Институт президенства в США

Content

Introduction 3

Constitution USA 3

Nation Grows. Washington Through Jackson. Jefferson 5

Presidents of the United States 7

Thomas Jefferson 8

Jefferson's Reason 8

The “American Creed" and Mankind's Spiritual History 9

Jacksonian Democracy 11

Jonh F. Kennedy 12

Presidents at a Glance 18

Excerpts from Inaugural Addresses of American Presidents 22

The literature 24

Introduction

The US is a federal Union of 50 states each of them has its own

government. The seat of the central (federal) government is Washington,

D.C.

The population of the USA is about 250 million people; most of the

population lives in towns and cities.

The United States is rich in natural and mineral resources. It produces

copper, oil, iron ore and coal. It's a highly developed industrial and

agricultural country. There are many big cities in the USA, such as New

York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and others. The national capital

is Washington, D.C. Its population is about 3.4 million. It was built in

the late eighteenth century as the centre of government. It was named after

George Washington, the first president of USA and general of war.

The USA are the fourth largest country in the World (after Russia,

Canada, and China). It occupies the southern part of North America and

stretches from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean. It also includes Alaska

in the North and Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. The total area of the country

is about nine and half million square kilometers. The USA borders on Canada

in the North and on Mexico in the South. It also has a sea border with

Russia.

The USA is a presidential republic. The legislative branch of the US

Government, or the Congress, represents all of the American states. It

consists of two parts: the House of Representatives and the Senate. Each

state has two senators, who are elected every 6 years. A senator must be at

least 30 years old, a citizen of the US for 9 years and live the state she

or he will represent. A representative must be at least 25 years old, a

citizen for 7 years and live in the state.

USA - the very first state accepted the constitution. It is one of the

first countries which have established democracy by the basic form of

board. In this report we shall tell about the reasons of occurrence of the

constitution and about its influence on development of the state on an

example of president's institute.

Constitution USA

With independence came many problems. The U. S. were joined together

under one government by the Articles of Confederation. The articles listed

the powers of the central government and the powers of the states. There

was a national Congress made up of representatives from each state. But

Congress had almost no power at all. The 13 states acted like 13 separate

little nations. There were many times when states would not cooperate with

the central government. They were too busy quarrelling with each other. The

U. S. was in danger of falling.

In May 1787 a meeting began in Philadelphia to change the Articles of

Confederation. Representatives from all the states except Rhode Island were

present. It was soon decided that whole new constitution had to be written.

A constitution is set of laws by which a country is governed.

This meeting became known as the Constitutional Convention. Washington

was chosen president of the convention. A 81-year-old Benjamin Franklin

took part in its work. A new group of first-rate leaders were at this

meeting. Among these leaders were James Madison and Gouverneur Morris. The

people who attended the convention did their work very well. The

Constitution has lasted to the present.

What kind of government would be the best for the USA?

The delegates all agreed that the new government should continue to be a

republic. This means that the people would elect representatives to manage

their country.

The delegates knew that they wanted a federal government. In such a

government the power is divided between the national and the state

governments. The national government would collect taxes and borrow money.

It would control trade with foreign countries and between states. The

national government would print or coin money. It alone could declare war.

All other powers were left to the states. Matters within a state would be

settled by that state.

The members of the Constitutional Convention wanted a government that

would protect the people's rights, not take them away. So they divided the

government's power into three parts, or branches. This is called separation

of powers.

The legislative branch was the Congress. Its major job was to make laws.

The executive branch was the President and his helpers. It was their job to

carry out the laws the Congress passed. The judicial branch was the courts.

They had to decide the meaning of the laws.

Each branch had some power over the other two. No one branch would be

allowed more power than the others.

A big debate at the convention was over the matter of who would control

Congress. Large states wanted representatives to Congress based on the

number of people in the state. Small states wanted an equal vote with the

larger states. This problem was solved by giving Congress two parts.

Regardless of size each state would send two representatives to the Senate,

one part of Congress. States with more people would send more delegates to

the House of Representatives, the other part of Congress. In order for a

law to be passed, it had to go through both parts of Congress.

The new Constitution included a way to make changes, called amendments.

If things didn't work out, or if the USA grew о changes, the Constitution

could be amended without being entirely changed. This was to prove helpful

very soon.

Nine state governments had to approve the Constitution be fore it could

become the law of the land. Many states refused to do so unless the

Constitution listed people's rights as well as the rights of the

government. They argued that important freedoms must be written down. Once

the states were promised that this would happen, the Constitution would

become law.

James Madison saw to it that these freedoms were written down. Madison

had been very active at the Constitutional Convention. After the Convention

he worked hard to explain the Constitution to the people. Once the new

government was started, Madison wrote many amendments that would make

rights like freedom the press, speech and worship part of the Constitution.

Ten of these amendments were passed by the states. These first ten

amendments to the Constitution are known as the Bill of Rights.

Nation Grows. Washington Through Jackson. Jefferson

April 30, 1789 was Inauguration Day for the young nation's first

President. An inauguration is the ceremony that puts someone office.

Washington did not want to be President. He wanted to live at his beautiful

home Mount Vernon. But he put his love for his country ahead of his own

wishes. Washington traveled from Mount Vernon to New York City. New York

City was the nation's first capital. Washington took the oath of office on

the Bible. He promised to do his best to keep, protect and defend the

Constitution. The Constitution listed the powers and duties of the

President.

The new government was started with a Constitution, a Congress, a

President and little else. Both Washington and the Congress knew that the

new government would have to show its strength very quickly.

