Key points
The Framers of the US Constitution structured the government so that the three branches have separate powers. The branches must both cooperate and compete to enact policy.
Each of the branches has the power to check the other two, which ensures that no one branch can become too powerful and that government as a whole is constrained.
This structure ensures that the people’s will is represented by allowing citizens multiple access points to influence public policy, and permitting the removal of officials who abuse their power.
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The structure of US government: separation of powers
By the late 1780s, it had become clear that the first governmental system of the United States, the Articles of Confederation, wasn’t working. The central government under the Articles lacked a strong executive and a method for resolving disputes at the national level.
But adding a strong executive branch to the US government might pose the opposite problem. Would an executive, wielding the power of the army, become too powerful? Would a federal government with more power overall soon become tyrannical?
At the Constitutional Convention, the Framers debated these issues. Their ultimate solution was to separate the powers of government among three branches—legislative, executive, and judicial—so that each branch had to cooperate with the others in order to accomplish policymaking goals. For example, although the executive branch commands the military, only the legislative branch can declare war and make funds available to pay and provision the army. Therefore, both the legislative branch (Congress) and the executive branch (the president) must consent for the United States to go to war.
Accordingly, each branch of government has unique powers. As the branch most responsive to the will of the people (who elect its members), Congress has the power to pass laws, declare war, ratify treaties, and levy taxes. The executive branch conducts foreign affairs and commands the armed forces. The judicial branch interprets the laws of Congress and the actions of the president to determine whether they are constitutional.
Powers of the branches of government
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1) Legislative branch
2) Executive branch
3) Judicial branch
1. Pass laws 2. Veto legislation 3. Declare laws unconstitutional
1. Declare war 2. Command armed forces 3. Hear cases on federal law
1. Impeach president and judges 2. Grant pardons 3. Preside over impeachment trials
1. Approve presidential appointments 2. Appoint judges, ambassadors, department heads 3. Declare presidential acts unconstitutional
1. Ratify treaties 2. Conduct foreign affairs and negotiate treaties
3. Levy taxes
1. Establish number of Supreme Court justices
1. Regulate Supreme Court's jurisdiction
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CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING
Which of the following is the best definition of separation of powers?
Choose 1 answer:
Choose 1 answer:
(Choice A)
A
The ability of the president to veto legislation and the judicial branch to declare laws unconstitutional
(Choice B)
B
Parts of government act independently from each other and have different responsibilities
(Choice C)
C
State governments and the federal government have exclusive and concurrent powers
The structure of US government: checks and balances
In addition to separating powers among the branches, the Framers gave each branch the power to check, or stop, the actions of the other two branches in meaningful ways. For example, the president has the power to veto, or reject, laws made by Congress. But Congress can balance out that power in its turn by overriding the president’s veto with a two-thirds vote.
This system of checks and balances keeps each branch of government from overstepping its bounds, and consequently, the federal government itself from becoming too powerful.
Image showing how the branches of the government can check each other, with examples. The executive branch can check the legislative branch by vetoing legislation, and it can check the judicial branch by nominating judges. The legislative branch can check the judicial branch by impeaching judges and can check the presidential branch by impeaching the president. The judicial branch can check the executive branch by declaring presidential acts unconstitutional and can check the legislative branch by declaring laws unconstitutional.