Lyrics for "Our Government"
Click on any song title to hear the song.
3 Branches of
Government
(chorus)
Legislative, Executive, Judicial
– the 3 branches
Legislative, Executive, Judicial
We’re ruled by laws not men
Our government has checks and
balances
A separation of powers
with 3 branches of government
3 branches of government
(verse 1)
The legislative branch writes the
laws
The executive branch enforces
them all
The judicial branch helps clarify
them
They all work together in our
government
(verse 2)
Each branch has its own job to do
No branch has too much power,
which might be abused
We have a balance, that’s the way
it was planned
I think the founding fathers
deserve a hand
©2002 Thom Miller; All Rights
Reserved
Congress
(chorus)
Congress is another name
for the Legislative branch
Made up of the Senate
and the House of Representatives
They are the ones who write the
laws
They get lots of letters and lots
of phone calls
The views of the people are
expressed
by people that they elect to
Congress
(verse 1)
435 members serve two-year terms
in the House of Representatives
State population helps decide
The number each state will send
to Congress
(verse 2)
100 Senators go to work in
Washington
Each state sends two
They each serve 6-year terms
Workin’ for me and you in
Congress
©2002 Thom Miller; All Rights
Reserved
How a Bill
Becomes a Law
(verse 1)
This is how a bill becomes a law
A bill is a plan written by a
woman or man
In the Senate or the House of
Representatives
If the House approves the bill
and Senate does too, it will
be on its way to becoming a law
(verse 1)
This is how a bill becomes a law
If it passes the House and Senate
It goes to the President
who will either sign or veto it
He signs the bill to make it law
Or he vetoes it because he
disagrees with it,
But it can still become a law
(verse 2)
This is how a bill becomes a law
If it is vetoed, back to Congress
it goes
And they can vote on it again
If 2/3rds vote for it in the
House and in the Senate
That’s called an “override”
And the bill becomes a law
And these are 2 ways a bill can
become a law
©2002 Thom Miller; All Rights
Reserved
Democracy
(chorus)
Our government is a democracy
Run by people just like you and
me
The word “democracy” comes from
the Greek
“demos” means people
“cratos” means power or strength
The people make the rules, you
see, in a democracy
(verse 1)
We don’t have a king or queen
That would be a monarchy
We don’t have a leader in total
control
That would be a dictatorship, we
know
(verse 2)
A democracy is a government
Run by people who live under it
Abe Lincoln said it was “of the
people
by the people, and for the
people”
©2002 Thom Miller; All Rights
Reserved
The U.S.
Constitution
(chorus)
The Constitution of the United
States
was adopted in 1789
It was written after many debates
and it has stood the test of time
It’s a document that lays out
how our government should run
It’s the Constitution, the U.S.
Constitution
(verse 1)
The Constitution of the U.S
Outlines the structure of our
government
The central government runs the
country as a whole
But each state still has a lot of
control
(verse 2)
The Constitution lays out a plan
To separate power between 3
branches
And people have rights that help
protect them
In the Bill of Rights, the first
10 amendments
©2002 Thom Miller; All Rights
Reserved
Bill of Rights
(chorus)
The Bill of Rights was written by
James Madison
They’re the first ten amendments
to the Constitution
And Thomas Jefferson said
A Bill of Rights is what people
are entitled to
And what no just government
should refuse
(verse 1)
The Bill of Rights are freedoms
of U.S. citizens
Like freedom of speech, and of
religion,
And freedom of the press
And our rights cannot be taken
away
The Bill of Rights protects us
that way
(verse 2)
We have the freedom to assemble
peacefully
And our homes cannot be searched
unnecessarily
These basic rights and more are
guaranteed
Freedom is the heart of our
democracy
©2002 Thom Miller; All Rights
Reserved
Governors and
the President
(chorus)
Governors and the President
They are the Chief Executives
Governors and the President
They enforce the laws
of state and national government
(verse 1)
Our nation elects one President
Who represents every U.S. citizen
And each state has its own
Governor to care
For the state and people who are
living there
(verse 2)
Governors and the President
Serve 4-year terms as chief
executive
They sign the bills to make them
law
And oversee leaders who enforce
them all
©2002 Thom Miller; All Rights
Reserved
The 43
Presidents
Washington, Adams, Jefferson,
Madison,
Monroe, Adams, Jackson, Van
Buren, Harrison
Tyler, Polk, Taylor, Fillmore,
Pierce, Buchanan,
Lincoln, Johnson, Grant, Hayes,
Garfield, Arthur, Cleveland
Harrison, Cleveland, McKinley,
Roosevelt,
Taft, Wilson, Harding, Coolidge,
Hoover, Roosevelt,
Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy,
Johnson,
Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan,
Bush, Clinton, Bush
These are the 43 Presidents
In the history of the U.S.
©2002 Thom Miller; All Rights
Reserved
Order Our
Government
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