What Is a Government?
A government is a group of adults who make the rules for everyone to live by. It also makes sure those rules are followed and judges any conflicts in the rules. Governments can be local, state, national or international. Some governments have a constitution, which is a statement of the government’s principles and philosophy. Most governments have three branches: legislative, executive and judicial.
The legislative branch of the United States government is Congress, which is made up of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Congress passes laws, sets the federal budget and authorizes borrowing to pay for the nation’s needs. The Executive Branch is headed by the President, who is America’s head of state and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The President is also in charge of making sure the laws passed by Congress are followed. The President heads the Cabinet, a group of people with big responsibilities that manages the day-to-day operations of the government. The Judicial Branch is there to make sure that the way our laws are made and enforced agrees with the Constitution. It is much like a referee in a sports game.
In addition, the United States Government provides a wide variety of services. These include public education, public transportation, healthcare and social services for the elderly and poor. It also pays for national defense, the research and development of new technologies and economic assistance to developing countries. In a democratic system, citizens choose what kinds of government they want by voting for representatives or senators and deciding on the state’s budget. In a republic, citizens elect a President, who serves as the leader of the government.
The founding fathers who designed the United States Government were careful to create a system that would work well. They knew that making any one branch of the government too powerful caused problems. That’s why they created a system of checks and balances that limits the power of any one branch. This system is based on the principle that majorities should be able to decide things but that minorities should have the right to express their opinions. This principle helps ensure that government decisions are based on what most of the people want and not just on who happens to be in the majority. This is why it is important to have competing political parties to give voters choices.