Making government control itself : checks and balances, History

Assignment Help:

Making Government Control Itself: Checks and Balances

The American Revolutionaries were understandably distrustful of government. They were familiar with both ancient and recent history, and believed that governments were prone to abuse their powers and deprive citizens of their freedom. After successfully rebelling from British tyranny, they confronted the task of creating a form of government that would not degenerate into a tyranny. Although they foresaw this as a difficult task, they also considered it an opportunity to create a new type of society, one in which citizens' freedoms would be protected. If they could somehow devise a form of government that could be prevented from abusing its authority, they might create a society truly new in human history.

James Madison, the principal author of the American Constitution, knew that creating a strong, successful government that would not become too strong at citizens' expense was an extremely difficult balance to strike. As he put it, "The chief difficulty lies in this: one must first enable the government to control the governed. Secondly, one must also oblige the government to control itself." Madison, like most of the Framers, believed that citizens must provide the most important check on government's abuse of power, but he also sought to create a form of government that would actually regulate and limit itself. In order to prevent their new government from becoming too strong, the Framers built several mechanisms to limit government's power into their new Constitution, creating a government with three branches, each of which had a distinct role to play. This is the idea of separation of powers. Each branch also had some power to limit the actions of the other two. This is the idea of checks and balances. In response to the Framers' fears of government, the government of the United States is actually designed to be inefficient, so that it is less likely to become too powerful or be able to deprive citizens of their liberties.

 


Related Discussions:- Making government control itself : checks and balances

Reaction of southerners over lincoln''s death, 1. Why do you believe that m...

1. Why do you believe that many Southerners were just as upset as Northerners over Lincoln's death? 2. The execution of Mary Surratt raised serious moral and ethical questions a

Might makes right - explain this idea, Why do you think that the Anti-Imper...

Why do you think that the Anti-Imperialist League Platform authors refer to the "might makes right" idea as an "ancient heresy"? A:)to contrast the actions of the Spanish in Cub

Discuss the impact that technology had on rome, Discuss the impact that tec...

Discuss the impact that technology had on Rome and its empire. Why ways the system of law so vitalto connect the huge empire together?

Virtue and a good character, Take a position, for or against, this statemen...

Take a position, for or against, this statement: Virtue and a good character are not necessary to good decision making as long as you follow the law.

Political developments in turkey and iran, Compare and contrast the post-Wo...

Compare and contrast the post-World War I political developments in Turkey and Iran

Explain why a country''s national interest, Elaborate on whether and how th...

Elaborate on whether and how the United States thought it was pursuing its national interest by turning to imperialism in the late nineteenth century. Describe what America's vi

Protestant reformation and the european order, What was the protestant refo...

What was the protestant reformation and the European Order?

Civil rights struggles for blacks and hispanics similar, In what ways were ...

In what ways were the civil rights struggles for blacks and Hispanics similar? How were they dissimilar?

Authoritarian political institutions, Unlike the more vulnerable democratic...

Unlike the more vulnerable democratic West, the nations of Southeast Asia were unaffected by the world financial crisis of 1997, primarily because of their more authoritarian polit

World History, What three factors are said to be the primary influences on ...

What three factors are said to be the primary influences on one’s morality?

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd