ipl-logo

Checks And Balances To The Constitution Of The United States

618 Words3 Pages

Political Science Research Paper After the thirteen colonies gained their independence from Great Britain in 1776, they formed a state government. However, they soon came to realized that it wasn’t strong enough to have a lasting government because the states were weak and ran like if they were independent countries. This is how the constitution came about. The constitution was signed on September 17, 1787 at the constitutional convention. The constitution was the basic structure of the federal government. At this convention, delegates made a plan for a stronger federal government. They created the three branches which were the executive, legislative and judicial branches. These delegates also made a system of checks and balances to …show more content…

“The legislative branch consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives, collectively known as the Congress. There are 100 senators; each state has two. Each state has a different number of representatives, with the number determined by the state's population.” This branch is responsible for passing the nation’s laws, making specific funds for the government, and providing assistance for all the states. “The Constitution grants Congress the sole authority to enact legislation and declare war, the right to confirm or reject many Presidential appointments, and substantial investigative powers.” Congress also had to make sure that the other two branches don’t have too much power. It works as a checks and balance for the judicial and executive branches. Congress also has the power to coin money and has to regulate interstate and foreign commerce and trade. It also is responsible for maintaining the military. All legislative power in government is secured within congress meaning that it is the only branch that can make new laws and change existing laws. When trying to pass a bill, the president is able to veto the bill but congress has the power to override the president’s veto by two-thirds vote in the senate and the House of Representatives. Congress also has the power to make laws that are “necessary and

Show More
Related

Philadelphia Convention

1067 Words | 5 Pages

The legislative branch consists of the two houses of Congress that have been decided upon by the Great Compromise (the House of Representatives and the Senate). Joint together as one system, Congress has the powers to create laws, declare war, override veto, and impeach the president. Secondly, the executive branch—consisting of the president, vice president, and the Cabinet—has the power to carry out laws (approve), negotiate foreign treaties—such as alliances—, and can grant pardons for federal offers. Finally, the judicial branch, or the Supreme Court Justices can interpret laws, declare laws unconstitutional, and declare the president unconstitutional. Having three branches of government helps keep the government in check, and it prevents one branch becoming more powerful than the other branches.

Read More

In What Ways Did The Constitution Guard Against Tyranny

508 Words | 3 Pages

All three branches have different powers to help keep our country tyranny free. The final main way our constitution avoids tyranny is by the big states vs. small states. The number of representatives in the House of Representatives is chosen through the population size of the state. However, the Senate consists of two senators from each state. This little system helps the smaller states not be as easily overruled by bigger

Read More

Pros And Cons Of The Articles Of Confederation

717 Words | 3 Pages

In 1777, the Continental Congress drafted the first constitution, known as the Articles of Confederation. These articles formed a loose confederation of the thirteen states as opposed to a strong and unified country. Due to that, the government soon began facing numerous difficulties under the Articles of Confederation. Under the Articles, there was only an unicameral governing body without any separation of powers. Likewise, since the majority of the power resided in the states, the central government was quite feeble.

Read More

How Did The Articles Of Confederation Influence The Development Of Government

1283 Words | 6 Pages

Section B - Question 2 America’s Development in Government After declaring independence, the newly formed United States of America was challenged with the task of making a reliable government. The Second Continental Congress and the Articles of Confederation were the first two attempts at the new governments, but there were many flaws in the system. The founders wanted to improve the rules by making changes to the structure of government. Their views on human nature affected the making of the government. The Constitution and the Bill of Rights were the results of the founders' struggles.

Read More

Checks And Balances: The Framers Of The Constitution

738 Words | 3 Pages

Constitution, there was the first form of government the colonist created, the Articles of Confederation, which focused on a weak central government and power in the states. The problem with this type of government was the states where too powerful, it was to the point where it was one state for itself. If there was a situation where a decision of one state benefited itself but could potentially hurt another, that one state would rather choose to help itself. After seeing this glitch, the framers came up with a compromise, the small and large state compromise. The Virginia compromise and New Jersey compromise where two plans that where the foundation of the overall idea of how each state had representation.