The job of President was too big for one person alone. Congress formed

three departments to help Washington. These departments went to work on

three of the biggest problems facing the new nation.

The State Department would work on relations with other nations. The War

Department would build a national navy and army. It is now called the

Department of Defense. The Treasury Department would handle the nation's

money problems.

Washington chose able leaders for each of these departments. Each leader

would be called a secretary. Thomas Jefferson became secretary of state;

Henry Knox, secretary of war and Alexander Hamilton secretary of treasury.

Each of these men advised the President. Final decisions were made by the

President, however.

The group of advisors became known as the Cabinet. Future Presidents

would all have a Cabinet.

The Constitution called for a third branch of government - a Supreme

Court. All questions about the Constitution and federal laws would be

settled by this court. Washington appointed John Jay as head of the Supreme

Court. He was called the Chief Justice.

In 1791 Congress passed a tax law in order to raise money for the new

government. Some people thought they would rather fight than pay these

taxes. Washington formed an army to stop them. He showed future Presidents

how to be a strong leader.

The nation also grew and expanded while Washington was President. The new

states - Vermont, Kentucky and Tennessee - entered the Union.

Washington could have been President for life. But he didn't feel this

was right. He had devoted most of his life to helping his country. Now, he

was 65 years old and had served two terms, or four-year periods as

President. With the exception of Franklin Roosevelt, every President has

followed Washington's two-term tradition. In 1797 Washington retired. He

went back to the life he loved at Mount Vernon.

Не did not enjoy it for long time. On December 12, 1799 he was caught

in a snowstorm while riding around his farm and became sick. Two days later

he died. The second president be-came John Adams. He was a true patriot as

well as a brave and stubborn man. Near the end of Adam's term as President,

the government moved from Philadelphia to Washington, D. C. The most

important of Adam's deeds was that he took responsibility of the peace with

France in 1800.

The third president of the USA was a very remarkable man, Thomas

Jefferson. He was a man of many talents: He was a lawyer. He wrote the

Declaration of Independence. He was the representative of the United States

at the court of the king of France A person who does this kind of work is

called a diplomat. He was the first secretary of state, second vice-

president and third President of the USA. While he was President the size

of the country doubled.

He came from Virginia. He served that state as governor and Congressman.

As an architect he drew the plans for many building in Virginia. At the

same time he was also a fine violinist and composer. He studied Native

American languages. He knew Greek, Latin and Hebrew. He could speak French

and Italian.

His work as scientist and inventor shouldn't be forgotten. He did

practical things such as improving farming methods by in venting a new type

of plow. He experimented with different seeds. He worked much in education.

Jefferson's greatest accomplishment as President was the Louisiana

Purchase. At this time Louisiana included just above all the land from the

Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains. The Mississippi River was a

highway for those Americans who lived west of the Appalachian Mountains.

They took their goods downriver to the port of New Orleans. New Orleans was

not part of the U. S. It belonged to France which had received the city and

the rest of what is called the Louisiana Territory from Spain in 1800.

Americans living in the West were afraid that France would not allow them

to use the port of New Orleans for trade. This was because Napoleon wanted

to start another French empire in America. The Americans were to try to buy

New Orleans from the French for ten million dollars.

Haiti was a French colony in the Caribbean Sea. Napoleon needed a strong

naval base in Haiti if he wanted a French empire in America. But a former

slave Toussaint L'Ouverture led the people of Haiti in successful fight for

freedom at this time. With out Haiti, Louisiana lost some of its appeal for

Napoleon. It also looked as though France would soon be fighting Great

Britain. If so, France would be unable to defend Louisiana. The soldiers

would be needed in Europe. Napoleon decided to sell the entire Louisiana

territory to the USA. It was bought for 15 million dollars. By this act the

USA doubled its size.

Jefferson wanted to know more about Louisiana. He wished to find out

about the Native Americans, the animals, the minerals, the climate and the

type of land. To make such an exploration Jefferson chose Merewether Lewis,

his personal secretary, and William dark, Lewis's close friend. They were

to try to find a route all the way to the Pacific Ocean. They built a fort

and spent the winter on the shores of the Pacific. In the spring they

started the trip home, finally reaching St Louis in September 1806. Their

diary was a document of great importance. Jefferson received an excellent

report of their journey. He learned a great deal about the geography of the

new territory. He learned about the animals, trees and plants there. The

work of Lewis and dark gave the USA a claim to the Oregon Country. In 1846

this area became part of the USA.

Presidents of the United States

Who can be President? Any natural-born citizen of the United States who

is over the age of thirty-five and has lived in the United States for

fourteen years or more.

What does a President do? The President is the chief executive of the

United States. According to the Constitution, he "shall take care that the

laws be faithfully executed." From time to time, he informs Congress in his

State of the Union message what has been done and what needs to be done.

Although he cannot force Congress to act, he can suggest a program for

them to consider. And as leader of his political party, he can often see

that program is carried out, when his party has a majority of seats. He can

also prevent Congress from acting by using the presidential veto.

The President plays the chief part in shaping foreign policy. With the

Senate's approval, he makes treaties with other nations and appoint

ambassadors. But he can also make executive agreements with other nations

without approval of the Senate.

He nominates Cabinet members, Supreme Court justices, and many other high

officials. These nominations must be approved by the Senate However, he can

fill thousands of other important posts under his own power.

The President is Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces and commissions

Страницы: 1, 2, 3, 4