3. Shorten the text above writing out the key sentences from it and try to retell it.

4. Read the text without a dictionary. Try to catch the main idea: the separation of powers in state governments

State governments are similar in structure to each other and to the federal government. Under the principle of the separation of powers, the government of each state has three branches- the legislative, the executive, and the judicial. In the system of checks and balances, each branch has some control over other two branches.

The governor may veto bills from the legislature (the Senate and the house or assembly), in some states, the governor uses a “line-item veto”. This way, he or she does not have to reject an entire law in order to veto parts of it. The governor also appoints judges in the judicial branch. With enough votes in both houses, the legislature can override the governor’s veto.

Like the federal courts, state courts also explain and interpret laws. They can declare state laws unconstitutional (contradictory to the state constitution).

State government includes a system of direct democracy. Through the initiative process, citizens may put proposed laws on the ballot for the people to vote on. They may decide on proposed constitutional amendments or important state issues in a referendum. Through a recall, they can sometimes remove an elected government official from office.

The federal government also has power over state governments. For example, a state constitution or court may not contradict the U.S Constitution, and the U.S. Supreme Court may overrule the decision of a state supreme court. Also, the U.S. President may withhold money from a state if the state refuses to obey federal laws.

Vocabulary:

line-item veto- вето, наложенное на статью закона

to remove- отозвать

to override- перешагивать, переступать

contradictory- противоречивый

to overrule- отменять

to withhold money- удерживать деньги

5. Say if the following statements are true or false (see the text above):

1. All state governments are similar to one another, but they differ in structure from the federal government.

2. The principles of the separation of powers and checks and balances apply to state as well as the federal government.

3. In a “line-item veto”, the governor can reject parts of initiatives, referendums, or recalls.

4. Citizens may propose a law, vote on constitutional amendments, and recall elected officials in the federal system of direct democracy but not in a state system.

5. The U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. President have some direct power over state governments.

Unit III.

1. Major political parties

1. Read and translate the text:

The United States began as a one-party political system. George Washington and many others among the Revolutionary leaders wanted it to stay that way. In 1787, when the Constitution was written, the people were divided over whether to ratify it, although they were not yet organized into definite political parties.

T

Elections

he question is about who should be the new President began to divide people into political organizations. On one hand there were the Federalists, representing business, finance and the middle classes of city folk. On the other hand there were the “Republicans” led by Thomas Jefferson. They represented mainly the country folk from Virginia. Thus by 1800 the one-party Revolutionary government of the United States quickly split up into a two-party system.

The parties chose their own names, Republican and Democratic, but not their party emblems. The cartoonist Thomas Nast invented the Republican elephant and the Democratic donkey in the early 1870s, and they soon became fixed types.

The differences between these two parties are so small that a voter will see no intellectual inconsistency in voting for a Republican President, a Democratic state governor, a Republican Senator and a Democratic member of the House.

How is an individual’s party affiliation determined, or how does a person choose sides in the game of party politics? The first and perhaps the most important determinant is family tradition. Most voters take the party of their parents. Recently there has been an increasing tendency for the well-to-do to vote the Republican Party and for the less fortunate to vote the Democratic Party. National origin plays the role too; descendants of northern Europeans tend to the Republican Party, while those of southern and eastern Europeans prefer the Democratic Party.

The traditional bipartisan system is highly cherished by Big Business, for it creates a sort of illusion that voters are free to choose between the candidates of these two parties, whereas both of them faithfully serve Big Business interests.

Many people say that there is not much difference between the Republican and Democratic Parties. “Liberal” politicians usually favor reforms and progress. “Conservative” politicians usually oppose changes. Both liberal and conservative members belong to the two major political parties, and their ideas are often changed with the times and the issues.