Question

advice and consent
key concepts you will learn about at this station:
federalism; republicanism
the us constitution: article ii, section 2
“...the president shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the senate,
shall appoint ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, judges of the supreme
court, and all other officers of the united states, whose appointments are not herein
otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law...”
why? so why did our founding fathers write it that way?
historical background: under the articles of confederation, the national
government consisted of a single house of congress. there were no
independent executive or judicial branches with distinct responsibilities
and powers to carry out or interpret the law. the constitution altered
that framework by creating three separate branches of government, but
it also provided the means for each branch to exercise “checks and
balances” over the others. in this section of the constitution, for
example, the president is granted the authority to appoint federal
officers (including judges), but it specifies that he or she must do so with
the “advice and consent” of the senate. although the constitution does
not provide any detail about what “advice and consent” actually meant,
over time it became standard practice for the senate to hold formal
shearings to review presidential nominees before voting to approve or
denyt them. the senate usually confirms the president’s nominees, but
on occasion it has rejected them for one reason or another.
our constitution in action!
a modern example: when a new president is inaugurated in january 2021, he or she will have to fill
numerous positions in the executive branch. the senate will conduct hearings to examine the
qualifications of these nominees. in addition, several supreme court justices are expected to retire in the
next few years, which means that the new president and senate will spend a lot of time reviewing
candidates for important positions.

1. how does the appointment process allow congress to supervise the

president’s decisions? they can
approve or deny appointments.

1. for what reasons might the senate

reject someone who had been
nominated for office? lack of
qualifications.

Explanation:

The first question is about how Congress (specifically the Senate) can supervise the president's decisions regarding appointments. The text indicates that the Senate can approve or deny appointments. The second question asks for reasons the Senate might reject a nominee. The text provides "lack of qualifications" as a reason. These are related to the political structure and checks - and - balances in the U.S. government as per the Constitution.

Answer:

1. They can approve or deny appointments.
2. Lack of qualifications.