In conclusion, The Legislative Branch is the most powerful branch of the United States government not only because of the powers given to them by the Constitution, but also the implied powers that Congress has. There is also Congress’s ability to triumph over the Checks and balances that limits their power.
Which branch of government is the most powerful essay?
The Legislative Branch The legislative branch is the most powerful branch in government. The legislative branch is in charge of making and passing laws. They have the power to override a president’s decision, stop laws from being passed, and basically control all decisions the governments makes.
Which branch is more powerful executive or legislative?
The congress may have more members but in the end, their numbers make it very hard for everyone to agree. The president can make decisions more freely. This makes the presidential powers easier to use and ultimately means that the executive branch is stronger than the legislative branch.
Is Congress the most powerful branch of government?
Constitutionally speaking, the Congress is by far the most powerful of allthe branches of the government. It is the representative of the people (and,originally, the states), and derives its power from the people. … This is a lot of power, and the framers made sure thatthe power could not be wielded without balance.
Which branch is the weakest?
In Federalist No. 78, Hamilton said that the Judiciary branch of the proposed government would be the weakest of the three branches because it had “no influence over either the sword or the purse, …
What are 3 things the judicial branch does?
- Interpreting state laws;
- Settling legal disputes;
- Punishing violators of the law;
- Hearing civil cases;
- Protecting individual rights granted by the state constitution;
- Determing the guilt or innocence of those accused of violating the criminal laws of the state;
Which branch of government is the least powerful?
The judicial branch—even though it has the power to interpret laws—is considered the weakest of the three branches by many because it cannot ensure that its decisions are enforced.
Which branch is the president in?
The power of the Executive Branch is vested in the President of the United States, who also acts as head of state and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.
Who heads the judicial branch?
Instead it left much of that responsibility to Congress, stipulating (in Article III) only that judicial power be “vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish.” As a result, the judicial branch is headed by the Supreme Court of the United States, …
What makes Congress so powerful?
Why is US Congress so Powerful? 1) It is independent from the executive branch of government and cannot be controlled by it. Congress can and does ignore or over-rule presidential policies. 2) It controls the purse-strings, a particular function of the House of Representatives.
Which branch can declare war?
The Constitution grants Congress the sole power to declare war.
Who is over the Congress?
| Speaker of the House | Nancy Pelosi (D) since January 3, 2019 |
| House Majority Leader | Steny Hoyer (D) since January 3, 2019 |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 535 voting members 100 senators 435 representatives 6 non-voting members |
Which of the 3 branches is most powerful?
In conclusion, The Legislative Branch is the most powerful branch of the United States government not only because of the powers given to them by the Constitution, but also the implied powers that Congress has. There is also Congress’s ability to triumph over the Checks and balances that limits their power.
What makes the executive branch so powerful?
The purpose of the Executive Branch is to carry out laws. It consists of the president, the vice president, the cabinet, and other federal agencies. … He has the power to appoint judges and nominate heads of federal agencies. He also has the authority to veto laws that Congress passes.
What does Federalist No 70 say?
70 argues in favor of the unitary executive created by Article II of the United States Constitution. According to Alexander Hamilton, a unitary executive is necessary to: ensure accountability in government. enable the president to defend against legislative encroachments on his power.
What power do judges have?
The federal courts’ most important power is that of judicial review, the authority to interpret the Constitution. When federal judges rule that laws or government actions violate the spirit of the Constitution, they profoundly shape public policy.
The United States of America is a country where powers are separated in order to prevent an all powerful branch of government. The three main branches of government are the Executive, Judicial and Legislative branch. These branched serve the purpose of checking and balancing each other. The Executive branch has the power to implement laws. These laws are brought on by the Legislative branch. Lastly, the Judicial branch then evaluates the laws, and check if they are constitutional or unconstitutional. This process is called Checks and Balances, “The system of separate institutions sharing some powers… its purpose is to keep power divided among the three branches” (Turner,27). By this definition not one power is meant to be all powerful, although …show more content…
This is because it is the most powerful branch. The first reason is that they have the ability to create laws. Many people might argue that they can not get laws passed without the Presidents approval. Although this is true to an extent, it is not always the case. Congress can overrule the Presidents decision by simply getting 2/3 of Congress to agree that a bill should become a law. Ultimately, if both houses are Republican and the President is a Democrat, they will be able to pass conservative bills without the authorizations of the President. This make them extremely powerful, even more powerful than the President himself. Another reason that they are the most powerful branch is because they have the power to remove the President and Federal Judges form impeachment. People might argue that the Supreme Court has more power because they can declare laws that are created unconstitutional. TO an extent it is true, although this does not make them more powerful. The Legislative branch can pass a law, and by the time the Supreme Court reviews it, it would have been in effect for a very long time. This would allow congress to get things done, before anyone even realizes what just happened. Not only that, but if they feel like the Supreme Court of the President are not doing things right, they can remove them. This makes them the actual “law” of the government, not the Supreme Court. Lastly, Congress can declare war. This might the most important power they posses. This would put thousands of lives, and millions of dollars in danger if one branch of government deemed it necessary. No other branch has this kind of power to affect a countries people, economy, and national relationships. Although the Executive branch can send troops abroad, they can only do it for a one-month period, after that it is up to Congress to decide what occurs next. They keep the Presidents decisions in check. Based on
The legislative branch of the federal government, composed primarily of the U.S. Congress, is responsible for making the country’s laws. The members of the two houses of Congress—the House of Representatives and the Senate—are elected by the citizens of the United States.
