...The three branches of government were originally designed by the fathers of the constitution to be equal in power, with a democratic system dependent on checks and balances. Checks and balances are designed to disperse and constrain power in order to maintain the desired balance between the powers of the three branches. Over time though, it seems as if there has been a slight shift of power that now favors the Legislative branch. The Constitutional system of checks and balances has been gradually corrupted over time, and the critical balance between our economic system and our system of government has been lost. As a result, the careful balance between the three branches of government that the framers wrote out has been lost. In the present day system of our democracy, the Legislative branch has slightly more power than the Executive or Judicial branches because of its ability to pass legislation. The Legislative branch has the power to pass laws, change laws, and even alter the Constitution. Laws dictate the direction in which the entire country is going, and affects every person living in the country, and even those in other countries. Without laws governing the United States, there would be no structure to the country. Without this skeleton of society, there would surely be chaos. Laws are in place to maintain the status quo, to protect property, to protect vested rights, and to protect established relationships. With the absence of laws, our society would not be able to...
Words: 876 - Pages: 4
...Running Head: BRANCHES OF GOVERNMENT Branches of Government January 26, 2010 Abstract: The following paper will review the branches of government and their role within our Constitution and the reasoning behind the various branches to ensure the peoples of the United States of America are guaranteed specific rights. It will establish an understanding of the three branches of government that ensure the Constitution is upheld. These three governmental forces still govern the laws in the United States today. Introduction In creating the Constitution the forefathers of this nation designed a government with three distinctive elements that established responsibilities and upheld the Constitution. These men were dedicated to ensuring that each branch of government has a role in upholding the rights of the people. The three branches of government created are The Judicial Branch, The Executive Branch, and The Legislative Branch. In examining the creation of the branches of government it has become apparent and the following table will establish that these branches create a balance of power. The following table defines the interaction between the branches of government: Branches of Government | Legislative BranchSenate and House of Representatives | Judicial BranchSupreme Court | Executive BranchPresident and Cabinet | Duties and Responsibilities | Legislative branch creates laws and AmendmentsLegislative branch has the power over all the money spent; can create or...
Words: 753 - Pages: 4
...In the U.S. government there are three branches of government: Legislative, Executive, and Judicial. They use checks and balances to balance the power among branches so that they all have a fairly equal share. The Legislative branch (congress) is made up of two houses: The House of Representatives and The House of the Senate. Representatives from each state are based on population and there are two members of the Senate from each state. The Vice President is in charge of the Senate but can only vote if there is an even split in votes. Congress comes up with laws that are “necessary and proper” and sends them to the president (Executive) to sign. If the president vetoes (dismisses it) but ⅔ of both houses agrees to the law, Congress can then override the president and...
Words: 436 - Pages: 2
...Count: 912 Final Exam Essay We in the United States of America have three branches in our Federal Government which are the Legislative Branch (congress), The Executive Branch (the President), and lastly the Judicial Branch (the US federal courts). Each branch is equally important for the successful operation of our nation and democracy however not each branch is equal in the power it holds. Fundamentally the Legislative Branch contains the most “power” in the federal government for Two reasons. One the system of checks and balances leans biasedly towards the legislative branch. Lastly congress is the body if government which decides what laws will be made while the Executive branch only...
Words: 969 - Pages: 4
...Branches of Government Lori-Ann Toohey His/301 September 8, 2014 Bruce Franklin When our Founding Fathers put the Constitution into writing, our government also established a separation of powers as well as a system of checks and balances for those powers so that no one branch of government becomes more powerful than another. The three branches of our government are: Executive, Legislative, and Judicial. To ensure the government is effective in its role and the United States citizens’ rights are protected, each branch has its own powers, each branch is also responsible for working with the other branches cohesively. The first of three branches that make up our government is the legislative branch. This is made up of the House of Representatives and Senate, known collectively as Congress. The legislative branch makes all laws, declares war, regulates interstate and foreign commerce and controls taxing and spending policies (house.gov, 2014). This branch has various organizations such as Architect of the Capitol and Library of Congress (house.gov, 2014). The legislative branch is responsible for the following checks over the executive branch: overriding presidential vetoes with a two-thirds majority vote, funding executive actions, removing the president through impeachment, Senate approves treaties and presidential appointments (Kelly, 2014). The legislative branch is also responsible for certain checks over the judicial branch such as creating lower courts...
