Impeachment

In the constitutions of several countries, impeachment is the first of two stages in a specific process for a legislative body to remove a government official without that official's agreement. It is the legal statement of charges, parallelling an indictment in criminal law. In the United States, impeachment can occur both at the federal and state level. At the federal level, different standards apply when the impeachment involves a member of the executive branch or of the judiciary. For the executive branch, only those who have allegedly committed "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors" may be impeached. Two presidents: Andrew Johnson was impeached in 1868 after violating the then-newly created Tenure of Office Act. President Johnson was acquitted of all charges by a single vote in the Senate. Bill Clinton was impeached on December 19, 1998 by the House of Representatives on grounds of perjury to a grand jury and obstruction of justice.

Impeachment is the process that enables a legislative body to remove a public official from office. It comprises two parts: (1) an accusation or indictment and (2) a trial.

This practice has roots in English constitutional history. Members of Parliament employed impeachment against royally appointed Stuart officials in the 1600s. The concept was brought to the American colonies, where legislative assemblies used it against royal officials. Few other countries have provisions for impeachment.

Andrew Johnson was the first President of the United States of America to be impeached.

System of checks and ballances implies that each branch of Am government is checked and controlled by the other 2. This is to keep any branch from gaining too much power or from misusing its powers. The system makes compromise and consensus necessary, it protects against extremes. Thus the 3 branches has balanced powers.

The structure of the Federal Government. The system of checks and balances

The US is a democratic republic. The National Government is the gov.of all the people and their representatives. It’s called thr Federal Gov. because the nation is a federation of states. The US Constitution gave the FG oonly limited powers, all others belong to the individual states. The main principles of the governmental system: 1)separation of powers, 2)system of checks&balances, 3)federalism. 1)There are 3 branches of powers: legislative, executive, judicial. Each branch has dif.functions. no member of one branch can have a seat in the other two. 2) this system implies that each branch is checked and controlled by the other 2. this is to keep any branch from gaining too much power or from misusing its powers. The system makes compromise and consensus necessary. The system protects against extremes.

3) The division between the national gov, state and local gov-s. Federalism is more efficient for large land massesbecause the local gov is much closer to their people than the federal.

National (federal) level: Congress – President, Administration – Supreme court, Federal courts. State: S.Legislature – Gov – S.Courts. Local (City): City Council – Mayor – Municipal Courts.

The Congress of the us. Supreme legislative body

Congress meets in Washington DCconsists of 2 chambers: the Senate&the House of Representatives. The composition of C reflects the historical background of the Constitution. All states are representated equally in the Senate. 2 senators from each state independent of their territory and population, thus 100 members, each elected for a term of 6 years. The elections are held every 2 years and 1/3 of the S is elected. A Senator must be at least 30 years old, a citizen of the USA for at least 10 years. The S is presided over by Vice President. He doesn’t vote but does cast a desiding vote in the case of a tie. The S is the only body to try all impeachments– accusations of a public officer for treason or misconduct during the term of office.

The House of Representatives has 435 members+3 for Washington DC who are elected every 2 years. They must be at least 25 years old, citizens of the US for at least 7 years. Repressentation is based on population. The country is divided into congressional districts with equal population in each. Each state, no matter how small its population is, has at least 1 representative. In the USA there are on the whole 538 Congressmen (100+435+3). The presiding person of the HR is the speaker.

The work of both houses is largely done in committees. There are 16 permanent committees in the Senate and 20 in the H of Repr. The main function of the committee is to inquire into each bill and to recommend whether the bill should be accepted or not, or to recommend changes to it. Legislation can originate in either the S or the H of Repr., but before any bill is sent to the President for signature, it must be passed by both houses. Besides the main power of Congress of passing laws, there are some more powers: approve state budget, set federal taxes, approve presidential appointments, overrule presidential vetos, declare war, impeach the president.