The United States
Constitution is the supreme
law of the land. It provides
the framework for our
nation’s government.

The parts of the Constitution are the
Preamble(introduction and goals), 7
Articles(divisions), and 27
amendments(changes).

The first three Articles of the Constitution
structure the three branches of government.
The legislative, executive, and judicial.

Article One structures the legislative
branch or Congress. It consists of the
Senate(Upper House) and House of
Representatives(Lower House).

The Senate has two members from
each state(100 total). Senators serve
for 6 years and the leader of the
Senate is the Vice President. The V.
P. may vote only in the event of a tie
vote.

The qualifications of a Senator are:
at least 30 years of age
U. S. citizen for 9 years
resident of the state represented

In addition to making laws, the Senate
conducts impeachment trials, approves
treaties, and approves presidential
appointments.

The House of Representatives has 435
members. Representation is based on state
population. Members serve for 2 years and
the leader is called the Speaker of the House.

The qualifications of a member of the House are:
at least 25 years of age
U. S. citizen for 7 years
resident of state represented

In addition to making laws, the
House impeaches high federal
officials and all financial bills must
start in the House.

Article Two structures the executive
branch. The President and the 15
departments of the federal government
comprise this branch.

The President’s term of office is 4
years. He may be re-elected once and
serve a maximum of 10 years.

The qualification for President/Vice President are:
at least 35 years old
U. S. natural born citizen
a resident of the U. S. for 14 years

The major powers of the President are:
Sign (approve) bills passed by Congress into law
Veto (reject) bills
Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces
Conduct foreign policy and sign treaties with
approval of Senate
Make appointments to government positions
(Cabinet members, Supreme Court Justices,
Ambassadors) with approval of Senate

Article Three structures the judicial branch of
government. The judicial branch is made up of
the Supreme Court and other federal courts.

There are nine Supreme Court justices.
They are appointed by the President and
approved by the Senate. They serve for life
and are led by the Chief Justice.

The Supreme Court has the power of judicial
review—deciding if a law is constitutional.
Other major powers are:
deciding cases on appeal
deciding disputes between states
deciding cases involving diplomats