Words: 1161 - Pages: 5
...result, the government is broken up into three branches, the legislative branch, the executive branch, and the judicial branch. Each branch includes different people, serve different functions, and are made to keep the other branches in check so one does not have all the power. This way, laws can be made, enforced, and ensured they fit the constitution. The branches all work together to form the government. To begin with, one branch of the government is the legislative branch. The people who contribute to the legislative branch are the House of Representatives and the Senate. There are 100 senators and 435 House of Representatives in the legislative branch. They are responsible for making and passing laws, declaring wars, ratifying treaties, and controlling federal taxation. Although the legislative branch is powerful, its decisions aren't permanent. Even though a president can veto a law the Congress can override the decision if ⅔ of the Congress votes to pass the law. The legislative branch can also impeach the president...
Words: 505 - Pages: 3
...as a fallen creature and would always yearn for more power.” Checks and balances is a system that prevents any of the branches in our government from exerting an excessive amount of power. Each of the branches of the government can influence the decisions of the other branches. The branches all have to cooperate in the decision making process so that the system runs smoothly. The structure of the government is created in Article I, Article II, and Article III of the Constitution. The three branches of the government are the legislative branch, the executive branch, and...
Words: 492 - Pages: 2
...a fundamental principle that underlies the three branches of government establish by the Philippine constitution. a) Be able to explain the meaning and purpose of the principle of separation of powers. Separation of power describes the distribution of the executive, judicial, and legislative responsibilities of a government among separate and distinct branches. b) Be able to explain the status and the nature of the relationship of the three branches. The three branches of the government operates independently of the others. This is known as “the separation power” c) What is the principle of blending of power? Blending of power is actually sharing of power of the different department of the government whereby one department helps and coordinates with the other in the exercise of a particular power, function, or responsibility. 2. Be able to: a) Explain the principle of check and balance. "Checks and balances" is a concept set up in the whereby the various powers of any government are divided into 3 separate branches with no one branch having all of such powers. b) What are the purposes of the principle of the check and balance? The purpose of the principle of the check and balance is it guarantees that no part of the government becomes too powerful. For example, the legislative branch is in charge of making laws. The executive branch can veto the law, thus making it harder for the legislative branch to pass the law. The judicial branch may also...
Words: 451 - Pages: 2
...The system of check and balances of how it portrayed on a limited government. The system of checks and balances is supposedly supposed to work, but does it really? In this essay it will show you deos the system of checks and balances actually work. The system is suppose to balance out the powers of the three branches being the judicial branch, the legislative branch and the executive branch. The system of checks and balances was suppose to work and help our government and create a limited government. This was not the case, the system of checks and balances did not create a limited government. Checks and balances didn’t create a limited government. In Document 1 the picture shows how the system of checks and balances works. This might seen...
Words: 426 - Pages: 2
...they set up a federal government that had three branches, the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Each branch had their own responsibilities and powers. The three topics discussed are the legislative,...
Words: 766 - Pages: 4
...government: the legislative, judicial, and executive. The executive branch is a branch is a federal and state government. The executive branch is held by the president and the vice president is also part of the executive branch. The judicial branch is a made to explain the laws. The judicial branch is made up of the supreme court. The legislative branch there most important job is to make laws. The legislative branch is made up of houses of representatives and senate. The separations of power provide a shared power known as checks and balances. The constitution is one of the most important things in history its gone hand and hand with many different things including things that are happening today in our society. The constitution separates the government into three separate branches: Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches. Each branch has there own distinguished power which in that case is called the separations of powers. Each branch checks on the other branches powers and they use a system called checks and balances.This means that no branch can gain too much power against the other branches. The president in the executive branch can veto a law, but the legislative branch can override that veto with enough votes....
