Checks and balances are the system by which the American government keeps any one branch of the government from having too much power. The idea of checks and balances originated from Montesquieu and WIlliam Blackstone, Age of Enlightenment philosophers. The idea is that by controlling each branch, no one faction can become the dominant one and basically turn America back into a monarchy, with one group making every decision.
Some examples of checks and balances are:
- judicial review, the courts examining all three arms of the government to make sure their actions are constitutional
- presidential veto: the president can veto any bill passed in Congress
- executive/judicial impeachment: Only Congress can impeach the Supreme Justices or the President.
- Only Congress can decide how we’re spending and making money, getting loans, etc.
- Congress can reverse decisions in the Supreme Court through constitutional amendments.
- The President appoints the members of the Supreme Court with the consent of the Senate.
Checks and Balances have become a central part of modern government today. I thought it was interesting how you looked into it because students often forget what it actually means but it is referred to so many times. Views of Karl Marx for example and his idea of communism has labeled philosophers as often too cynical or too idealistic but your referrals shows the origin of government. We see a central leader or president who is balanced out between congress and other governing bodies. What I wonder is what would America be like had we not struggled for equality and had such a diverse population with so many different views. Does checks and balance give a voice to the people? Was that the original intention or just a personal view of the person who wanted to obtain power?
ReplyDeletethe system of checks and balances also extends throughout the country to the states and gives power to people as well. The ability of the common population to participate in politics was a revolutionary one at the start of the US and still reigns as an important part of the US government today. Even the ability to vote is checked by the electoral college which prevents lesser populated states from having no say in national politics
ReplyDelete