Paul Jones

Mrs. Quinn

G.A.L.R.E.

November 30, 2010

Unit 2 Lesson 11 – Reviewing and Using the Lesson

1. Why did the delegates enumerate the powers of Congress? Why do you think it did not

enumerate the powers of the executive and the judicial branches in the same detail?

The delegates took care to enumerate only those powers absolutely necessary, aware that any

more could lead to improper ends.

2. What issues did the delegates have to decide regarding the organization of the executive branch

of government, and how did they resolve these issues?

The questions they faced were: (1) Should there be more then one chief executive?, (2) How

long should the chief executive remain in office?, and (3) should the executive be eligible for

reelection? The answers were: (1) no, (2) 4 years, and (3) yes.

3. How did the delegates make sure the executive branch would have enough power to fulfill its

responsibilities but not so much power that it could dominate the other branches of

government?

Using a system of checks and balances.

4. What is the Electoral College, and why did the delegates decide to create it?

The Electoral College consists of the popularly elected representatives (electors) who formally

elect the President and Vice President of the United States. The electoral college was finally

settled on as a compromise between those who wanted pure popular vote and those who wanted

state legislatures to choose.

5. The Framers designed the national judiciary with the goal of making it independent of partisan

politics. What constitutional provisions contribute to judicial independence? What

constitutional provisions might threaten that independence?

Separation of powers has again become a current issue of some controversy concerning debates

about judicial independence and political efforts to increase the accountability of judges for the

quality of their work, avoiding conflicts of interest, and charges that some judges allegedly

disregard procedural rules, statutes, and higher court precedents.