Words: 576 - Pages: 3
...by giving citizens of our country the responsibility to and the right to have a say in the rules that are being created. • Separation of Powers: Separation of Powers is when the government shares power between the three branches which are executive, legislative, and judicial. This helped shape the American government by making sure that powers weren’t being abused. Separation of Power is also a part of Checks and Balances. • Checks and Balances: Checks and Balances is when the U.S. Constitution divides the government into the three branches executive, legislative, and judicial to make a decision for our country. This helped shape American government because not only on branch could say yes or no on a decision, one may say no and two may say yes two might veto a decision and on may not but a decision has to be made by the three branches. Part II: Balance of Power In the space below, write an analysis of approximately 250 words on how the system of checks and balances in the federal government helps to limit the concentration of power. • Cite specific examples. Defend your rationale. Utilize the required readings, academic websites, and the GCU Library as resources for this assignment. Part III: The Three Branches of the Federal Government Answer the following questions. Each response should be 150-200 words. 1. What are the duties and responsibilities...
Words: 1174 - Pages: 5
...this assignment is to explain the relationship among the branches of government and the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC). As I went through the research, I was able to understand that the three branches of government, legislative, executive and judicial are associated with the UCC in many different ways. The three branches of government are related to each other because they work together towards a better future for our country everyday. They are constantly protecting the citizens of our country, and making decisions to improve the life-style of the population. Each branch of government has different power; those powers combined make the law, enforce it and verify that it is fair for the individuals. The power is limited, on both federal and state governmental actions. A part of their responsibility is associated with the taxing and spending power. In other words, we can say that the president, the congress and the Supreme Court require following the UCC to guarantee the equal protection of the citizen and the commitments made in the performance of their duties. To begin with, the three branches of government are: Legislative, Executive and Judicial. The Legislative branch is formed by the Congress, which is divided into The House of Representatives and the Senate. The President, vice president and the cabinet form the Executive branch. The Supreme Court and the other Federal Courts form the judicial branch. The branches of government could be associated with the UCC, or The Uniform...
Words: 1697 - Pages: 7
...Shyam Venkatasubramanian TA: Anthony Sparacino PLAP 1010 Power to the President Throughout the history of the United States, the three branches of government had experienced their respective highs and lows. During creation of the United States Constitution, its authors had a preconceived notion that the legislative branch would end up being the more capable of the other two branches of government. All things considered, the legislative branch was a leading force for states amid the Revolutionary War and amid the Articles of Confederation years. The vast majority of the Bill of Rights starts with the expression "Congress shall make no law." That being said, like the sentiments during the Revolutionary Period and amid the Articles of Confederation, the squabbling and absence of solidarity in Congress counteracted it; from playing the authority part the founders felt it ought to take. When talking about the judicial branch, its role is specified once in the Constitution and all that is expressed is that Congress is looking to create a judicial structure. The authors of the Constitution felt that most laws would be upheld and translated at the state level. It was Chief Justice John Marshall who extended the force of the Supreme Court amidst the Marbury vs. Madison case. Here, Marshall yielded the court the privilege to translate the Constitutionality of laws. In this way, the Supreme Court and the judicial branch started to gain traction as an efficient force in the government...
Words: 1531 - Pages: 7
...Constitution, the first three articles represent the three branches of government. The first article is The Legislative Branch, the second article is The Executive Branch and the third article is The Judicial Branch, the Farmers’ considered all of our branches of government equal, yet some appeared to be more powerful than others. The Farmers’ were concerned that these branches of government will abuse their powers, thus making a necessity for the separation of powers, and for checks and balances. Checks and balances is a system where the different parts of government have powers that can affect and control the other parts of government in order for the other branches cannot become too powerful. This is to prevent any branch of government from exerting too much power. Each branch of government has different powers and functions that they carry out, they are separate although they are constitutionally equal they are also independent from each other. This is the separation of powers. The Legislative Branch of government, which is the first Article of the Constitution, which is also known as Congress, is made up of the Senate, and the House of Representatives. The U.S. Senate consists of 100 members, and these senators are allowed to serve six years. The House of Representatives has 435 members which make up the HOR, these representatives serve two year terms. In total Congress is made up of 535 Congressmen. The Legislative Branch has many powers which are to pass all federal...
Words: 848 - Pages: 4