US Government

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) has nine justices: one Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices. The Judiciary Act of 1789 provided for a 6-member Court, with a Chief Justice and 5 Associate Justices. Congress adjusted the size of the Court a number of times through the during the 19th-century. Judiciary Act of 1789: Court size 6 Judiciary Act of 1801: Court size, 5 Repeal Act of 1802: Court size, 6 Seventh Circuit Act of 1807: Court size, 7 Judiciary Act of 1837:...

The Speaker of the House of Representatives is next in the line of Presidential succession. However, this would require that both offices, President and Vice President, be simultaneously vacant. This is much less likely following the enactment of the 25th Amendment, which provides for a replacement Vice President whenever the position is vacated. According the current Presidential Succession Act (3 USC § 19), the order of succession if both the President and Vice President die, are removed from office, and/or are unable to perform...

Supreme Court justices serve "during good behavior," which means "for life" or until they choose to resign or retire, as long as they don't commit an impeachable offense (bad behavior). The nine Supreme Court justices hold their offices "during good behavior" according to Article III, Section 1, of the US Constitution. This means that they may hold office for life; however they may be involuntarily removed from office by impeachment for and conviction of treason, bribery or other high crimes and misdemeanors, the same...

Chief Justice of the United States is John Glover Roberts, Jr. Former President George W. Bush nominated Roberts as Chief Justice of the United States, to succeed the late Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, who died in office in 2005. Important Note 1: Although most people think this office is Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the official title is Chief Justice of the United States (28 USC § 1). The sixth Chief Justice, Salmon Chase, suggested the title change to emphasize the Supreme...

*At any given time, there may be only 8, or even fewer justices serving on the US Supreme Court. Justices may die in office, or retire. As of early 2016, the serving Justices are: John G. Roberts, Jr., Chief Justice of the United States, was appointed to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 2003. President George W. Bush nominated him as Chief Justice of the United States, after the death of former Chief Justice William...

The Constitution itself, and all federal laws and treaties, are the supreme law of the land. Article 6, Paragraph 2 is referred to as the supremacy clause. The Supremacy Clause of Article VI (6) of the US Constitution declares the Constitution, as well as federal laws and treaties made in accordance with the Constitution are the supreme law of the land. In lay terms, this means that the Constitution, federal laws and treaties can overrule state and local laws. Article VI, Clause 2...

The US Constitution and federal laws and treaties that adhere to the Constitution officially became the "supreme law of the land" in the United States Article VI the document and the laws of the United States which "shall be made in pursuance thereof..." are the "Supreme Law of the Land." The phrase, "shall be made in pursuance thereof" indicates the Constitution is the ultimate authority to which all other laws and treaties must conform. Article VI, Clause 2 (Supremacy Clause) This Constitution, and the laws...

Organizations are encouraged to establish procedures to ensure completion of the examination is an individual effort. Personnel within an organization who feel that test answers are being improperly provided should follow their organization's measures for reporting unethical conduct. If a student is found to have cheated on an exam, the penalty may include--but is not limited to--expulsion; foreclosure from future classes for a specified period; forfeiture of certificate for course/courses enrolled in at NETC or NTC; or all of the above in accordance with...

The President of the United States (Executive branch) nominates US Supreme Court justices and other federal judges. The Senate must approve the nomination by a simple majority vote (51%) in order for the appointment to be made. If the Senate rejects the nomination, the President must choose someone else. This process is mandated by Article II, Section 2 of the US Constitution: "[The President] shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to make treaties, provided two thirds...

The Debate The most commonly debated ideas between the two: Society and Demographics Pointing out the obvious, China's 1.34 billion population far outsizes the 314 million people in the United States (US). However, in terms of total geographical area, China and the US are on par at around 9,700,000 km2. As a result, China has a population density more than 4 times that of the US. The US has a much higher human development index (HDI), which it ranks 4th compared to China which ranks...

As of 2011, the Chief Justice of the United States receives an annual salary of $223,500, and the Associate Justices receive annual salaries of $213,900. To read how much the first Supreme Court justices earned, see Related Questions, below. ...

Judicial review is the power of the courts to review laws, treaties, policies or executive orders relevant to cases before the court and nullify (overturn) those that are found unconstitutional. The Marbury v. Madison decision and provides the Supreme Court with the power to interpret the Constitution. Judicial Review is not an American invention, but a standard part of British common law that became part of the legal process in the United States. The first recorded use under the US Constitution was in 1792,...

