Three Branches of Government free essay sample

Three Branches of the Federal Government In May 1787, 55 delegates from 12 states, Rhode Island declined, met in Philadelphia for the Constitutional Convention. The purpose of the convention was to revise the Articles of Confederation, but what occurred was the writing of the U. S. Constitution. George Washington was unanimously elected as President of the Convention. After four months of deliberations Gouveneur Morris submitted the final draft and 39 of the 55 delegate present signed the Constitution. At the Convention the founding fathers decided to divide the federal government into three branches. In the paragraphs below I will discuss their reason for dividing the government, the three branches and how the three branches interact. Three Branches In 1787 leaders from 12 of the 13 states gathered to write the United States Constitution. The Constitution was a set of principles that would govern the United States of America following independence from Great Britain. The leaders of the states wanted a strong and fair national government, but they also wanted to protect individual freedoms and prevent the government from abusing its power. We will write a custom essay sample on Three Branches of Government or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page They believed they could do this by having three separate branches of government: the Executive Branch which is controlled by the President, the Legislative Branch which is controlled by Congress and the Judiciary Branch which is controlled by the Supreme Court (Three Branches of Government, 2007). Executive Branch Article II, section one of the Constitution states that executive power is vested in the President. This makes the President the head of the Executive Branch. To become President a person must be 35 years old, a natural born American citizen and a resident of the U. S. for at least 14 years. The President is elected by the entire country and serves a four year term. He appoints and removes cabinet members and is the Commander in Chief of the armed forces. The Vice President also falls under the Executive Branch and the President’s cabinet includes the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Homeland Security and 11 heads of major departments of the government (Three Branches of Government, 2007). The Legislature issues laws that must be complied with and the President must protect, preserve, and defend them while executing them faithfully and the Judiciary’s job is to ensure all parties are in compliance with the Constitution. The Executive Branch collects taxes and performs custom duties as instructed by the Legislative Branch. The Executive Branch pays the salaries of government employees and other government expenditures. The Executive Branch assures internal and external security of the state by maintaining police forces and armed forces. The Executive Branch is responsible for guiding many sectors of the economy to include the military, agriculture, transportation, health, education, housing and construction, and others (Three Branches of Government, 2007). Legislative Branch The Legislative Branch is controlled by Congress and consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The most important duty of the Legislative Branch is to make laws. There are 100 Senators, two from each of the 50 states. Senators serve a term of six years and are elected by their state. The Vice President is considered the head of Senate but does not vote unless a tie occurs. The Senate approves nominations made by the President to the Supreme Court, Federal Courts and the Cabinet. The House of Representatives has 435 members and the number of representatives for each state is determined by that states population. Each representative serves a two year term and is elected by their state. The Speaker of the House is considered the head of the House of Representatives. The Senate and the House elects leaders and they are known as the majority leader and the minority leader. The Legislative Branch has the power to create, amend and ratify laws and the authority to raise taxes and adopt budgets (Three Branches of Government, 2007). Judiciary Branch The Judiciary Branches primary responsibility is to interpret the law and oversee the U. S. court system. The Supreme Court is the head of the Judiciary Branch and rules whether something is constitutional or unconstitutional according to the Constitution. The Supreme Court consists of nine judges, eight associate justices and one chief justice. They are nominated by the President and approved by the Senate and have no term limit. The Supreme Court is the highest court in the land and their decisions are final and can not be over turned (Three Branches of Government, 2007). How They Interact The founding fathers divided the federal government in to three separate branches allowing each branch to place restraints on the powers exerted by the other branches. To prevent one branch from becoming superior and to induce cooperation among the three branches a system of checks and balances was created. The Legislative Branch writes and enacts laws, enacts taxes, sets the budget and has the sole power to declare war. They may start investigations against the Executive Branch and ratifies treaties. The Executive Branch may veto laws and refuse to spend money allocated for certain purposes. They may wage war or declare a state of emergency and promulgates regulations and executive orders. The Executive Branch appoints judges to the Supreme Court and has the power to pardon convicted criminals. The Judiciary Branch determines which laws apply to any given case and which laws are unconstitutional. They determine the disposition of prisoners, policies its own members and is immune to arbitrary dismissal by other branches (U. S. Federal Government, 2008). Laws are made by the Legislature, interpreted by the Judiciary and enforced by the Executive. To enforce a law and for the law to be effective their must be a degree of cooperation between the Legislative and Executive Branches. For example, the Legislature may vote â€Å"free beer for all,† but the Executive Branch may ask â€Å"who pays the brewer? The Executive Branch may veto this law or delay approval so the Legislature can further debate the consequences. The Legislative Branch has the power to impeach the President, but the Executive Branch has the power to dissolve the Legislative Branch if it refuses to vote a budget or withholds funds from the Executive Branch. The Judicial Branch decides if laws violate the Constitution, judicial review is how the federal courts provide checks and balances on Legislative and Executive Branches (U. S. Federal Government, 2008). Conclusion In conclusion, the three branches of government must cooperate with each other to be effective. No one branch has sole power and checks and balances are in place to ensure it never happens. The Legislative Branch makes the laws, the Executive Branch protects and defends them and the Judiciary Branch ensures the laws are not unconstitutional. Congress controls the Legislature which consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives, the President controls the Executive Branch and the Supreme Court controls the Judiciary Branch.