Choosing Supreme Court Justices in 2005

Civics

Standard 15 Level IV [Grade 9-12]: The student understands how the United States Constitution grants and distributes power and responsibilities to national and state government and how it seeks to prevent the abuse of power.

Benchmark 5

The Student:

• Understands the purposes, organization, and functions of the, legislative, executive, and judicial branches and the independent regulatory agencies
• Understands the purpose of the judicial branch of the government
• Understands the organization of the judicial branch of the government
• Understands the functions of the judicial branch of the government

Benchmark 7

The Student:

• Understands how specific features and the overall design of the Constitution results in tensions among the three branches and comprehends the argument that the tensions resulting from separation of powers, checks and balances, and judicial review tend to slow down the process of making and enforcing laws, thus insuring better outcomes
• Understands how specific features of the Constitution result in tensions among the three branches
• Understands the argument that the tensions resulting from the separation of powers tend to slow down the process of making and enforcing laws
• Understands the argument that the tensions resulting from checks and balances tend to slow down the process of making and enforcing laws