Read More

Reasons For The Flaws Under The Articles Of Confederation

1149 Words | 5 Pages

Lastly, the Judicial branch was given the power of Judicial Review under the Constitution. This gave the branch the power to rule the actions of the Legislative and Executive branches as unjust and unconstitutional. This helped to prevent one branch from abusing the power that they had. If any actions were deemed as unconstitutional, it would stop immediately and be revised until it was seen as constitutional and acceptable by the Judicial

Read More

Why Did The Articles Of Confederation Fail

566 Words | 3 Pages

In addition, the executive branch was responsible for enforcing or vetoing laws passed by Congress (in addition to its other powers). As for the judiciary, it is responsible for interpreting federal laws and the constitution and for overseeing the decisions made by the federal and state courts. Before when it was unable to address economic and boundary disputes, the judiciary under the constitution was able to address a wide range conflicts. Above all, these three branches of government share equal power to prevent one form of government from becoming too

Read More

Compare And Contrast The Articles Of Confederation

904 Words | 4 Pages

Some examples of powers are serving as Commander in Chief of Armed Forces, proposes laws, and can veto laws. The last branch is legislative. The Legislative branch is made up of Congress, Representatives, and Senators. Some powers are overriding the President’s veto, declare war, prints and coins money, and approves treaties. These three branches all make sure that they are following the rules of the

Read More

Checks And Balances Of The Founding Fathers In The United States

1174 Words | 5 Pages

This branch of government is composed of “the House of Representatives and the Senate, which together form the United States Congress”. (The Legislative Branch) In the legislative branch, many major decisions are made, such as the declaration of war or the passing of laws. Since the founding fathers made the legislative branch the most powerful, that made this branch responsible for overlooking the other two branches. This is an example of checks and balances.

Read More

Constitutional Convention Dbq

844 Words | 4 Pages

The Constitutional Convention was a meeting held in Philadelphia in 1787 to frame the Constitution. During this convention, the thirteen original states or colonies were the first to ratify this document. Under the Articles of Confederation, many leaders believed that the central government did not have enough authority. Therefore, instead of amending the Articles of Confederation, delegates, from different states, drafted a new written document with rules and regulations for a new federal government. In this government, three branches of government were formed: legislative, judicial and executive.

Read More

Necessary And Proper Clauses

866 Words | 4 Pages

The reason Congress is given this ability is because Congress has assumed the position in order to better do its job. In many cases the Supreme Court has had to decide whether the interference of Congressional actions were constitutional, in the majority of these court cases the outcome has benefited the federal government. For instance, the case over McCulloch v. Maryland Chief Justice, John Marshall, interpreted the Necessary and Proper Clause, by conveying that the federal government (Congress) has the ability, under Necessary and Proper clause “to find the great powers, to lay and collect taxes; to borrow money; to regulate commerce; to declare and conduct a war; and to raise and support armies and navies. The sword and the purse, all the external relations, and no inconsiderable portion of the industry of the nation are entrusted to its Government.”

Read More

Why Is Congress Larger Than The House Of Representatives

501 Words | 3 Pages

Both the House of Representatives and the Senate can override the president vetoes by passing the again to each chamber with majority vote for it. Another thing that the congress does is the annual budget the government must maintain and taxing the people to pay for the annual budget. They also have the power to declare war. They make sure the government is using the tax money correctly on the right things. They also check over the other branches to see if they are doing what they are suppose to be doing like how the other branches do to them and they do a government oversight.

Read More

The Articles Of Confederation Was A Dismal Failure

1059 Words | 5 Pages

Towards the end of the Revolutionary War, the founding fathers decided that that the colonies would need some form of government that would unify them. At the same time, they decided that they wanted to avoid creating a monarchial type of government from which they had just split. The period just after the Revolutionary War was a critical time for the fledging country and it was important that the government formed would not only unify the colonies and protect them, not only from foreign countries, but also from destroying themselves internally.

Read More

Does Congress Have More Power

236 Words | 1 Pages

The main responsibilities of the legislative branch is to make and pass laws. The Senate and the House of Representatives must work together in order to run smoothly. Congress

Read More

Essay On Separation Of Powers

714 Words | 3 Pages

The executive branch can check the laws congress wants to pass and can veto them if he disagrees. The Legislative branch can check the executive by accepting the already vetoed law and can impeach or fire the president out of office. The Justice Branch can make sure peoples rights and liberties are being followed and check if the laws follow the constitution's rules. In the text, it says “To further limit government power the framers provided for separation of powers the constitution separates the government into three branches Congress of the legislative branch makes the laws. The executive branch headed by the president carries out laws.

Read More

More about Checks And Balances To The Constitution Of The United States

Related Topics

Open Document