carter won 51 percent of the popu-
lar vote and about 55 percent of the Electoral College vote.
In recent years there has been discussion about eliminating the Electoral
College procedure. Many people think it is awkward and undemocratic. Op-
ponents of the Electoral College favour the direct election of the president
and vice-president. Others believe that in a close popular election the Elec-
toral College votes clearly establish the winner.
The political process does not stop after the election. Many organiza-
tions with special interests maintain paid representatives in the national and
state capitals. They are called lobbyists who try to influence government
policy in favor of the organizations or interest groups which they represent.
Lobbying is a part of the American polical system. There sometimes occur
abuses in lobbying practices when lobbyists use improper methods in their
efforts to influence government officials. There exists special governmental
legislation to do away with abuses but it is not particularly effective. As it
is, lobbying is a means of getting across the voice of different groups of
population to the government bodies.

Commentary
Prohibition Party – established in the early 20th century, advocating ab-
stinence of alcohol and prohibition of the import, distribution and consump-
tion of alcoholic beverages.
Independents – groups of individuals, who maintain autonomy with re-
gard to either the Democratic or Republican parties.

Vocabulary
1. Translate the following words and word combinations from the
text:
Ideological affinities To reach a compromise
To be on the ballot At the grass-roots
To run for president on a party’s ticket To pay membership dues
Electoral college To receive... percent of the
To receive an overwhelming majority popular vote
of votes
To split one’s vote

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 To vote the straight ticket A close popular election
A national convention An interest group
Controversial issue (come up) To do away with abuses
To hold primaries Election campaign
Publicity items Ensure political stability
To identify oneself with Party platform
Competing candidates Primary, adj.
Charisma, n Nominate (nominee)
Pledge, v Plank, n
Lobby (lobbying) Vote (voter)
Abuse, v
Eliminate, v
2. Find in the text the English words and phrases corresponding to
the following Russian equivalents:
Национальная конвенция; получить подавляющее большинство го-
лосов; получить… процентов голосов на общих выборах; группа, от-
стаивающая ч.-л. интересы; положить конец правонарушениям; на са-
мом низком уровне (движения);
баллотироваться на пост президента от какой-либо партии; достичь
компромисса; голосовать за кандидатов от разных партий на различ-
ные должности; платить членские взносы; коллегия выборщиков; го-
лосовать за кандидатов от одной и той же партии на различные долж-
ности; привлекательность (кандидата); оказывать давление; проводить
подготовительную пропагандистскую работу перед обсуждением к.-л.
законопроекта; первичные выборы; кандидат, выдвигаемый к.-л. пар-
тией; выдвигать кандидата.
3. Paraphrase the following word combinations using the vocabu-
lary of the text:
to come to terms
party conference where a program is endorsed and candidates for presi-
dency are proposed
close relation or similarity in views
points of disagreement become obvious
relating to or coming from the common people
a group of delegates authorized to elect a president
a general election in which candidates’ votes differ only marginally
to put an end, to abolish any chance of using improper influence or
means

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 to receive a number of votes far exceeding the number of votes received
by other candidates
to pay a fee or charge to an organization for the rights of membership
a representative group pursuing some particular aims
an election in which contenders from the same party oppose each other
for the party’s nomination or for the right to run for office with the party’s
support
trying to influence legislators in their voting to favour some special
group of interests
4. Match the word in A with its definition in B:
A. 1) plank; 2) charisma; 3) pledge; 4) nominee; 5) lobby; 6) vague;
7) awkward; 8) convention(s); 9) affinity; 10) ballot.
B. 1) spiritual grace, ability to encourage devotion; 2) try to influence
the members of a law-making body; 3) basic principle in political
platform; 4) uncertain, not clear or distinct; 5) something given as a
sign of love, approval; 6) close connection, relation; structural simi-
larity; 7) a person who is nominated for an office or appointment;
8) a piece of paper, ticket or ball used in secret voting; 9) conference
of members of a society, political party; 10) clumsy, having little
skill; embarrassed.
5. Paraphrase the following word combinations using the vocabu-
lary of the text:
A vote by a show of hands
a registered vote
act or crime of damaging a person’s reputation by printing, writing, or
representing in a picture false or malicious information about him; to de-
fame somebody
an interval when the work of Congress is suspended for a period of time
laws protecting the habitat and the interests of buyers of certain goods
to implement a treaty
to approve officially, to sanction money spending
to bring about or arrange the terms of a treaty through discussion
to dismiss from a post
to cause harm or injury leading to some kind of material loss
to make an unauthorized copy of, as money, documents or handwriting
with intent to deceive
to keep expenses under control
6. Answer the following questions:

