| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Preamble | The introductory paragraph to the Constitution, laying out the 6 things "we the people" expect our government to do |
| Article One | lays out the arrangement, qualifications, and powers of the legislative branch of the federal government |
| Article Two | lays out the qualifications and powers of the executive branch of federal government |
| Article Three | lays out the qualifications and powers of the judicial branch of government |
| Congress | term for the House of Representatives and the Senate together |
| Executive branch | the President, Vice-President, Cabinet members, and all who work under them |
| Judicial branch | the Supreme Court, all federal district courts, courts of Appeals, and those who work under them |
| Qualifications for members of the House of Representatives | 25 years old, 7 years a citizen |
| qualifications for members of the Senate | 30 years old, 9 years a citizen |
| Total number of representatives in the House | 435 |
| Total number of members of the Senate | 100 |
| qualifications for President and Vice-President | 35 years of age, native-born citizen |
| a power of the legislative branch | makes laws |
| a power of the legislative branch | power to impeach |
| a power of the legislative branch | controls the money (power to tax and spend) |
| a power of the legislative branch | power to declare war |
| a power of the executive branch | Commander-in-chief of all armed forces |
| a power of the executive branch | power to veto |
| a power of the executive branch | power to pardon and reprieve |
| a power of the executive branch | power to make treaties with foreign governments |
| a power of the judicial branch | decides the constitutionality of actions of the other branches |
| Article 4 | concerns relations between the states |
| Article 5 | concerns the process for amending the Constitution |
| Article 6 | makes the Constitution and federal law "the supreme law of the land." |
| Amendments 1-10 | the Bill of Rights-- the basic rights of all American citizens |
| Census | a count of the population for purposes of redividing the House of Representatives |
| Census | required by the Consitution to be done every 10 years |
| Veto | the power of the President to block acts of Congress |
| amendment | a change or addition to the Constitution |
| Expressed powers | powers clearly given in writing by the Constitution to one branch or another |
| Denied powers | powers clearly denied the government by the Constitution |
| Treason | the only crime specifically defined in the Constitution |
| Treason | an action of betrayal, or making war on one's own country |
| Treason | a crime that must have two witnesses testify to having actually seen it |
| Power of the purse | who controls the money? |
| Who, in the federal government, has "the power of the purse" | Congress |
| Who impeaches? | the House of Representatives |
| Who tries impeachments? | the Senate |
| Impeachment | to officially charge a government official of "high crimes and misdemeanors" |
| Qualifications for the Supreme Court | no age requirement, may serve for life |
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