United States Branches of Government

United States Branches of Government

Every government has different branches that perform different duties for the smooth flow of government business. These branches are accorded different powers to maintain check and balance of other branches.

The Constitution of the United States divides the federal government into legislative, executive and judicial branches. The legislative makes laws, confirms or rejects presidential appointments and holds the authority to declare war. It is composed of the Congress and other supportive agencies. The executive enforces the law. It is made up of the president, vice president, cabinet, independent agencies, executive departments, and other commissions, boards, and committees. The judicial evaluates the laws. This involves interpreting the meaning of laws, applying the law to individual cases and deciding if a law violates the constitution (James and Kersh, 52). Each branch keeps the others in check in the following ways. The president can reject laws passed by Congress. The Congress can remove the president from the office, and the supreme courts can overturn unconstitutional laws

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Under the articles of confederation, the Congress had the powers to declare war, appoint military officers, sign treaties, make alliances and appoint foreign ambassadors. The articles of confederation ultimately failed because they failed to persuade the society elites that the form of governments that came up under the articles would protect their interests.

The federalists are people who wanted the power to be held by the federal government. They favored the interests of industry, banking and commerce over those of agriculture, wanted a loose interpretation of the constitution and a close relationship with Britain. The anti-federalist on the other hand wanted the power to be held by individual states (James and Kersh 54). They were particularly opposed to the establishment of a national bank, wanted a strict interpretation of the constitution and a close relationship with France.

The Equal Protection is a Clause in the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, which stipulates that no state should deny any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. The historically discriminated groups such as African American and women used this clause as a basis to fight for their rights. They argued that all people regardless of color or gender were equal before the law (Hibbing 8). They used the clause to demand full equal protection the same as their counterparts. In the United States v. Virginia, the court ruled that the government must exhibit an exceedingly persuasive justification to defend gender-based discrimination

The privacy right is a human right and a component of various legal customs, which control both private party and government actions that threaten the privacy of individuals (James and Kersh 60). Though not provided in the Bill of rights, it is a clause in the 14th amendment. The Supreme Court has articulated this right through cases like Griswald v. Connecticut where the court pronounced that it was unconstitutional to forbid the use of birth control because it sullied the right to marital privacy. In Bowers v. Hardwick, the Court also validated the privacy right by ruling that gays are unrestricted to respect for their private lives.

The constitution of America provides the framework of the formation and running of the three branches of the government. The judicial branch evaluates the law and interprets it when needed. The legislative amends the law while the executive enforces the law.

 

Work cited

Hibbing, John R. “Process preferences and American politics: What the people want government to be.” American Political Science Association. Vol. 95. No. 01. Cambridge University Press, 2001.

James, A., and Kersh Morone. By the People: Debating American Government. Oxford University Press, 2014.

 

 
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