CHECKS & BALANCES IN US CONSTITUTION

Project of Major Political System

Submitted by: Harish Kumar Salame

Roll No. 55

Semester III

Section: B

B.A LLB (Hons.)

Submitted to: Dr. B.K. Mahakul

(Faculty of Political Science)

Hidayatullah National Law University, Raipur, Chhattisgarh.

Submitted On: 15/02/2016

 DECLARATION

I, Harish Kumar Salame, hereby declare that, the project work entitled, “Checks & Balances in
US Constitution” submitted to H.N.L.U., Raipur is record of an original work done by me
under the able guidance of Dr. B.K. Mahakul, Faculty Member, H.N.L.U, Raipur.

Harish Kumar Salame

Roll no. 55

Date- 15/02/2016
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Thanks to the Almighty who gave me the strength to accomplish the project with sheer hard
work and honesty .I feel highly elated to work on the topic “Checks & Balances in US
Constitution”
The practical realization of this project has obligated the assistance of many persons. I
express my deepest regard and gratitude for Dr. B.K. Mahakul, (Faculty of Political Science).
His consistent supervision, constant inspiration and invaluable guidance have been of
immense help in understanding and carrying out the nuances of the project report.

I would like to thank my family and friends without whose support and encouragement, this
project would not have been a reality even to repay them in words is beyond the domain of my
lexicon.

I take this opportunity to also thank the University and the Vice Chancellor for providing
extensive database resources in the Library and through Internet.

Some printing errors might have crept in, which are deeply regretted. I would be grateful to
receive comments and suggestions to further improve this project report.

Harish Kumar Salame

Roll No.55
 Contents
Declaration
Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. Checks and Balances …………………………………………………

1.1 Three Branches of Government…………

2. Importance of separation of power and checks and balances..……

3. How the system of checks and balances works……………………..

4. Examples of how the powers of different braches has been used….

Conclusion…………………………………………………….
References …………………………………………………….
INTRODUCTION
The government of the United States is based on a written constitution, the shortest in the world
in fact. This constitution consists of a Preamble, seven Articles, and 27 Amendments. From
this document, the entire federal government was created. In the system set up by the U.S.
Constitution, the national government is divided into three branches, each branch has its own
powers and areas of influence, the three branches of the government: legislative, executive,
and judicial. These three branches are not independent of one another because the Constitution
set up a system of checks and balances to help ensure that no one branch became too powerful.
Each branch has powers that it can use to check and balance the operations and power of the
other two branches.
Overview Of Literature

The Constitution Of The United States Of America

James Madison
Jan 1st 1970 applewood books
This book covers the historical developments and evolution of American constitution. Talks
about the various features of the constitution and how it has managed to maintain peace and
order in the country.
Selected constitution of the world
This book covers the historical background constitutions of different countries . Talks about
the various features of the constitution and how it has managed to maintain peace and order in
the country.

OBJECTIVE

To know about the US constitution and separation of power

And how the three branches works

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
The method of research adopted for the project is the analytical and descriptive method.
The texts that were used for the project include articles, research papers and news given in
various websites as well as online journals.
 CHECKS AND BALANCES
First known use of checks and balances was 1787. Definition. A fundamental principle of
American government, guaranteed by the Constitution, whereby each branch of the
government (executive, judicial, and legislative) has some measure of influence over the other
branches and may choose to block procedures of the other branches.
A system in which the different parts of an organization has power that restricts other
organizations and control the other parts so that no part can become too powerful. In short we
can say that checks and balances are the powers distributed to the organizations of the state or
nation which allows government or any authorized body to amend or veto1 Acts prevent any
one branch from exerting too much power.

THREE BRANCHES OF THE GOVERNMENT

 Legislative Branch - This branch consists of the Congress which is responsible for making
the federal laws. Congress consists of two houses: the Senate and the House of Representatives.
 Executive Branch - The Executive power lies with the President of the United States who is
given the job of executing, enforcing, and administering the laws and government. The
Bureaucracy is part of the Executive Branch.
 Judicial Branch - The judicial power of the United States is vested in the Supreme Court and
the federal courts. Their job is to interpret and apply US laws through cases brought before
them. Another important power of the Supreme Court is that of Judicial Review whereby they
can rule laws unconstitutional.

