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In this way, Americans first took for themselves the liberties and rights that elsewhere were the privileges of an elite few. Americans would manage their own laws. And, of course, they would make their own mistakes.

They stated in the first ten Constitutional Amendments, known together as the Bill of Rights, what they considered to be the fundamental rights of any American. Among these rights are the freedom of religion, speech, and the press, the right of peaceful assembly, and the right to petition the government to correct wrongs. Other rights guarded the citizens against unreasonable searches, arrests, and seizures of property, and established a system of justice guaranteeing orderly legal procedures. This included the right of trial by jury, that is, being judged by one's fellow citizens.

The great pride Americans have in their Constitution, their almost religious respect for it comes from the knowledge that these ideals, freedoms, and rights were not given to them by a small ruling class. Rather, they are seen as the natural "unalienable" rights of every American, which had been fought for and won. They cannot be taken away by any government, court, official, or law.

The federal and state governments formed under the Constitution, therefore, were designed to serve the people and to carry out their majority wishes (and not the other way around). One thing they did not want their government to do is to rule them. Americans expect their government to serve them and tend to think of politicians and governmental officials as their servants. This attitude remains very strong among Americans today.

Over the past two centuries, the Constitution has also had considerable influence outside the United States. Several other nations have based their own forms of government on it. It is interesting to note that Lafayette, а hего of the American Revolution, drafted the French declaration of rights when he returned to France. And the United Nations Charter also has clear echoes of what once was considered a revolutionary document.

3. Find in the text the English equivalents for the expressions below.

- вносить поправки в конституцию;

- пересмотреть документ;

- действовать в соответствии с соглашением;

- свобода совести;

- управлять своими собственными делами;

- принять конституцию;

- определить чьи-либо полномочия;

- действовать в рамках конституции;

- получить необоснованно большую власть;

- незаконный арест;

- свобода собраний;

- захват собственности;

- удовлетворять требованиям.

4. Answer the questions.

1. How does the American Constitution separate the powers of the government?

2. Has the text of the Constitution ever been changed? How did it become possible?

3. Does any governmental organ or official in the US have the ultimate power? Why?

4. What is the Bill of Rights?

5. Work in pairs and discuss the following questions.

1. What is the difference between the American Constitution and the Bill of Rights?

2. What is the difference between the constitutions of the UK and the US?

The system of government The American System of Government

The governmental systems in the United States - federal, state, county, and local - are quite easy to understand, that is, if you grew up with them and studied them in school. One foreign expert complained, for example, that the complexity of just the cities' political and governmental structure is "almost unbelievable." The "real Chicago," he explained ", spreads over 2 states, 6 counties, 10 towns, 30 cities, 49 townships, and 110 villages. Overlaid upon this complex pattern are 235 tax districts and more than 400 school districts..."

There are, however, several basic principles which are found at all levels of American government. One of these is the "one person, one vote" principle which says that legislators are elected from geographical districts directly by the voters. Under this principle, all election districts must have about the same number of residents.

Another fundamental principle of American government is that because of the system of checks and balances, compromise in politics is a matter of necessity, not choice. For example, the House of Representatives controls spending and finance, so the President must have its agreement for his proposals and programmes. He cannot declare war, either, without the approval of Congress. In foreign affairs, he is also strongly limited. Any treaty must first be approved by the Senate. If there is no approval, there's no treaty. The rule is "the President proposes, but Congress disposes." What a President wants to do, therefore, is often a different thing from what a President is able to do.

Find in the texts the English equivalents for the following words and expressions.

- избиратель;

- избирательный округ;

- объявлять войну,

- законодатель;

- международный договор;

- одобрение Конгресса;

- внешняя политика;

- глава исполнительной власти;

- проводить в жизнь закон;

- поддерживать правопорядок;

- выслеживать преступников;

- быть строго ограниченным;

- представить дело на рассмотрение жюри присяжных заседателей.

Answer the questions.

1. What are the basic principles which are found at all levels of American government?

2. How do you understand the saying: "The President proposes, but Congress disposes"?

3. Who is the chief executive in each state?

4. What laws do the local police enforce?

Congress

Congress, the legislative branch of the federal government, is made up of the Senate and the House of Representatives. There are 100 Senators, two from each state. One third of the Senators are elected every two years for six-year terms of office. The Senators represent all of the people in a state and their interests.

The House has 435 members. They are elected every two years for two-year terms. They represent the population of "congressional districts" into which each state is divided. The number of Representatives from each state is based upon its population. For instance, California, the state with the largest population, has 45 Representatives, while Delaware has one. There is no limit to the number of terms a Senator or a Representative may serve.

Almost all elections in the United States follow the "winner-take-all" principle: the candidate who wins the largest number of votes in a Congressional district is the winner.

Congress makes all laws, and each house of Congress has the power to introduce legislation. Each can also vote against legislation passed by the other. Because legislation only becomes law if both houses agree, compromise between them is necessary. Congress decides upon taxes and how money is spent. In addition commerce among the states and with foreign countries. It also sets rules for the naturalization of foreign citizens.