The President nominates a candidate for the US Supreme Court; the Senate votes whether to confirm or reject the nomination. If the candidate is confirmed, he or she is appointed to the US Supreme Court. Process The preselected list of candidates is usually recommended by people in the President's political party or by members of legislation (House of Representatives, and Congress), usually it's a combination of both. The President nominates a potential justice. After a candidate has been nominated, the FBI investigates the person's background and...

The Supreme Court uses judicial review to declare actions by the President or Congress to be invalid if they are contrary to the Constitution. The Constitution is the supreme law of the land and no presidential act or congressional laws may conflict with it. The Courts are the interpreters of the laws and as such they interpret the Constitution and laws to decide if they conflict with one another. Further, it allows the Judicial Branch to "define" that law by answering questions about...

The Bill of Rights is in the US Constitution and guarantees rights that are vital to a free and open democratic society. The Bill of Rights specifies such important rights as freedom of speech and the freedom of the press. The idea behind these ten amendments is to make sure the federal government does not become a tyranny. ...

United States v. Nixon, (1974) involved the disposition of taped conversations between President Nixon and various members of the White House staff regarding the Watergate scandal, the administration's criminal conspiracy to obstruct an investigation of the break-in at Democratic campaign headquarters in the Watergate complex, in Washington, D.C. Background On June 17, 1972, five members of the Nixon re-election campaign broke into the Democratic campaign headquarters in the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C., to steal important files relevant to the upcoming election. When the crime was...

Judicial Review The Supreme Court's ability to analyze laws in terms of their constitutionality is called "judicial review." If the Court decides a law is unconstitutional, the law will be nullified. The Supreme Court, under Chief Justice John Marshall, set precedent for this interpretation in their ruling in the case of Marbury v. Madison, 5 US 137 (1803), when the Justices concluded Section 13 of the Judiciary Act of 1789 was unconstitutional because it conferred upon the Supreme Court powers not explicitly provided as...

There is not a Prime Minister in the United States. The head of state and head of government in the United States is the US president. Currently, this is Barack Obama. The executive branch of the US is elected separately from the legislative branch, although they are related by their political parties. It is possible to have a President whose party does not hold a majority in Congress. Americas' Prime Minister Each country in North America and South America has its own political structure,...

According to Article VII, the Constitution was required to be ratified by 9 of the 13 states before it went into effect. All 13 eventually ratified, the last two being North Carolina (1789) and Rhode island (1790). In June 1788, New Hampshire fulfilled the requirement for ratification set forth in Article VII by becoming the ninth state to approve. The Constitution didn't become law until it formally replaced the Articles of Confederation on March 4, 1789, however. ...

Every Country makes mistakes, and yes the United States government has done bad things as well. A 'few' of them are: Political Greed. We must remember that all creatures are greedy, it is only through intelligence that we can attempt to over come greed. The problem is we, each and every one of us, need to use our intelligence to watch out for the leaders that are not over coming greed. To quote, if I may, Buddha-"Believe nothing, no matter where you read...

LEVELS The three levels are: Trial level Appellate level Supreme Court Trial level includes many types of courts, such as the District Court, Bankruptcy Court, Court of Federal Claims and other courts with specialized subject matter jurisdiction. The Appellate level is the US Court of Appeals, to which an appeal of decisions from any trial level court may be taken. The Supreme Court is where appeals from decisions in the Court of Appeals are taken. The decision of the Supreme Court is final. FEDERAL COURTS AT ABOVE LEVELS The...

With what?

Having the appropriate legal authority to hear and determine the issues in the matter. ...

The pre-selected list of candidates is usually recommended by people in the President's political party or by members of legislation (House of Representatives and Congress) - usually it's a combination of both. After a candidate has been selected, the Senate Judiciary Committee conducts hearings (questioning) on the candidate. The hearing is meant to determine whether the candidate is qualified and suitable for the position. After the Committee reviews the nominee, they pass a recommendation to reject or confirm to the Senate floor. The Senate then...

The main official reason was his violation of a tenure in office law which he was charged with breaking when he fired his Secretary of War, Edward Stanton. There were a lot of people in Congress that wanted him out of office and were looking for some reason to get him out. He was unpopular because, like Lincoln , he did not want to punish the defeated southern states, but rather to take them back into the union as seamlessly as possible....