There are mainly three fundamental branches of the U. S government and they include the Judicial branch, the Executive branch as well as the Legislative branch. The fathers of the noble constitution created these branches in order to separate the powers among them and to ensure that they all work independently originally designed these three branches. They also wanted to initiate a dependent democratic system that would offer various checks and balances for all the branches to work in harmony. The checks and balance were designed to constrain and disperse power for the purposes of maintaining the preferred powers among the three branches (Storey 02).
The Congress is the other name for the Legislative branch and it is comprised of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The fundamental; power vested in the Congress is wholly on making laws although it also has other powers such as the power of controlling spending policies and taxation, and the power to impeach federal officials. Other includes the power to initiate various revenue bills and the power to elect a President when there is an election tie among the candidates. It is paramount to note that the Congress has immense power but they have to follow stipulated policies and procedures in order for it to initiate any bill. The process of initiating a bill includes the actual initiation of the bill, voting of the bill in both the Senate and the House of Representatives, if the bill gathers majority votes, it is then sent to the President for assent or approval. If the President signs the bill then it becomes a law but if the President does not sign it, then the Congress has the power to veto the President’s vote through a two-thirds vote mainly from the Senate and the House of Representatives. It is also worth noting that the Congress is allocated to the various states mainly on the House of Representatives representation. However, every state is allocated two Senators in spite of its population and size (Wilson, John J. Dilulio and Meena 12).
On the other hand, the Executive branch is made up of the President who also holds the position of the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. The major power of this branch is to enforce effectively the laws, which the Congress has initiated. The President has the sole responsibility of appointing the independent federal agencies as well as the Cabinet in order for them to handle efficiently the daily operations of enforcement and administration of the federal laws. This branch also participates in diplomacy with other countries and it can sign and negotiate treaties with a two-thirds vote from the Senate. The paramount duty of the Vice-President is to ensure always that he/she is ready to assume Presidential roles in case of any event such as the President’s resignation, temporary incapacitation, or death (Brannen and Lawrence 59).
The Judicial branch comprises of the United States Supreme Court and its major powers are to interpret the laws. The Congress has the sole power of determining the number of the courts, the ultimate power of establishing courts that are inferior to the Supreme Court as well as their jurisdictions. The President is the only person who appoints the federal judges and the Senate confirms them. The Supreme Court duties include interpreting the Constitution, settling disputes between states and handling issues that concerns the federal government (Storey 37).
It is paramount to note that, though the original designers had excellent intentions of maintaining equal powers between the three branches of the government, there are many changes, which have happened, and this has led to erosion on the checks and balances. It is evident that power has slowly drifted to the Legislative branch and the Constitutional system of checking and balancing has gradually been corrupted over time. The vital balance between the government system and the economic system has been lost. Thus, the Legislative branch has more slight power as compared to the Judicial and Executive branches because of its immense power to pass legislation (Wilson, John J. Dilulio and Meena 43).
In conclusion, it is no doubt that the Legislative branch has the ultimate power to change laws, alter the Constitution and pass laws. Laws in any country dictate the direction it will take and this affects every citizen in that country as well as other countries. The Legislative branch has an upper hand over the other two branches since it when it passes the laws, the President who heads the Executive branch only has two options of either signing or rejecting (veto) the law. In case the President decides to veto it, then a two-thirds majority vote by the Congress will have over-ruled the presidential veto. It is also worth noting that the Legislative branch has the absolute power to control and create all laws pertaining finances of the United States. This is a paramount role since the country requires finances in order for it to function efficiently. The Congress also has the ultimate authority to dismiss and impeach any occupants who belong to the Executive branch. Thus, it is very clear from this study that the Legislative branch has powers that are slightly more powerful as compared to the other two branches (Brannen and Lawrence 74).
Works Citied
Brannen, Daniel E, and Lawrence W. Baker. Checks and Balances: The Three Branches of the American Government. Detroit: Thomson/Gale, 2005. Print.
Storey, William. Us Government and Politics. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2010. Print.
Wilson, James Q, John J. Dilulio, and Meena Rose. American Government: Brief Version. Boston: Wadsworth/Cengage Learning, 2014. Print.
