Executive Branch

Being the president of the United States is a big job and one person couldn’t do everything alone. That’s why the president has the U.S. Cabinet, usually just called the Cabinet. The Cabinet is a group of people who advise to the president on many important issues. The president can use their advice to make decisions while leading the country. Because of this, Cabinet members play very important and powerful roles in U.S. government since they can influence the president’s decisions.

Under the first president, George Washington, the Cabinet was very small and it had only four members. Since then, the Cabinet has grown a lot. Today the Cabinet has 15 people, who are referred to as secretaries, such as the Secretary of Energy and the Secretary of Agriculture. The most recent addition to the Cabinet in 2006 is the Secretary of Homeland Security, whose job it is to keep Americans safe. The Constitution does not say how large the Cabinet should be, so Congress can add or remove members as the country’s needs change.

Cabinet members are appointed to their positions. This means that they are first nominated by the president and then they must be confirmed or rejected by the Senate. Almost anyone can become a Cabinet member. The only restriction or limitation is that Cabinet members are not allowed to be Senators, Representatives, or governors simultaneously while they are serving in the Cabinet.

The Cabinet members are in the line of succession (the plan for who will become president if something happens to him or her). After the president come the vice-president, the speaker of the House, and the president of the Senate, and then the secretary of state and other members of the Cabinet, in the order of their ranking.

System of Checks and Balances

The people who created the U.S. government wanted a way to make sure that no one branch of the government becomes too powerful. They built a system of checks and balances, also known as a separation of powers, into the Constitution.

We can find one example of checks and balances in the United States’ process for making laws. Congress, or the legislative branch, is responsible for making and passing laws. But what if Congress writes and passes a law that is unconstitutional (or that doesn’t follow the Constitution), such as a law that says that Americans no longer have freedom of speech? If a law like this were passed, the President as part of the executive branch could veto the law. Another way to stop this law would be for the Supreme Court, part of the judicial branch, to say that it is against the Constitution, using its power of judicial review (or the power to overturn or undo laws passed by Congress).

Another good example of the separation of powers is the process by which a person becomes a Supreme Court justice (or a judge on the Supreme Court, the most powerful court in the U.S.). A prospective Justice is first appointed by the president. Congress must then approve of this appointment by getting a majority vote, which means that more than 50% of Congress must vote “yes” for the prospective judge. After receiving approval from Congress, the justice serves a life term on the Supreme Court. As a Supreme Court judge, he or she can make decisions based on what the Constitution says, without worrying about what Congress or the President think.