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United StatesPolitics

Unit 2: Interactions Among Branches of Government

15 dot points across 15 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

How can Congress, the president, and the states limit the power of the Supreme Court despite the Court's independence?

Topic 2.11 Checks on the Judicial Branch: explain how other branches in the government can limit the Supreme Court's power.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.11: how Congress, the president, and the states check the Supreme Court through appointments, jurisdiction, constitutional amendments, legislation, and non-enforcement, despite judicial independence.
10 min answer →

How do Congress, the courts, and the Constitution check the president, and how do these limits shape presidential conduct and policy?

Topic 2.5 Checks on the Presidency: explain how the president's agenda can create tension and frequent confrontations with Congress.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.5: how Congress, the courts, and the Constitution check the president through the override, power of the purse, confirmation, impeachment, and judicial review, and why the president's agenda clashes with Congress.
11 min answer →

How do the different structures, powers, and functions of the Senate and the House of Representatives reflect the framers' design for a bicameral Congress?

Topic 2.1 Congress: The Senate and the House of Representatives: describe the different structures, powers, and functions of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.1: the different structures, terms, and powers of the House and Senate, why Congress is bicameral, and the unique constitutional roles of each chamber under Article I.
11 min answer →

How do elections, redistricting, partisanship, and divided government shape the way members of Congress behave and the policies Congress produces?

Topic 2.3 Congressional Behavior: explain how congressional behavior is influenced and constrained by election processes, partisanship, and divided government.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.3: how elections, gerrymandering, the trustee and delegate models, partisanship, divided government, and gridlock shape the behavior of members of Congress and the policies they produce.
11 min answer →

How does Congress delegate discretionary and rule-making authority to the bureaucracy, and how does that authority let agencies shape policy?

Topic 2.13 Discretionary and Rule-Making Authority: explain how the federal bureaucracy uses delegated discretionary authority for rule making and implementation.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.13: how Congress delegates discretionary and rule-making authority to bureaucratic agencies, how agencies make binding rules and implement laws, and why this gives the bureaucracy real policymaking power.
10 min answer →

How and why has presidential power expanded over time, and how do Federalist No. 70 and the contrasting interpretations of the office frame that debate?

Topic 2.6 Expansion of Presidential Power: explain how presidents have interpreted and justified their use of formal and informal powers.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.6: how presidential power has expanded over time, the argument of Federalist No. 70 for an energetic executive, and the debate over limited versus expansive interpretations of the office.
11 min answer →

How do Congress, the president, and the courts hold the unelected federal bureaucracy accountable for the power it exercises?

Topic 2.14 Holding the Bureaucracy Accountable: explain how Congress, the president, and the courts use their power to ensure accountability of the bureaucracy.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.14: how Congress uses oversight, appropriations, and confirmation, the president uses appointments and executive orders, and the courts use judicial review to hold the federal bureaucracy accountable.
10 min answer →

What gives the Supreme Court its legitimacy, and how do precedent, judicial independence, and public trust sustain the authority of an unelected branch?

Topic 2.9 Legitimacy of the Judicial Branch: explain how the exercise of judicial review in conjunction with life tenure can lead to debate about the legitimacy of the Supreme Court's power.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.9: how precedent (stare decisis), life tenure, judicial independence, and public trust sustain the legitimacy of the Supreme Court, and the debate over the legitimacy of judicial review.
10 min answer →

How do the three branches and the bureaucracy interact, compete, and cooperate to shape public policy across the policymaking process?

Topic 2.15 Policy and the Branches of Government: explain the extent to which governmental branches are responsive and accountable to the public when making policy.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.15: how Congress, the president, the courts, and the bureaucracy interact across the policymaking process, the tension between responsiveness and gridlock, and how to synthesize the whole unit.
10 min answer →

How have changes in technology and the media transformed the ways presidents communicate with the public and pursue their policy agendas?

Topic 2.7 Presidential Communication: explain how communication technology has changed the president's relationship with the national constituency and the other branches.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.7: how presidents use the bully pulpit, the State of the Union, and modern media to shape opinion and pressure Congress, and how changing communication technology has reshaped the office.
10 min answer →

How do the formal and informal powers of the president, as set out in Article II and developed over time, enable the executive to influence policy?

Topic 2.4 Roles and Powers of the President: explain how the president can implement a policy agenda.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.4: the formal (Article II) and informal powers of the president, including the veto, commander-in-chief, appointments, treaties, executive orders, and how a president implements a policy agenda.
11 min answer →

How do the enumerated and implied powers of Congress, along with its committee system and leadership, shape the policymaking and budget process?

Topic 2.2 Structures, Powers, and Functions of Congress: explain how the structure, powers, and functions of both houses of Congress affect the policymaking process.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.2: the enumerated and implied powers of Congress, the committee system and leadership, the budget and lawmaking process, and the difference between mandatory and discretionary spending.
11 min answer →

How is the federal bureaucracy structured, and how do its agencies, departments, and commissions carry out and shape public policy?

Topic 2.12 The Bureaucracy: explain how the bureaucracy carries out the responsibilities of the federal government.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.12: how the federal bureaucracy is organized into cabinet departments, independent agencies, regulatory commissions, and government corporations, and how it implements federal policy.
10 min answer →

How do judicial philosophies of activism and restraint, and the use of precedent, shape the policy impact of Supreme Court decisions?

Topic 2.10 The Court in Action: explain how the exercise of judicial review can affect policymaking, and how judicial activism and restraint shape that role.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.10: how the Supreme Court shapes policy through its decisions, the difference between judicial activism and judicial restraint, the role of precedent and stare decisis, and how landmark rulings change policy.
10 min answer →

How does the principle of judicial review, established in Marbury v. Madison and defended in Federalist No. 78, give the courts the power to check the other branches?

Topic 2.8 The Judicial Branch: explain the principle of judicial review and how it checks the power of other institutions and state governments.
A focused answer to AP US Government Topic 2.8: the structure of the federal judiciary under Article III, the principle of judicial review established in Marbury v. Madison, and the argument of Federalist No. 78 for an independent judiciary.
11 min answer →