Powers of Congress
At the Constitutional Convention in 1787, the framers of the U.S. Constitution sought to build the foundations of a strong central government. But they also wanted to preserve the liberty of individual citizens, and ensure the government didn’t abuse its power.
To strike this balance, they divided power between three separate branches of government: the legislative, the executive and the judicial.
Article I of the Constitution established the U.S. Congress, a bi-cameral legislative body consisting of two chambers, or houses. As shown by its prime spot at the beginning of the Constitution, the framers initially intended the legislative branch—which they saw as closest to the people—to be the most powerful of the three branches of government.
But as the powers of the presidency and the executive branch expanded during the 19th and 20th centuries, the relative power of Congress diminished, though it still remains essential to the functioning of the nation’s government.
House Of Representatives
There are 435 total representatives in the House; each state gets a different number of representatives depending on its population. Additional non-voting delegates represent the District of Columbia and the U.S. territories, such as Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Members of the House of Representatives elect their leader, known as the Speaker of the House. The speaker is third in the line of succession to the presidency, after the president and the vice president.
The House of Representatives is considered to be the chamber of Congress that is closest to the people, or most responsive to public needs and opinion. To ensure this responsiveness, people elect their representatives every two years, and all House members are up for reelection at the same time. Representatives may serve an unlimited number of terms in office.
According to Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution, elected representatives must be at least 25 years old, and have been a U.S. citizen for at least seven years. They must also live in the state they represent in Congress.
Senate
As the framers designed it, the Senate is more insulated from contact with the electorate than the House, and its members are expected to make decisions based more on experience and wisdom rather than ever-changing public opinion.
In contrast to the House—where representation is proportional to population—each state has two senators, regardless of size. This system of equal representation in the Senate benefits smaller states, as they have a disproportionate influence relative to their size.
Senators serve six-year terms, and there is no limit to how many terms they can serve. Only one-third of the Senate is up for election every two years. According to the Constitution, a prospective senator must be at least 30 years old and have been a U.S. citizen for at least nine years. Like representatives, they must also live in the state they represent.
The vice president is not only second in command of the executive branch, but also president of the Senate. If there is a tie in the Senate when voting on a piece of legislation, the vice president casts the deciding vote. The most senior member of the Senate is known as the president pro tempore, who presides over the Senate in the vice president’s absence.
Legislative Agencies and Political Parties
In addition to the two houses of Congress, the legislative branch includes a number of legislative agencies that support Congress in carrying out its duties. Among these agencies are the Congressional Budget Office, the Copyright Office and the Library of Congress.
Though the Constitution did not mention political parties, they have grown into one of the key institutions of the U.S. government today. Since the mid-19th century, the two dominant parties in the United States have been the Republicans and the Democrats. In both chambers of Congress, there is a majority party and a minority party based on which party holds the most seats.
In addition to the speaker of the House, who is the leader of the majority party, there is also a majority leader and a minority leader. Both majority and minority parties choose representatives to serve as whips, who count votes and mediate between party leadership and regular members of Congress.
What Does the Legislative Branch Do?
Anyone can write a prospective piece of legislation, aka a “bill,” but it must be introduced in the House or Senate by its primary sponsor, either a representative or senator. After a bill is introduced, a small group or committee meets to research it, ask questions and make additions or changes.
The bill then heads to the floor of the House or Senate for debate, where other representatives or senators can propose additional amendments or changes. If a majority votes in favor of the bill, it goes to the other house of Congress to be debated there.
Once both houses of Congress approve the same version of a bill, it goes to the president, who can either sign the bill into law or veto it. If the president vetoes it, the bill bounces back to Congress, which can override the veto with a two-thirds vote of those present in both the House and Senate.
The presidential veto and Congress’ ability to override it are both part of the system of checks and balances established by the Constitution to ensure no single branch of government exercises too much power.
Other Congressional Powers
In addition to writing and passing laws, Congress also has various other powers, including the power to declare war. Congress also creates an annual budget for the government, levies taxes on citizens to pay for the budget and is responsible for making sure money collected through taxes is used for its intended purpose.
Though the two chambers of Congress must jointly decide on how to exercise many of the powers given to them by the Constitution, each chamber also has specific powers that only it can execute. Among the unique powers of the House of Representatives are impeaching a federal official and proposing all tax legislation.
For its part, the Senate alone can ratify treaties signed with other countries, try impeached officials and confirm all presidential appointments, including the members of the president’s Cabinet and justices of the Supreme Court.
Sources
The Legislative Branch, WhiteHouse.gov.
Legislative Branch, USA.gov.