英美文化基础教程lecture 9

单击此处编辑母版标题样式,单击此处编辑母版文本样式,第二级,第三级,第四级,第五级,*,Lecture 9British and American Government,Part I American Government,Two governments,P287,Government of the Uniondeal with foreign affairs and matters of general concerns to all the states,Government of the state-deal with things which concern day-to-day life,General Principles,P287,Federalism(,联邦制,),Separation of powers,（三权分立）,Respect for Constitution and law,The Constitution of the United States,First written on September 17, 1787,People have been adding more ever since,A list of laws that the U.S. and its people must follow.,So far27 Laws called “Amendments”,Organizes the government,Creates the three branches of the national government: a legislature, the bicameral Congress; an executive branch led by the President; and a judicial branch headed by the Supreme Court. The Constitution specifies the powers and duties of each branch.,The Constitution of the United States,Tells the states,how they will work together and what rights they have,Tells the people,what rights they have,The supreme law of the United States of America and the oldest written constitution still in use by any nation in the world,Famous Sentence,“We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”,The Bill of Rights,1. Freedom of speech, press, assembly, religion & petition,2. Right to keep and bear arms (guns),3. Protections from quartering of soldiers during peace time,4. Right of search & seizure regulated,5. Due process, double jeopardy, testifying against self, protection of private property,6. Right to a speedy trial, witnesses, etc,7. Right to a trial by jury,8. Excessive bail, cruel punishment prohibited,9. Bill does not deny other rights,10.Rights of states under the constitution.,Federal Government,Three elements:,ExecutivePresident (,行政部门,),LegislatureCongress,（立法部门）,Judicialthe Supreme Court,（司法部门）,“Check and Balance”,Congress,The,President,The,Supreme Court,The President,The Supreme Court,Congress,Supreme Court can,declare,unconstitutional,a presidential,decree,President has the right of veto,Congress can impeach the president,Nominated by the president,Must be approved by the Senate,Congress make all laws,First Branch: Legislative Branch,Two parts,Senate,参议院,House of Representatives,众议院,How are these people elected?,Voted directly by the people,Where do they come from?,From each of the 50 states,Where do they live and work?,Work for their state,Live and do most of their work in Washington, D.C.,Where do they work? Capitol Building,Information about the people,Senate,Two from each state.,6 year terms,Must be at least 30 years old,Must be a U.S. citizen for 9 years,House,of Representatives,Based on state population,2 year terms,Must be at least 25 years old,Must be a U.S. citizen for 7 years,What is the job of the Legislative Branch?,Primary duty is to write, debate & pass bills, which if signed by the president become laws,Controls federal taxing & spending, the greatest source of power in government,Other powers: coining money, maintaining a military, declaring war on other countries, regulating interstate and foreign commerce,House of Representatives Information,There are 435 members,They serve 2 year terms,Speaker of the House:,John Boehner,How much money do they make a year?,$165,000 Dollars,In RMB, how much?,1,115,000 Yuan,John,Boehner:Speaker,of the United States House of Representatives,2011.1.5present,Picture of the House at Work,Senate Information,100 members,2 from each state,They serve 6 year terms,The Vice-President of America is the President of the Senate,Joseph Biden,His power?,If there is a tie in a vote, he has the tie-breaker,Joe Biden,2009present,Picture of the Senate at Work,Make it a little simpler!,Second Branch: Executive Branch,President,Leader of the country and Commander in Chief of the military.,Vice-President,President of the Senate and becomes President if the President is unable to serve.,Impeached (fired!),Dies,The Cabinet,Presidents closest and most trusted advisors,The President,Must be at least 35 years old and a natural-born US citizen,Cannot be born in another country,He must have lived in the U.S. for at least 14 years.,He is elected for four years and can be re-elected for a second 4 year term.,No more than 8 years total,Who is Americas current President?,Of course: Barack Obama!,What are the Presidents duties?,Head of the Executive Branch,Most powerful person in America,Approves or vetoes