Canada is a Constitutional Monarchy with the Queen as the head of state. We are also a representative democracy with the Prime Minister as head of government. Our government is based on the British parliamentary system. The United States is a federal constitutional republic in which the President is head of state and head of government. The President and his executive share national powers with Congress and the Judiciary. The separation of powers is designed to have a system of checks and balances. Like Parliament, the U.S. Congress decides and makes laws that govern America. Congress is made up of an upper chamber, the Senate, and a lower chamber, the House of Representatives. The Senate has 100 members, two from each state, and its main role is to approve legislation suggested by the House of Representatives. Once approved by the Senate, the President must pass any legislation, although Congress can re-pass it with a two thirds majority. Senate terms are six years but there is no limit as to how many terms a person can serve. The lower House is made up of 435 voting members. The number of representatives from each state depends on that state’s population. The House, among other powers, has the sole power to impeach certain officials including the President. The next two years should prove to be very interesting with the Democrats in control of the House and Republicans controlling the Senate. During their partisan battles I hope they remember to somehow govern their country.
That’s Coffeetalk. I’m Vic Dubois.