The U.S. government has three branches, which are the judicial, the executive, and the legislative. The Constitution distributed the federal government’s powers amongst the three components under the principle of separation of powers (The Arena Group, 2021). Although the Constitution also establishes a system of checks and balances to prevent one branch from becoming more powerful than the others, it is probable to have one component being more prevailing. The White House (n.d.) maintains that the Constitution establishes the Legislative branch of government under Article I and comprises Congress, which contains the Senate and House of Representatives. This article examines the Legislative branch of the U.S. Federal government as the most powerful at present.
Moreover, there are special powers given to Congress by the Constitution that makes the two houses unique. For example, the House of Representatives can impeach the President, and the Senate approves treaties and confirms key presidential appointments. U.S. History (2021) further states that Congress reserves more power than the legislative bodies amongst modern democracies worldwide. However, Congress is composed of many individuals and their variation in beliefs, which limits the Legislative branch’s powers. A news story by BBC (2017) also examines the powers of the branches of the Federal government. It maintains that Congress would have disrupted any deadlock that might have cropped between the judiciary and President by implementing a regulation that overturned the President’s decision (The Arena Group, 2019). Congress could also prevent this stalemate by impeaching a judge or the President. Generally, the Legislative branch can override the Executive’s decision, fully regulate the government’s decisions, and prevent the implementation of regulations.
References
BBC. Taking on Trump: Is the U.S. facing a constitutional crisis? (2017) British Broadcasting Corporation. Web.
The Arena Group (2019). U.S. government: Legislative branch. A& E Television Networks, LLC. Web.
The Arena Group (2021). U.S. government: Three branches of government. A& E Television Networks, LLC. Web.
The White House (n.d.). The Legislative branch. Web.
U.S. History (2021). American government: The powers of Congress. U.S, History Organization.