Ignore this page please.

Pablo has come to the U.S. seeking escape from the Mexican cartel, and he wants to become a citizen. He is touring the white house and the government to learn about our government and country.

Hello Mr. President! Yes, I am!

Hello Pablo! Are you ready to learn about federalism?

Mr. President: "We have a federal government in the U.S. This means we have a dual system of government with power separated between a national and state level."

Pablo: "So kind of like Mexico?"

Mr. President: "Yes! Here we have the house of representatives who vote on bills. Bills are proposed laws. Each state gets a certain number of representatives based on their population. We also have the senate which gets 2 representatives per state. The senate votes on laws like the house, but they can also confirm the president and treaties. Once a law is passed, the president must sign off on it. He can also veto it. A veto is when the president says no and overrides the law."

What is this place?

This is the supreme court. They are the supreme law of the land

Pablo: "Mr. President, why do we need a supreme court?"

Mr. President: "Great question Pablo! Often times court cases can create disputes that cannot be settled in a regular court room, so the supreme court steps in to make a decision. Often times the court is decided whether or not a law or process is unconstitutional." 

Pablo: "So what makes a law unconstitutional?"

Mr. President: "Well, when a law or process violates our constitution and lower-level courts refuse to acknowledge it, the supreme court well step in and overturn the ruling or law to make it just according to the constitution. This process is called judicial review."

Where are we at?

We are at the capital, where we are going to learn about the constitution

The first three articles of the constitution outline how our federal government works.

Article 1 - This article sets up the legislative branch. There is the senate, and there is the house of representatives. These are the law makers.

Article 2 - This sets up the executive branch. The executive branch is in charge of enforcing laws. This contains the president, vice president, and the cabinet members.

Article 3 - This article sets up the judicial branch. This is the court system. The highest court is the United States Supreme Court, and they have the duty of deciding whether legislation is constitutional and establishing precedent based on cases brought to them.

You can buy a gun, it's your right!

What are we doing here?

Mr. President: "Here in the United States, we have the bill of rights. This is a clause of the first 10 amendments in the constitution."

Pablo: "That's great! What rights do these include?"

Mr. President: "Well I can tell you the first five here, and then we are going to head to a courtroom to learn the rest."

1st: Freedom of speech, religion, petition, protest, and news.

2nd: Freedom to own firearms and a well-regulated militia. 

3rd: Soldiers cannot take over houses

4th: People, their houses, and their stuff cannot be searched without a warrant.

5th: Everyone has a right to fair trial by jury and fair compensation for property. 

In the US, we have the right to a speedy, fair, public trial.

6th: When a criminal is being tried, they have a right to a speedy and public trial, by a fair jury.

7th: In non-criminal cases, you also have a right to a jury.

8th: Extreme and unjust punishments are not allowed!

9th: If a something is not outlawed, it is legal! Rights are not limited to the Bill of Rights.

10th: If powers aren't given to the federal government, they are given to the state.