The President and Federal Departments

The President of the United States is elected every four years to a four-year term of office, with no more than two full terms allowed. As is true with Senators and Representatives, the President is elected directly by the voters (through state electors). In other words, the political party with the most Senators and Representatives does not choose the President. This means that the President can be from one party, and the majority of those in the House of Representatives or Senate (or both) from another. This is not uncommon.

Thus, although one of the parties may win a majority in the midterm elections (those held every two years), the President remains President, even though his party may not have a majority in either house. Such a result could easily hurt his ability to get legislation through Congress, which must pass all laws, but this is not necessarily so. In any case, the President's policies must be approved by the House of Representatives and the Senate before they can become law. In domestic as well as in foreign policy, the President can seldom count upon the automatic support of Congress, even when his own party has a majority in both the Senate and the House. Therefore, he must be able to convince Congressmen, the Representatives and Senators, of his point of view. He must bargain and compromise. This is a major difference between the American system and those in which the nation's leader represents the majority party or parties, that is parliamentary systems.

Within the Executive Branch, there are a number of executive departments. Currently these are the departments of State, Treasury, Defence, Justice, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, Labour, Health and Human Resources, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, Energy, and Education. Each department is established by law, and, as their names indicate, each is responsible for a specific area. The head of each department is appointed by the President. These appointments, however, must be approved by the Senate. None of these Secretaries, as the department heads are usually called, can also be serving in Congress or in another part of the government. Each is directly responsible to the President and only serves as long as the President wants him or her to. They can best be seen, therefore, as Presidential assistants and advisers. When they meet together, they are termed "the President's Cabinet." Some Presidents have relied quite a bit on their Cabinets for advice, and some very little.

Answer the questions.

1. How many terms may a Senator or a Representative serve?

2. Which house of Congress has the power to introduce laws?

3. Name at least three functions of Congress.

4. Does the President always belong to the party which has the majority in Congress?

5. What is the major difference of the American system of government from parliamentary ones?

6. Name at least three functions of the President.

7. Who succeeds the President if he dies or resigns?

8. Under what circumstances can the President be removed from office before his term expires?

9. Who does the President's Cabinet consist of?

The Federal Judiciary

The third branch of government, in addition to the legislative (Congress) and executive (President) branches, is the federal judiciary. Its main instrument is the Supreme Court, which watches over the other two branches. It determines whether or not their laws and acts are in accordance with the Constitution. Congress has the power to fix the number of judges sitting on the Court, but it cannot change the powers given to the Supreme Court by the Constitution itself. The Supreme Court consists of a chief justice and eight associate justices. They are nominated by the President but must be approved by the Senate. Once approved, they hold office as Supreme Court Justices for life. A decision of the Supreme Court cannot be appealed to any other court. Neither the President nor Congress can change their decisions. In addition to the Supreme Court, Congress has established 11 federal courts of appeal and, below them, 91 federal district courts. The Supreme Court has direct jurisdiction in only two kinds of cases: those involving foreign diplomats and those in which a state is a party. All other cases which reach the Court are appeals from lower courts. The Supreme Court chooses which of these it will hear. Most of the cases involve the interpretation of the Constitution. The Supreme Court also has the "power of judicial review," that is, it has the right to declare laws and actions of the federal, state, and local governments unconstitutional. While not stated in the Constitution, this power was established over time.

Answer the questions.

1. What are the functions of the Supreme Court of the USA?

2. Who does the Supreme Court consist of?

3. How long do the Supreme Court Justices serve?

4. Are the Supreme Court Justices elected?

5. Who can change the decisions of the Supreme Court?

6. What lower courts, besides the Supreme Court, are there in the USA ?

7. In what kinds of cases does the Supreme Court have direct jurisdiction?

8. What is the "power of judicial review"?

The system of checks and balances

The Constitution provides for three main branches of government which are separate and distinct from one another. The powers given to each are carefully balanced by the powers of the other two. Each branch serves as a check on the others. This is to keep any branch from gaining too much power or from misusing its powers.

Congress has the power to make laws, but the President may veto any act of Congress. Congress, in its turn, can override a veto by a two-thirds vote in each house. Congress can also refuse to provide funds requested by the President. The President can appoint important officials of his administration, but they must be approved by the Senate. The President also has the power to name all federal judges; they, too, must be approved by the Senate. The courts have the power to determine the constitutionality of all acts of Congress and of presidential actions, and to strike down those they find unconstitutional.

The system of checks and balances makes compromise and consensus necessary. Compromise is also a vital aspect of other levels of government in the United States. This system protects against extremes. It means, for example, that new presidents cannot radically change governmental policies just as they wish. In the US, therefore, when people think of "the government", they usually mean the entire system, that is, the Executive Branch and the President, Congress, and the courts. In fact and in practice, therefore, the President (i.e. "the Administration") is not as powerful as many people outside the US seem to think he is. In comparison with other leaders in systems where the majority party forms "the government", he is much less so.

Find in the text the English equivalents for the expressions below.