Why does the American form of government work?

Federalist Papers No.10

According to the Federalist papers No.10, the American government works because of two things, the formation of a republic and the electoral office. Overall The focus on moderation is a key to the successful development of the United States. A good balance between governmental authority and individual freedom allows the society of the United State to flourish. This is acknowledged in the Federalist Papers, as it wrote, "The instability, injustice, and confusion introduced into the public councils" have been "the mortal diseases under which popular governments have everywhere perished", but, after the independence, "Complaints are everywhere heard from our most considerate and virtuous citizens...that our governments are too unstable, that the public good is disregarded in the conflicts of rival parties, and that measures are too often decided, not according to the rules of justice and the rights of the minor party, but by the superior force of an interested and overbearing majority". This emphasize for moderation is expressed through both the formation of a republic and electoral office, that in order to control both the government and the people, a group of elected and appointed representatives shall rule and elect members of special position, such as the electoral college electing the president. The article argued that a good balance of such measure would prevent the ruler from misleading the people and prevent the people from making bad judgements and decisions. These are expressed by the following quotation. "In the first place, it is to be remarked that, however small the republic may be, the representatives must be raised to a certain number, in order to guard against the cabals of a few; and that, however large it may be, they must be limited to a certain number, in order to guard against the confusion of a multitude...In the next place, as each representative will be chosen by a greater number of citizens in the large than in the small republic, it will be more difficult for unworthy candidates to practice with success the vicious arts by which elections are too often carried; and the suffrages of the people being more free, will be more likely to centre in men who possess the most attractive merit and the most diffusive and established characters".

Federalist Papers No.51

According to the Federalist papers No.51, the American government works because of the separation of the government into 3 different branches and the further separation of the Legislature Branch into 2 different houses. The separation of the government into 3 different branches, the executive, legislatives, and judiciary, and the little reliance each of them have on others prevent any of the branches to encroach on the other. The separation of power, as the different branches are permitted different and distinct powers, it prevented any one branch from accumulating enough power to threaten the freedom and liberty of the people. The paper also expressed the idea to take human nature into consideration, as the conglomeration of intellectuals and separation of different branches, in which little or no appointments in one branch is made by the others, allows people with different ambitions to be pitted against each other, forbidding one from assuming all powers. This is expressed in the following quote"It is equally evident, that the members of each department should be as little dependent as possible on those of the others, for the emoluments annexed to their offices... But the great security against a gradual concentration of the several powers in the same department, consists in giving to those who administer each department the necessary constitutional means and personal motives to resist encroachments of the others...Ambition must be made to counteract ambition... a reflection on human nature, that such devices should be necessary to control the abuses of government... government itself... the greatest of all reflections on human nature? If men were angels, no government would be necessary...". The legislature branch is said to be the strongest, therefore it should be further divided into different branches, and as little connected as possible in order to prevent it from becoming too powerful. It is said to be the strongest because it has the only department, the house of representatives, directly appointed by the people. This is discussed in the following quote, "An absolute negative on the legislature appears, at first view, to be the natural defense with which the executive magistrate should be armed. But perhaps it would be neither altogether safe nor alone sufficient. On ordinary occasions it might not be exerted with the requisite firmness, and on extraordinary occasions it might be perfidiously abused. May not this defect of an absolute negative be supplied by some qualified connection between this weaker department and the weaker branch of the stronger department, by which the latter may be led to support the constitutional rights of the former, without being too much detached from the rights of its own department? If the principles on which these observations are founded be just, as I persuade myself they are, and they be applied as a criterion to the several State constitutions, and to the federal Constitution it will be found that if the latter does not perfectly correspond with them, the former are infinitely less able to bear such a test."