Current Exhibition Congress and the Judicial Branch: Jurisdiction The Constitution’s framers created an independent judicial branch, but Congress and the president retain significant power to shape the courts. Congress and the Judicial Branch: Composition Supreme Court decisions have far-reaching consequences, so the appointment of a justice may affect the law for decades. Congress and the Judicial Branch: Negotiation Congress and the federal courts have unique but complementary powers as defined by the Constitution. Congress and the Executive Branch: Nominations and Appointments The Constitution authorizes the president of the United Sates to appoint individuals to executive and judicial offices with the advice and consent of the Senate. Congress and the Executive Branch: Balancing Power Article I, Section 1, of the Constitution declares that “all legislative Powers” are “vested in a Congress of the United States.” Congress and the Executive Branch: Investigations Congress’s oversight authority is an implied, but vital, constitutional power. Past Exhibitions Exploration The Congress shall have Power To ... promote the Progress of Science Common Defense The Congress shall have Power To ... provide for the common Defense Unity We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union... do ordain and establish this Constitution... Freedom Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press... General Welfare The Congress shall have Power To ... provide for the ... general Welfare Knowledge The Congress shall have Power To ... promote ... useful Arts Debating the Wars We are going to war . . . to vindicate our honor and to maintain our independence as a great nation. We are going to war . . . in defense of humanity. Funding the Wars We act with the belief that the debt we are about to incur, stupendous though it is, is no greater than this, the greatest Republic of all time, owes to human civilization. Fighting the Wars If it were possible to raise a sufficient number of men by voluntary enlistment and they would come from all sections in equal percentages the selective service might not be necessary. National Loyalty When this country made its decision and went into this war, it was the duty of every American citizen to loyally support the Government of the United States in the prosecution of the war. World War I: A World Transformed World War I ended several empires and shifted international boundaries. World War I: A Nation Transformed Though World War I was fought overseas, it also shaped the U.S. home front. World War II: A World Transformed At the end of World War II, the United States emerged as a global superpower. World War II: A Nation Transformed World War II presented Congress with new and unique challenges in the postwar years.
