In The Next Five Minutes, I'll Answer Your Question, What Are The
Monday, 05 July 2010 07:58 | 
Written by Lynn Schott |
Since the 2008 Presidential election, Congress and the White House have made many policy changes, and have passed sweeping new laws. Does the government have the right to be involved in health care, car companies, or banks? Have our elected officials overstepped the powers of limited government in the Constitution?
Since the 2008 Presidential election, Congress and the White House have made many policy changes, and have passed sweeping new laws. Does the government have the right to be involved in health care, car companies, or banks? Have our elected officials overstepped the powers of limited government in the Constitution?
Any discussion of the limited power of government must begin with a list of the 3 branches of government. Then we can define limited government in light of delegated powers of the Constitution.
The three (U.S.A) usa branches of government are: Legislative, Executive and Judicial. Article 1 of the Constitution refers to the Legislative branch known as Congress, which is made up of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Each state gets to elect two Senators, no matter the population of the state. Each Senator serves for 6 years before standing for re-election. Members of the House of Representatives are chosen by voters in their state Congressional districts. A state's Congressional districts are based on the Census population. Congressmen serve for 2 year terms before standing for re-election.
The Legislative branch is mentioned first in the Constitution, because the Founders saw it as the most important and powerful branch. The primary job of Legislators is to make law. The Constitution gives legislators the power to pass tax law, laws governing citizenship, the power to impeach, and the authority to declare war. Article 1 of the Constitution shows us examples of limited government.
Since a Congressman must stand for election every two years, he must think very carefully about a decision to raise taxes on the people. All tax laws must originate in the House. The President and the Supreme Court cannot propose tax bills. The Founders established the limited power of government to protect our liberty.
The House of Representatives has the power to bring impeachment charges against a badly-behaved President. A safeguard known as the separation of powers requires that an impeachment trial be conducted by the Senate. Again, the House must be VERY sure that impeachment is warranted, lest the public vote them out of office as a punishment. The trial is conducted by Senators, who are elected every six years, and are insulated from the "passions of the people." Since Congressmen and Senators play different roles in impeachment, power is separated. This example is a definition of limited government power.
The Executive Branch is filled by the President and his cabinet. The Executive Branch is responsible for carrying out, or executing, the laws enacted by the Legislators. Since we have a republican form of government, our President is chosen by electors in the Electoral College, not by popular vote. The purpose of the Electoral College is to prevent "intrigue and cabal" when choosing the Executive. Again, power is separated, and there is a check within the three branches of government.
The Judicial is the last branch on the list of the 3 branches of government. It was intended to be the least powerful, so it is mentioned last. Jefferson cautioned that creating a Supreme Court would deprive the other two branches of government some of their delegated powers. His cautions seem important now, as the Court often strikes down state and Federal laws, even those passed by popular initiative. Some assert that these decisions violate limited government in the Constitution.
Supreme Court justices receive lifetime appointments from the President. Each appointment must be confirmed by the Senate. Impeachment is the only way to unseat a justice under our definition of limited government. This rarely happens. Conversely, if it was too easy to unseat a justice, we would have justices making decisions with their popularity in mind instead of the law.
Answering the questions about the government's role in our lives is easier if we understand the usa branches of government and their assigned roles. The Founders limited government in the Constitution because they feared the tyranny they had just left in Europe. Each branch has specified powers, and each of the three branches of us government has some power that checks the powers of the other two. All of these checks and balances were put in place to safeguard our liberties. In the end, Americans are for limited government, because we want to preserve our Constitutional freedoms.
Since the 2008 Presidential election, Congress and the White House have made many policy changes, and have passed sweeping new laws. Does the government have the right to be involved in health care, car companies, or banks? Have our elected officials overstepped the powers of limited government in the Constitution?
Any discussion of the limited power of government must begin with a list of the 3 branches of government. Then we can define limited government in light of delegated powers of the Constitution.
The three (U.S.A) usa branches of government are: Legislative, Executive and Judicial. Article 1 of the Constitution refers to the Legislative branch known as Congress, which is made up of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Each state gets to elect two Senators, no matter the population of the state. Each Senator serves for 6 years before standing for re-election. Members of the House of Representatives are chosen by voters in their state Congressional districts. A state's Congressional districts are based on the Census population. Congressmen serve for 2 year terms before standing for re-election.
The Legislative branch is mentioned first in the Constitution, because the Founders saw it as the most important and powerful branch. The primary job of Legislators is to make law. The Constitution gives legislators the power to pass tax law, laws governing citizenship, the power to impeach, and the authority to declare war. Article 1 of the Constitution shows us examples of limited government.
Since a Congressman must stand for election every two years, he must think very carefully about a decision to raise taxes on the people. All tax laws must originate in the House. The President and the Supreme Court cannot propose tax bills. The Founders established the limited power of government to protect our liberty.
The House of Representatives has the power to bring impeachment charges against a badly-behaved President. A safeguard known as the separation of powers requires that an impeachment trial be conducted by the Senate. Again, the House must be VERY sure that impeachment is warranted, lest the public vote them out of office as a punishment. The trial is conducted by Senators, who are elected every six years, and are insulated from the "passions of the people." Since Congressmen and Senators play different roles in impeachment, power is separated. This example is a definition of limited government power.
The Executive Branch is filled by the President and his cabinet. The Executive Branch is responsible for carrying out, or executing, the laws enacted by the Legislators. Since we have a republican form of government, our President is chosen by electors in the Electoral College, not by popular vote. The purpose of the Electoral College is to prevent "intrigue and cabal" when choosing the Executive. Again, power is separated, and there is a check within the three branches of government.
The Judicial is the last branch on the list of the 3 branches of government. It was intended to be the least powerful, so it is mentioned last. Jefferson cautioned that creating a Supreme Court would deprive the other two branches of government some of their delegated powers. His cautions seem important now, as the Court often strikes down state and Federal laws, even those passed by popular initiative. Some assert that these decisions violate limited government in the Constitution.
Supreme Court justices receive lifetime appointments from the President. Each appointment must be confirmed by the Senate. Impeachment is the only way to unseat a justice under our definition of limited government. This rarely happens. Conversely, if it was too easy to unseat a justice, we would have justices making decisions with their popularity in mind instead of the law.
Answering the questions about the government's role in our lives is easier if we understand the usa branches of government and their assigned roles. The Founders limited government in the Constitution because they feared the tyranny they had just left in Europe. Each branch has specified powers, and each of the three branches of us government has some power that checks the powers of the other two. All of these checks and balances were put in place to safeguard our liberties. In the end, Americans are for limited government, because we want to preserve our Constitutional freedoms.
About the Author:
Lynn Schott shows students and parents how convenient it is to complete U.S. Government and Economics in Half the Time, and Without the Tears. She invites you to an amazing FREE webinar to discover secrets to earn a high school online diploma fast. Hurry, this webinar will fill up fast! Save your seat now and learn more about inexpensive high school diploma courses.