bills Congress creates,Head of State,Meets with leaders of foreign countries,Head of the military,Can authorize the use of troops overseas without declaring war,What about the Vice-President and the Cabinet?,Purpose is to advise the President,They are the Presidents closest and most trusted advisors,Includes the Vice President and the heads of the 15 executive departments,They meet at least once a week.,Where does the President live and do most of his work?,Third Branch: Judicial Branch,Made up of 9 people called Justices,1 Chief and 8 Associates,The president nominates them and the Senate must confirm the appointment.,They are appointed for life unless they choose to retire or are impeached.,The justices choose the cases they will hear.,Their decision is final, unless the Legislative or Executive branches disagree,Checks and Balances!,Who are they?,John G.,Roberts:The,Chief Justice,2005present,Where do they work?U.S. Supreme Court Building,Make it easier to understand!,Voting and Elections,Presidential Elections,Held every 4 years,They vote on the 1,st,Tuesday of November,Who can vote?,Must be 18 years old,Must be registered in your home state,Voting license,Presidential Election 2008Obama vs. McCain,Information about the Election,Tuesday November 4,th, 2008,Americans voted this day,Who won?,Obama of course!,How did he win?,69,456,897 voted for Obama (52.9%),59,934,814 voted for McCain (45.7%),Most important part though:,365 electoral voted for Obama,173 electoral voted for McCain,Electoral Votes,In Americas voting system, they do not directly vote for the President. They vote for electors, who then pick the President.,Each state has a different number of electors. The more people your state has, the more electors you will have.,There are 538 electors total, so you need to get 270 electors to win.,How many electors does each state have? Which one has the most?,How did Obama win?,Two parties,the Republican Party,and,the Democratic Party, have dominated American politics since the American Civil War, although other parties have also existed.,The two parties in America,the decisive battle between donkey and elephant,*,Part II British Government,Britain is both a parliamentary democracy,and a constitutional monarchy.,P81, Parliamentary democracy - it is a country whose government is controlled by a parliament which has been elected by the people., Constitutional monarchy - it is a country governed by a king or queen who accepts the advice of a parliament.,Components,The Monarchy,Parliament- House of Lords,- House of Commons,The Constitution,The Prime Minister,Cabinet of Ministers,Basic Structure of Government,Monarch,(Sovereign),Legislature,Judiciary,Parliament,House of Lords,Executive,Prime Minister,MPs,Civil Service,House of Lords,House of Commons,The Monarchy P68,Oldest institution of government, Dates back to 5 A.D. with the Saxons; Ancient doctrine, “divine right of kings”,Britain has had a hereditary,世袭的,king or queen for over 1000 yrs.,Except in 17,th,century civil war between “Roundheads” and royalists,（,Oliver Cromwell,；,Charles I,）,The modern Monarchy,p68,Current Opinions about the Monarchy,1988 poll: Queens most important job:,Represent U.K. at home and abroad,Set standards of good citizenship and family life,Current Opinions about the Monarchy,Peoples dissatisfaction with Queens childrens behavior,Wealth of the royals,Issues regarding use of tax-payers money to finance royals lifestyles (e.g. palaces, yacht, train, plane),*Only a protestant can be crowned,Windsor castle & Buckingham Palace,The Royal Family,prince Charles & princess Diana,prince Charles &,Camilla,The Royal Family,Prince William & Kate,The Royal Family,Prince Harry & Chelsea,Prince Andrew,Parliament,Parliament is the legislative body.,Parliament is composed of 3 elements:,1. The monarch,2. The House of Lords (Upper House),3. The House of Commons (lower House),Main Function of Parliament,to make laws;,to control and criticize the executive government;,to control the raising and the spending of money;,to debate the major issues of the day.,The House of Lords,The House of Lords consists of the Lords Spiritual,上议院神职议员,and the Lords Temporal,上议院世俗议员,.,The Lords Spiritual includes the Archbishops (2) and most of the prominent bishops (24) of the church of England.,The Lords Temporal includes the Lords who inherit the seats from their forefathers,（世袭议员）,and the life peers who are appointed by the Monarch