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On the Test
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On the GED Social Studies Test, you will be given charts, graphs, cartoons, and passages to analyze in order to answer questions about different areas of social studies.
This lesson will include charts and passages for you to analyze, so you can correctly answer questions about the several different levels of government in the United States.
The Government of the United States
Governments can be classified by the amount of power they have over their citizens.
- A limited government has control over the power of the people in authority and protects the rights of the individual.
- An unlimited government is one in which people do not have effective controls over the power of the people in authority. If people in authority misuse their power, they cannot be easily removed from office.
Governments can also be classified as constitutional or nonconstitutional. Constitutional governments have a written document that tell the citizens of a country what the laws are, what their rights and responsibilities as citizens are, and what powers the leaders of the country do and do not have.
The United States has a limited government with a written constitution. The U. S. Constitution defines the rules by which the government works. The Constitution lists its purposes in the Preamble:
- Establish justice.
- Insure domestic tranquility.
- Provide for the common defense.
- Promote the general welfare.
- Secure the blessings of liberty for the present generation and generations to come.
In modern terms, you could say that the federal government's role is to serve, represent, and protect the American people.
A Federal System of Government
In addition to having limited government and a written constitution, the U.S. Government is a federal system of government. It is divided into three branches: Legislative, Executive, and Judicial. In the chart below, the structure of the federal (national) government is displayed. Click on each button to see the specific function of each part.
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