Pre- reading Task. 1. What do you know about the political system of the US?

1. What do you know about the political system of the US?

2. Give a definition of a federal system.

3. In what way are the indirect elections held?

4. What is the term of servitude in the Senate and House of Representatives?

5. Who can be elected a President of the USA?

The Government is a federal system. Individual states hold sovereignty over their territory and have rights that are not reserved by the federal government. Each state has its own legislature and a directly elected governor. The federal president is indirectly elected. Voters in each state determine by a majority who they would choose as president; they then send delegates to vote according to that choice. The delegates’ votes determine who the president is. The directly elected federal legislature has two houses: the House of Representatives, whose members serve two-year terms; and the Senate, whose members serve six-year terms. There is a separate judicial branch.

The Senate consists of 2 members from each state, elected for 6 years, one-third retiring or re-elected every year, so two senators from the same state never finish their terms at the same time.

The House of Representatives consists of over 400 members elected every second year. They all finish their terms of office at the same time.

The Supreme Court is the highest court in the country. The President appoints its members for life, but his choice must be approved by the Senate.

The executive power is in the hands of a President and his Cabinet. He must be a natural-born citizen, resident in the country for 14 years, and at least 35 years old. He is elected for 4 years, every leap year on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November.

While most Americans are very proud of their country, they may openly criticize the government (or even the president). Freedom of speech is carefully protected by the people and the constitution. Americans value humor and like to laugh at themselves and the country’s weaknesses. Indeed, a good sense of humor is valued. Americans openly share their opinions on a variety of subjects. They ask questions and challenge other people’s opinions. Public criticism is not considered improper, unless it is very personal.