17
 1. Why are there sometimes insignificant differences in the views of
some Republicans and Democrats?
2. Why do some politicians find the absence of sharp differences in the
views of Republicans and Democrats advantageous?
3. Do third parties exist in the United States?
4. What kind of organization do the two leading parties have?
5. Does the party affiliation of a candidate always determine people’s
support of him?
6. Why do some people split their vote?
7. What is the main function of the national parties’ committees?
8. What is the procedure for electing delegates to national conventions?
9. How can the atmosphere of a national convention be described?
10. Why is a platform plank sometimes excluded?
11. How many votes should a party’s presidential candidate receive at a
convention?
12. What kind of propaganda materials are usually distributed in the elec-
tion campaign?
13. How are the electors to the Electoral College chosen?
7. Translate from Russian into English:
1. При системе федерального правления наиболее важные полно-
мочия даны национальному правительству, остальные находятся
в ведении штатов.
2. Известно, что президент предлагает законодательство, но Кон-
гресс может выразить свое неодобрение.
3. То, что президент не имеет полномочий вводить договор в дей-
ствие без одобрения двух третей в составе Сената, – хорошо из-
вестный факт.
4. Система контроля и сдерживания означает частичное переплете-
ние функций всех трех ветвей власти.
5. Безусловно, каждая ветвь обладает собственными полномочия-
ми, но они частично совпадают.
6. Казна, оборона, транспорт, здравоохранение – лишь некоторые
из 13 департаментов исполнительной власти, причем имеется
значительное количество независимых агентств.
7. Известно, что в Конгрессе действуют и партийные лидеры, изби-
раемые на ассамблеях членов своей партии.

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 8. По причине идеологических сходств философские взгляды и
программы разных партий во многом совпадают.
9. Известно, что Комитет, отвечающий за законопроект, проводит
слушания, касающиеся его сути.
10. Вслед за действиями комитета законопроект, конечно же, обсу-
ждается в обеих палатах.
11. Законопроект может быть одобрен и подписан, или он может быть
не одобрен – с соответствующим указанием при подписании.
12. Гражданские случаи включают нарушения прав человека, такие,
как нанесение ущерба собственности, нарушение контракта, кле-
ветническое заявление.
13. Отсутствие четких границ между полномочиями федеральных вла-
стей и властей штатов имеет результатом постоянно повторяющие-
ся конфликты между представителями двух уровней власти.
14. Законодательство легализует деньги, используемые для финан-
сирования программ, руководство которыми осуществляет ис-
полнительная ветвь власти.
15. Для всех жителей Соединенных Штатов важно, что поправки к
Конституции гарантируют им определенные узаконенные гра-
жданские действия и права.
16. При возникновении спорных вопросов чаще всего достигается
компромисс.
17. Постановлениям Верховного Суда следуют все суды нижестоя-
щих инстанций.
18. Если бы не смещение с должностей определенных лиц, слуша-
ния могли бы привлечь внимание широкой публики.
19. Федеральные суды имеют полномочия выносить решения как по
криминальным случаям, так и гражданским, причем районный
суд является федеральным судом низшего уровня.
20. Как правило, Декларация Независимости и Конституция с после-
дующими поправками рассматриваются как документы, обеспечи-
вающие основу идеологии и правопорядка.

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