Three Branches of Government

Global Issues
Mr. Biddle
 Constitution
• The US Constitution created three branches
of government for the people.
• These branches are:
– The Legislative Branch
– The Executive Branch
– The Judicial Branch
 Legislative Branch
• The legislative branch of government was
created by Article I of the Constitution.
• The main purpose of the legislative branch
is to make and pass laws.
• The legislative branch is made up of a
House of Representatives and a Senate.
• These two combined are known as
Congress.
 Legislative Continued
• The founders of the Constitution expected the
Legislative Branch to be the most important
branch of government, but feared if its power
wasn’t clearly defined it could endanger liberty.
So the Legislative branch was given expressed
powers.
• Expressed Powers- Powers directly stated in
the Constitution.
 Legislative Continued
• Enumerated Powers- The powers listed in Article I
Section 8 are called enumerated powers, because
they are numbered 1-18.
• One of these enumerated powers is called the
elastic clause.
• Elastic Clause- gives Congress the right to make
any laws they seem necessary to carry out its other
powers.
– Allows Congress to stretch its power to meet new
situations the founders couldn’t anticipate.
 The Executive Branch
• The executive branch of government was
created by Article II of the Constitution
• The executive branch is in charge of
making sure the law is put into practice and
executed properly.
 President
• The president is the head
of the executive branch.
• The Constitution grants
the president broad and
vague powers.
• The president today has
powers that are not
mentioned in the
Constitution, but some of
his powers are mentioned.
 The Judicial Branch
• The judicial branch was created by Article III of the
Constitution.
• The judicial branch is in charge of interpreting the
law. This is done by a court system.
• The judicial branch is at times a referee between the
legislative and executive branches.
• There are two types of courts systems in the judicial
branch.
– Federal Courts (Supreme Court)
– State Courts
 Supreme Court
• The highest court in
the US Government
• The supreme courts
job is to interpret the
Constitution.
• There are 9 supreme
court justices
 Cartoon Activity
• Some people use political cartoons as a way to say
there is something they don’t like about the
government or to point out something they feel is
wrong or ironic.
• Your job is to create a cartoon that has something to
do with something we have learned in this unit.
• You may use this activity to point out something
you feel is wrong with the US government or you
find funny.
• Feel free to use your creativity.
Cartoon Examples
Cartoon Examples
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Cartoon Example