Checks and Balances of the Legislative Branch

The Legislative Branch is given the powers to make the laws. It has the following checks over
the Executive Branch:

 May override presidential vetoes with a two-thirds vote

 Has the power over the purse strings to actually fund any executive actions
 May remove the president through impeachment
 Senate approves treaties
 Senate approves presidential appointments
The Legislative Branch has the following checks over the Judicial Branch:

 Creates lower courts

 May remove judges through impeachment

1
A presidential veto is the main way that the president checks the legislative branch according to the checks
and balances that the founding fathers created with the US Constitution. In this way, the president can
effectively say "no" to any bill that comes across his desk.
 Senate approves appointments of judges

Checks and Balances of the Executive Branch

The Executive Branch is given the power to carry out the laws. It has the following checks over
the Legislative Branch:

 Veto power
 Ability to call special sessions of Congress
 Can recommend legislation
 Can appeal to the people concerning legislation and more
The Executive Branch has the following checks over the Judicial Branch:
 President appoints Supreme Court and other federal judges

Checks and Balances of the Judicial Branch

The Judicial Branch is given the power to interpret the laws. It has the following checks over
the Executive Branch:

 Judges, once appointed for life, are free from controls from the executive branch
 Courts can judge executive actions to be unconstitutional through the power of judicial review

The Judicial Branch has the following checks over the Legislative Branch:
 Courts can judge legislative acts to be unconstitutional.

The system was meant to keep the three branches in balance. Even though there have been
times when one branch has risen preeminent, overall the three branches have achieved a
workable balance with no one branch holding all the governmental power.

IMPORTANCE OF SEPARATION OF PPOWERS AND CHECKS AND BALANCES

This concept is one of the most important parts of the American Republic. Under the American
system, there is a legislature, and executive branch, and Supreme Court. Each branch of
government keeps the other in check to ensure that no one branch becomes more powerful than
another. With the events of recent months, IRS, Dept. of Justice, and drone program scandals,
the issue of the power of branches of government has become a central issue at hand, whether
it is specifically stated or not. The power of the Executive Branch was severely criticized after
the exposure of the Obama administration’s drone program to systematically kill American
citizens suspected of terrorism. The IRS has allegedly abused its power as a tax agency to
intimidate Conservative groups, and possibly even sway election results. The Attorney
General’s office has been caught spying on reporters, threatening freedom of the press.
Needless to say, the separation of powers between branches has become very slim in the past
few years.
The term “separation of powers” originates to Baron de Montesquieu, a French Enlightenment
philosopher. He used the models of ancient Rome and the British Constitutional system to
theorize the ideal distribution of governmental powers between executive, legislative and
judicial branches. The purpose of this is to ensure that no one party or belief can have more
control over the government than another. History shows that when one group with the same
ideology is in power, tyranny and mass slaughter soon follow.
The separation of powers creates unique roles for each branch of government. Here are some
of the roles of each branch. In the legislative branch, the laws are created, budgets are passed,
and wars are declared. The executive branch enforces, or vetoes the laws that the legislative
branch creates, declares states of emergency, and appoints federal judges, cabinet advisors and
heads of other department at the approval of the Senate. The judicial branch determines which
laws apply to specific cases; reviews constitutionality of laws, and determine interpretations of
laws.
the Constitution is the law of the land. However, it only continues to be so if elected officials
choose to uphold rather than tear it down. The Constitution provides a method for change, as
the Founders created it this way, should such an incidence require its modification.
However, let’s say that the legislative branch had the power to create any law it so desired. Any
legislation could be passed, and there would not be a way to oppose it. However, there are two
safeguards; if the executive branch disagreed with the law, it could be vetoed; or, if a lawsuit
was brought against this law, the judicial branch could decide if the law was Constitutional or
not. Both of the two other branches ensure that the legislative branch cannot pass
unconstitutional or unethical legislation. Another example of preventing malicious or disagreed
legislation/appointees is the filibuster. In March, 2013, Senator Rand Paul filibustered the vote
for CIA head nominee John Brennan. This was due to Senator’s Pauls’ concern over Brennan’s
involvement with the Obama administration’s controversial drone program.
Another example is if the executive branch appointed people to be judges and department
heads, but either these people were not qualified, or had a record of corruption, the Senate could
reject these appointments to ensure the integrity of the system. Another example of preventing
malicious or disagreed legislation/appointees is the filibuster. In March, 2013, Senator Rand
Paul filibustered the vote for CIA head nominee John Brennan. This was due to Senator’s
Pauls’ concern over Brennan’s involvement with the Obama administration’s controversial
drone program. This filibuster was an example of how the legislative branch keeps the
executive branch in check.
This system seems flawless, but the problem with this system, as any system of government,
is human nature. History shows us that when opportunity for power shows itself to a person or
group, it is seldom that any resist. An example of how the balance of power became endangered
was in the 2008-2010 years of President Obama’s first term. Both houses of Congress were
controlled by the Democratic Party, as was the executive branch. What happened was the
controversial “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act” was created and passed, with little
consideration for the harmful effects the bill would create.
There was still the option of the judicial branch saying the law was unconstitutional, but, as
human nature is not constant, a traditionally Conservative judge, Chief Justice John Roberts
voted in favor of the bill, surprising many. The passing of this law shows that even our highly
sophisticated separation of powers, and checks and balances is not perfect.

