Course Project: First Half Due (week #3)

State and Federal Judicial System

As you learned in Week 2, according to Article III of the U.S. Constitution, Congress has given the U.S. federal courts and the Supreme Court more judicial powers than the lower courts. In the fifty states and territories of the United States, there are a number of state judicial systems in place with different courts and leaders. Each state's judicial system is governed by its own state constitution. The majority of states have a state Supreme Court. Let's take a look at a few of the different state judicial systems.

Next, let's learn about the interrelationship between federal and state courts, referred to as judicial federalism, which indicates a hierarchical structure of the judiciary.

The federal court system has precedence over the states and the states are required to follow the decisions set by the upper courts, especially the rulings of the Supreme Court. Therefore, the federal statutes that come down from the Supreme Court are to be followed by the state Supreme Courts. This precedence, which is set by the many rulings over the years, is intended to uphold the U.S. Constitution and the liberties that it protects.

While the U.S. courts below the Supreme Court have precedence over the rulings of the individual states, there is also an informal structure in place to ensure the rights of the states, so long as the U.S. Constitution is upheld. For instance, the federal Supreme Court will only hear state cases if there have been questions raised early on in the proceedings about the constitutionality of the case. The federal Supreme Court will also hear state cases if the parties have followed the rules of the state court system.

Let's learn more about the relationship between federal and state courts and how they interact with each other.

Bureaucracy and the Political Process

Many times, you may have heard the statement "It is all bureaucratic or political." To some, bureaucracy may mean that the majority of people may not be heard and that those in power are making decisions without the input of the constituents. It is important to think about how a term such as "bureaucracy" has evolved over time and how it has been interpreted and applied through the decades. In this lecture, we will discuss the term "bureaucracy" in the context of government organizations that implement public policy, usually staffed with officials selected on the basis of experience and expertise.

Bureaucracy exists in many more social areas than the political structure of the U.S. government. Once bills are passed as law, the next step is to implement them. This can be a complex process. Some of the bills passed into law do not have a set structure for implementation and are open for interpretation by those in an administrative capacity. The federal government is involved in this process and the political outlook and perceptions of the time are determined by the work of the implementation agencies.

The federal government consists of over 2.7 million civilian employees, with fifteen cabinet departments and sixty agencies that function on an independent level. The executive branch is also a major part of the bureaucracy. Let's learn about the organization of the federal government.

Bureaucracy

In 1883, the Pendleton Act sought to establish the first government civil service commission. Its goal was to select people for federal government positions based on their merits, including education and experience. In these early years, there were very few federal employees..

Over the years, this number grew exponentially. Today, over 60 percent of the government bureaucracy is part of the president's cabinet. As a result of many years of laws and regulations, once people become federal employees, it becomes very difficult to remove them from their positions based on merit and effectiveness. Agency "culture" continues to exist and grow in governments today, which is dependent upon many factors that influence the way "things get done" or the political process. Some argue that it is very difficult to break or change such cultures. Moreover, partisanship versus competence has been discussed as yet another issue important for the success or failure of a government and its multitude of agencies.

There are also some judiciary constraints on the bureaucratic and political processes. The federal courts have the constitutional power to review decisions made by the federal government. Before an agency sets a regulation, the judicial branch has the ability to issue an injunction. This typically occurs only when the regulation has been shown to be in violation of the congressional law or in cases when they go beyond their authority for which the Constitution has provided.

History of U.S. Political Parties

In the United States, there are two major parties, the Republican Party and the Democratic Party. The electorate typically views the Republican Party as the conservative base and the Democratic Party as the liberal base. While there is great variation among the actual members for the most part support their leaders and their agendas. Other political parties in the United States include the Green Party, Independent Party, Libertarian Party, and others.

The history of the American political parties is complex and many changes occurred within the political parties even before the Constitution was ratified. In fact, it was the interactions and debates of the political parties at the time that helped shape the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. During the early days of the young nation, the political parties were thought to have the rights of the people as their main focus for governing. Political parties exist to win elections based on their parties' platform. Interest groups serve to change the political agenda as they lobby for their own interests. We will discuss the power of interest groups later in Week 4.

Surprisingly, the U.S. Constitution does not mention any political parties. However, the founders of the Constitution were very concerned about the centralization and abuse of power once the United States was on its own as a new independent union of states. Even more so, recalling our discussion on the Bill of Rights, the founding fathers wanted to be sure that the people of the United States remained represented by the government and that the country would not return to the repression from Great Britain. Let's learn how the political parties of the United States changed over time.

The U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights

The U.S. Constitution is divided into seven separate articles, which are numbered using the Roman numerals I–VII. Each article has sections that define and clarify the article. The Constitution is approximately 4300 words in length. Each article outlines a basic function of government. Let's learn what these articles state.