at the suggestion of the Prime Minister,（终身议员）,.,The House of Lords,The House of Commons,The House of Commons is elected universal adult suffrage,选民,and consists of 651 members of parliament (MPs) represent the people in all of the area.,524 are for England, 72 for Scotland, 38 for Wales, and 17 for Northern Ireland.,The General Election (GE) must be held every 5 years.,The House of Commons,The Constitution,P72,The set of rules that decree how its government is to be organized.,What is the difference between the Constitution in America and in Britain?,In Britain, there is no written constitution .,1)statute law (Acts of Parliament passed before):,成文法,Great Charter, Bill of Rights, etc.,2)common law:,习惯法,/,公共法,Bills,法案,passed by courts, but not derived from Acts of Parliament,3)conventions,：惯例,rules which are not written down “in the book” but which everyone agrees must be followed in practice,Prime Minister, Cabinet, Ministers,Prime Minister is always appointed by the King/Queen. Usually, he is the leader of the party which wins the most seats of the House of Commons in the General Election.,Minister are chosen by the Prime Minister and appointed by the Monarch.,The most Senior Minister (around 20) compose the Cabinet.,The functions of the Cabinet,The Cabinet carries out the functions of policy-making, the coordination of government departments and the supreme control of government.,Political Parties & Leaders,3 major parties are:,The Labor Party,工党,formed in late 17th century, current party leader is Gordon Brown, the present Prime Minister, since 2007,The Conservative Party,保守党,formed in late 17th century, current party leader is,David Cameron, the,Leader of the Opposition, since 2005,The Liberal Democrats,自由民主党,formed in 1988, the current party leader is,Nick Clegg, since 2007,elections,the monarchy is hereditary,A General Election must take place at least every five years, held in every constituency (635) to decide which individuals shall represent them in the House of Commons.,Then the,leader of the majority party,with the largest number of members in the Commons is invited by the Queen to form a Government,执政党, and he is called the,prime minister,.,The party with,the second largest number of supporters,in the Commons becomes the official,Opposition,在野党，反对党,to the Government.,The rule of Opposition is to help the formulation of policy, criticize the Government and debate with the Government,影子内阁,.,Gordon Brown,(,戈登,布朗,),David Cameron,(戴维卡梅伦),2009,年,6,月，戈登,布朗领导的工党政府的支持率持续下跌，卡梅隆曾呼吁举行临时大选。,2010,年,4,月,6,日，英国宣布解散议会，大选于,5,月,6,日举行。在经济危机和政治丑闻的双重背景下，这次大选被认为是自,1992,年以来，英国最激烈的一场选举。结果虽然保守党获胜，但未能取得过半数议席。由于执政工党未能成功与自由民主党合组联合政府，,2010,年,5,月,11,日伦敦时间晚上,7,时，戈登,布朗向英女王辞职，并举荐作为反对党领袖的戴维,卡梅伦筹组新政府。在觐见女王后，戴维,卡梅伦接任英国首相，并于,7,时,45,分于唐宁街,10,号门外召开记者会。,权力下放,除了位于,伦敦,的英国上议院外，现在,苏格兰,、,威尔斯,和,北爱尔兰,都拥有自己的,议会,，这些议会中的部分议院是按照,比例代表制,选举产生的。虽然这些二级政府拥有部分立法等方面的权限，他们的权力还是无法足够大到能与英国议会抗衡。三个地方议会之间的权限大小也各不相同。例如，苏格兰议会拥有,立法权,，而威尔斯议会政府则只能决定具体如何使用由中央政府分配给威尔斯的,预算,。此外，这些议会的存在不受,宪法,保障，它们的具体权责范围也可由英国议会决定增大或缩小。因此，英国被认为是一个权力下放的,单一制,国家。这与,联邦制,国家是不同的。在联邦制国家中，地方议会的地位得到宪法承认，其权限范围和职责都有明确保障，中央议会无权随意剥夺这些权力。英国政府目前的政策是继续下放中央权力。在未来的几年中，英格兰部分地区的民众将举行,全民公决,，以决定是否由民主选举产生地方政府领导人,。,The same:,both have a parliament,The difference:,1. Perhaps the most fundamental difference is,the constitution - or the lack of one,. The United States has a written constitution which is very difficult to change. The UK does not have a single document called the constitution but instead its constitutional provisions are scattered over various Acts of Parliament, any of which can be changed by a simple majority in the Parliament.,contrast between the American and British political system,2.Britain is a constitutional monarchy, the United States is The Democratic Republic Britains head of state is King, there is no real power; President of the United States is the highest executive power and military power.,2. In the United States, the Democratic and Republican Parties absolutely dominate federal and state elections with independents securing only small proportions of the vote. In the United Kingdom, the two main political parties - Conservative and Labour - win a smaller and declining share of the total vote, with a growing share being taken by the likes of the Liberal Party and the UK Independence Party at national level and by the likes of the Scottish and Welsh Nationalist Parties at the devolved level.,Thanks and any questions!,Thanks for your appreciation!,