Exercises. 1. Find English equivalents in the text

1. Find English equivalents in the text.

1. писать законы

2. облагать налогами

3. объявлять войну

4. иметь право на что-то

5. налоговый законопроект

6. ратифицировать соглашение

7. наложить вето на законопроект

8. отклонить вето

9. члены палаты, не имеющие право голоса

10. направлять дело в Палату Представителей

2. Fill in the gaps with prepositions where necessary

1. A bill should be passed ___ a two-third majority in each chamber __ order to override the president’s veto.

2. Unfortunately my friends do not approve ____ my new hobby.

3. The committee unanimously approved ___ the plan.

4. Everyone is entitled ___ their own opinion.

5. The US Congress is composed ___ 2 chambers.

3. Answer the questions

1. What are the powers of the House of Representatives?

2. How are the house members elected?

3. How are Senators elected?

4. What are the powers of the Senate?

5. How can the President’s veto be overridden?

Text 3: “The Executive Branch in the USA”

Task 1: read and translate the text

The power of the Executive Branch is vested in the President of the United States, who also acts as head of the state and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. The President is responsible for implementing and enforcing the laws written by Congress. The Vice President is also part of the Executive Branch, ready to assume the Presidency if the president is unable to perform his duties. The Vice President is elected along with the President by the Electoral College — each elector casts one vote for President and another for Vice President. ‘Administration’ is a popular term to identify the executive branch in the USA, responsible for administering and executing the laws.

In addition to the President and the Vice-president, the executive branch consists of departments and agencies. The President is assisted by the Cabinet. The Cabinet is an advisory body made up of the heads of the 15 executive departments. Appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, the members of the Cabinet are often the President's closest confidants. Cabinet secretaries (heads of the departments) correspond to European ministers.

Among the most important departments one should mention the Department of State responsible for American foreign policy, the Department of Defense or the Pentagon, the Department of Justice, the Department of Commerce. The State Department ranks ahead of other Departments in prestige and seniority. The political power of the Secretary of State is second only to that of the President.