V. Add question tags to the following statements and give short answers

1. At that time, Nepal was transformed from an absolute monarchy into a multiparty democracy.

2. At the beginning of February, his organization, formerly a government department, was turned into a nominally independent company.

3. Congress is divided into two houses: the House of Representatives and the Senate.

4. He was appointed commissioner in 1975 and was quickly identified with the tough law and order stand of the coalition government.

5. He was indirectly implicated, since he oversees the state government.

6. Like the national gov­ernment, state governments are divided into legislative, ex­ecutive, and judicial branches.

7. Most substantially, Rockefeller is attacked as an apostle of big government.

8. The Republicans were elected by campaigning against big government and high taxes.

9. The sixty-two year-old deputy prime minister was asked to form a government after cabinet ministers quit.

10. They were also expected to meet in Sarajevo with officials from international lending institutions and local government officials.

VI. Put the verbs in the correct tense form

1. According to some past and current government officials the program (to intend) for defensive purposes only.

2. All that (to suppose) to end with the new democratic government of 1994.

3. Almost all of these (to own) by government water departments.

4. Local and national governments (to force) to renege on their own laws.

5. No general grants (to pay), either by central or by local government.

6. Royal assent (to give) to the Bill in August.

7. The raising of taxes or the dispensing of laws without the assent of Parliament (to declare) to be illegal.

8. These grants (to affect) later by cuts in government expenditure.

9. Welfare benefits, local and central government (to affect).

VII. Refer the following statements to the past and to the future if possible

1. Compensation is made of a base salary and a bonus.

2. Estimates based on wage differentials are also reported in a study by Robert.

3. Graduated pension is increased in the same way as the basic pension.

4. Haines is unable to pay and is consigned to a debtors' prison.

5. He is allowed to take for himself an annual salary out of those revenues.

6. The experiment is regarded as the embodiment of that method.

7. The incoming Conservative government is determined to reduce this bill.

8. They are treated like other manual workers and be paid monthly salaries.

9. They have been offered jobs on lower grades and salaries or short contracts.

10. When this new creation is shown to a human, it might then extend his ideas.

VIII. Make up sentences from the words given below

1. business; by; consulted; government; minister; Monarch; on; prime; the; the; was.

2. are; entitled; four; groups; House; in; Lords; of; of; people; sit; the; to.

3. all; appointed; are; bishops; by; formally; monarch; the.

4. a; by; group; minister; ministers; of; picked; Prime; special; the; was.

5. all; are; by; Cabinet; decisions; Government; made; major; of; the; the.

6. about; by; decisions; foreign; Government; important; made; policy; the; were.

7. all; approved; by; decisions; Government; of; Parliament; the; the; were.

8. and; are; by; civil; departments; ministries; run; servants.

9. after; an; be; changed; election; Government; the; will.

10. after; be; civil; elections; employed; same; servants; the; the; will.

UNIT 9

THE SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT IN THE UNITED STATES

BEFORE YOU READ

Answer these questions

1. What do we mean when we say that the United States is an indirect democracy?

2. Do you agree that the United States has a federalist system? Why?

READING TASKS

A. Understanding main points

Read the text below about indirect democracy and answer the questions, beginning your answers with the fol­lowing phrases: as a rule …; to tell the truth …; as far as I know …; the matter is that …; as far as I remember …; as far as I am concerned …; frankly/strictly speak­ing …; to make a long story short … .

1. What document establishes the country's political system and is the basis for its laws? When was it written?

2. Does the Constitution work as well today as when it was written? Why do you think so?

3. What powers does the Consti­tution of the USA give to the US citizens?

4. Among what branches is power divided within the US national government?

5. Who is the head of the executive branch and the country? What term can he be elected for?

6. What power does the president have? What is he responsible for under the Constitution?

7. Who are the major departments of the government headed by? What responsibilities do they have?

8. Who is the legislative branch made up of? What does it consist of?

9. How many members do the House of Representatives and the Senate comprise? Who do they represent?

10. What are the functions of the judicial branch?

11. How many political parties does the USA have? What are they? When were they formed?

12. What is the difference between the Republican and Democratic parties?

B. Understanding details

Mark the statements T (true) or F (false) according to the information in the text. Give your reason using the fol­lowing phrases: as a matter of fact ...; I don't think so …; I'm of the same opinion …; in my opinion …; on the contrary …; strictly speaking ...; to my mind ... .

1. The Constitution of the United States doesn’t work as well today as it did when it was written.

2. The United States Con­stitution can’t be amended, or changed.

3. Within the national government, power is divided among two branches: the legislative and executive branches.

4. The President, the head of the legislative branch and the country, is elected for a five year term.

5. The ex­ecutive branch consists of departments and agencies.

6. Congress is divided into two houses: the House of Representatives and the House of Commons.

7. The President has to be from the party that has a majority in Congress.

8. Like the national gov­ernment, state governments are divided into legislative, and ex­ecutive branches.

9. In recent years voters have tended to choose Democratic presidents and Republican congress people.

10. The Democrats tend to be more conservative and to have more support among the upper classes.

11. The Republicans tend to be more liberal and to have more support among the working classes and the poor.