THIS IS HOW THE CHECKS AND BALANCE SYSTEM WORKS IN US

CONSTITUION
Legislative Branch Makes the laws
Executive Branch Enforces and carries out the laws.
Judicial Branch Interprets the laws

Not only does each branch of the government have particular powers each branch has certain
powers over the other branches. This is done to keep them balanced and to prevent one
branch form ever gaining too much power. For example:

Congress may pass laws........but the President can veto them.

The President can veto laws.......but Congress can override the veto with a 2/3 vote.

The President and Congreess may agree on a law..........but the Supreme Court can declare a
law unconsitutional.

The President can appoint Judges and other government officials.......but Senate must approve
them

.Supreme Court judges have life terms.......but they can be impeached.

EXAMPLES OF USING THE POWER OF CHECKS AND BALANCES

There are many ways (there are many more than listed) that the Constitution balances power.
Real life conflicts that test the system have occured throughout history. These checks and
balances are used on a regular basis.

1. After the Civil War President Andrew Johnson vetoed over 20 bills.
2. After the Civil War Congress overrode overrode over 20 Presidential vetoes!
3. In1987 President Ronald Reagan appointed Judge Robert Bork to the Supreme
Court, his nomination was defeated.
4. In 1935 and 1936 the Supreme Court declared the NIRA and then the AAA (two
New Deal programs passed during the Roosevelt administration)
unconstitutional.
5. In 1918 Congress refused to ratify the Treaty of Versailles, a peace treaty ending
World War I that President Wilson had worked very hard on.
 CONCLUSION
From the above mentioned account, it becomes quite clear as to how the US Constitution has
grown and developed. It has kept pace with times. Therefore, it can be concluded that
American Constitution framed at Philadelphia has steadily expanded though amendments,
laws passed by the Congress, judicial interpretations, executive orders, doctrine of Implied
Powers and conventions.
The above mentioned are the salient features of the US Constitution which were designed by
the constitution-framers in such a way so that it satisfies the needs and aspirations of the
American people. This Constitution has served well, continues to serve well, and is destined
to serve well in future the people of the United States of America.
The checks and balances has played an important role in US constitution.
 REFERENCES
Bibliography

1. Selected Constitutions of the world (M.V. Pylee)

Universal law publishing co. pvt.ltd
2. The Constitution of the United States Of America (James Madison)
Applewood books jan1st 1970

Wibliography
 http://americanhistory.about.com
 http://academia.edu
 http://shodhganga.org