3: Every state elects two members, called senators, to the Senate. In the House, the number of representatives depends on the number of people who live in a state. States with more people have more representatives in the House.

4: The legislative branch has many other powers. The Senate approves or rejects the people the president chooses to fill key jobs. The Senate must approve the president's choices for ambassadors, or people who represent the United States in foreign countries. The Senate must approve the president's choice of federal judges. It also approves members of the president's cabinet.

2: Many former soldiers and poor farmers lost their homes because they could not pay their bills. Some of them were jailed. One farmer complained, “The great [rich] men are going to get all we have, and I think it is time for us to rise and put a stop to it.” In Massachusetts, a former soldier named Daniel Shays agreed. He and hundreds of other men took part in an armed revolt, attempting to stop the state courts from taking people's property. Their fight against the government became known as Shays' Rebellion. This violence made the leaders of the nation worried and the leaders created a stronger govnerment. 

3: Once the American Revolution ended, the Confederation Congress had a hard time solving the new country's problems. Most of the powers were held by the states. Each state still issued its own money, and the Congress had no power to collect taxes or even to force the states to give it funds.

Several delegates played key roles. As president of the convention, George Washington kept the debates respectful. Benjamin Franklin, then 81, calmed heated tempers, while James Madison of Virginia designed a plan for a strong national government. Gouverneur (his first name) Morris of Pennsylvania wrote much of the final draft of the Constitution. The men worked hard during that hot summer. Some, like Madison, wanted a strong central government. Others feared losing freedoms if the government had too much power.
2: In the end, the delegates agreed to a federal system. This meant that power was divided between state governments and a strong national government. They separated the power of the national government into three parts, or branches. The legislative branch would make the laws. The executive branch would carry them out. The judicial branch would settle disputes over the meaning of the laws.

3: On September 17, 1787, after four months of hard work, most of the delegates signed the Constitution, and in June of 1788, 9 of the 13 states had approved it. The United States had a new government.

3: Another example of checks and balances is impeachment. Suppose members of the executive or judicial branch misuse their power. Congress can impeach them, try them, and remove them from office if they are found guilty.

2: The judicial branch has some important powers. It decides whether a national or state law conflicts with the Constitution. Such a law is called unconstitutional. Because the Constitution is the basic law of our country, the judicial branch can declare that laws are unconstitutional or not.

It also has the power to review and comment on treaties. If it finds that a treaty violates the Constitution, then the treaty is not put into effect. By using its powers, the judicial branch protects the Constitution and the rights of Americans. If the actions of the other branches conflict with the Constitution, the judicial branch acts to declare those acts to be unconstitutional.

3: The judicial branch settles disputes that come up under the laws. That is, the courts settle disagreements about what a law means or how it applies to a particular situation.