When the U.S. Constitution was finalized, it was signed and sent to the states for ratification. The ratification process required 9 of the 13 states to agree to ratification before the U.S. Constitution was official. As a compromise with the antifederalists, the Bill of Right was conceived to allay their fears and to buy support for the ratification. After lengthy discussions among the states, in 1789, the Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution as the first ten amendments, which aimed at protecting the rights of the citizens of the newly formed United States of America. Today we cannot imagine the Constitution without the Bill of Rights. However, the original Constitution did not have the Bill of Rights until it was amended. Let's learn about the Bill of Rights.

The last amendment (Twenty-Seventh Amendment, limiting congressional pay increases) to the U.S. Constitution was ratified in 1992. Ratification occurs after three-fourths of the states vote for the amendment.

Congressional Outputs and Committee Work

Both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate has many committees and subcommittees. It is often stated that the real work of Congress is done in committee. This is where bills are initially assigned, debated, and amended. A bill can remain in committee and never emerge. Passing through a committee is a rite of passage for bills that become law. The main responsibilities of these committees are related to legislation, but there are other committees that have other outputs. Let's learn about the different types of congressional committees.

Legislation that reaches the U.S. House or the U.S. Senate is referred to a committee, depending on congressional law and procedures. It can go to the standing committee or a subcommittee, where the initial work is done on the legislation. After the hearings are complete, the bill undergoes a markup (or changes that have occurred to the bill as a result of the work of the subcommittee). If the bill is accepted by the subcommittee, it goes to the standing committee for a vote or further hearings. If ultimately passed by both houses of Congress the bill must be reconciled between the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate so that both legislative bodies pass exactly the same bill.

The U.S. Court System

The judicial branch of the U.S. government was created by Article III of the U.S. Constitution. At the time of the signing of the Constitution, there was no federal court system and the states had control over the loosely interpreted rule of law. The shaping of the judiciary was left to Congress, which decided the number of justices to serve on the Supreme Court. Congress was also granted the power to set up courts that were inferior to the Supreme Court. Since then, the results of the multitude of court cases have shaped the precedent for future rulings of the U.S. judiciary system.

The federal court system is referred to as the keeper of the Constitution because it serves to protect the rights and liberties that the Constitution intends to protect. Congress has established all federal courts with the exception of the Supreme Court. These courts include the court of claims, the court of international trade, and bankruptcy courts. At present, there are ninety-four U.S. district courts and thirteen U.S. courts of appeals. Let's learn about district courts and courts of appeals in detail.

Each state has its own constitution and court system. Most states have a state supreme court or an intermediate court of appeals. There also may be lower state trial courts that may be referred to as circuit or district courts.

With regard to the U.S. constitutional system of checks and balances, the judicial branch interprets the laws set by Congress and signed and approved as laws by the White House. Once a judge has been appointed by the executive branch and approved by the Senate, they cannot be removed except in cases involving misconduct. The judicial branch may also overturn the actions of the executive or legislative branch through judicial review.

Key Judicial Leaders and Personnel

With regard to the day-to-day operations of the judicial system, the rulings are the responsibility of each individual court. Court administration is an important part of the judicial system and a more localized power of the courts. Let's learn about some key individuals and personnel who are part of the judicial system.

The judicial branch has the power, as provided by the Constitution, to set and execute its own budget. The initial budget is prepared by the Administrative Office of the United States Courts with inputs from the various courts and the Judicial Conference committees. The final budget is set by the Judicial Conference and sent to Congress for approval. This gives Congress an important power over the courts. The appropriations committee acts on the budget, and after changes are made and the budget is accepted, the Judicial Conference decides how the funds will be allocated to the various programs, courts, and operating units. This gives the Judicial Conference power over how funds are used for implementation in the judicial system. This divides power over the administration of the judicial system between the Congress and the Administrative Office of the United States Courts and the Judicial Conference.

The Role of the Supreme Court

The Constitution establishes The Supreme Court as the highest court in the land. It first met on February 2, 1790, with their initial goal to set the procedure of the Court, and they did not hand down their first ruling until 1792.

There are currently nine justices, one chief justice and eight associates, in the Supreme Court. Congress sets the number of justices, with the last change to the number made in 1869. When filling a vacancy, the executive branch has the power to nominate the judge of its choice, who must then be confirmed by the Senate. A chief justice holds the office for life, unless he or she retires or is charged with misconduct and removed by impeachment.

The Supreme Court does not typically conduct trial cases; instead, it hears cases brought to it through the appeals process through certiorari. Certiorari means that at least four of the justices feel that the case has sufficient merit to be heard. There are typically over 7,500 writs of certiorari filed each year, with only approximately 150 reaching the Supreme Court. Many of these are disposed of without even getting plenary review. Of these 150, less than 100 actually result in formal written opinions.

The Supreme Court hears fewer cases than other federal or state courts and serves mainly as an appellate court, especially for those cases that, based on a precedent, will most likely result in important interpretations of the Constitution.

As discussed earlier, the Constitution formed the three branches of the government to balance the power so that no branch would have more power than the other. This was done to protect the rights of the citizens of the United States. Let's take a look at the system of checks and balances of each branch of the government.