The American governmental system is an immaculate example of balance. It's symbiotic - each federal branch relies on the other two. They create a beautiful three-part harmony. This beauty, this symmetry, was intentional. Each part was crafted in a specific way, with love and foresight and incredible amounts of thought. Time, effort, and argument were all expended on the development of the United States government.
The Founding Fathers had seen the evils of monarchy. They had just gotten rid of George III and weren't too excited about the idea of heading that direction again. Sure, they could trust George Washington at that moment, but there was no guarantee that his descendants would be good men like he was.
Being educated men, they had read, and therefore knew, a lot of history. They understood the story of Athens. She had been a pure democracy, with as many people as possible making the decisions for the whole. This system saw reversed decisions every few years, unwise expeditions, imprudent spending, and overall waste. It had been called "agreeable anarchy." The Founders knew that they couldn't trust the people to always make good decisions.
But, they were also not fond of oligarchy. It seemed like too much of the same. The few gave rise to aristocrats, and that brought up the idea of feudalism. Although England had already started to come out of that oppressive system, much of Europe was still mired down in it. The few were powerful and rich while the many were poor and disregarded. A country ruled by the personal interests of a small group could never be strong or united.
What other option did the Founders have? These were the prevailing ideas of their day. Their options were severely limited.
Until they decided to push them all together.
Our presidency is our version of monarchy. We have one figurehead, one person in charge. The president is viewed as the most powerful because of the influence that they hold with the rest of the world. But, instead of serving for life and passing the title to an heir, the people would choose (through electors so as to avoid the pitfalls of direct democracy) who they considered the best for the job every four years.
To keep the American monarchy from getting out of control, the snapshot of democracy was set up. This democracy certainly was not all-encompassing then, and it is not all-encompassing now. The snapshot of democracy is found in Congress - in the House of Representatives and the Senate. These men and women represent the rest of the people, getting the government as close to democracy as is safely possible. This snapshot ensures that the interests of the people are heard and looked after, as well as reigning in the power of the presidency.
But, democracy is likely to get out of hand - even if it is only a snapshot. So, the Founders crafted the American oligarchy found in the Supreme Court. This small group of men and women were given the power to look over the laws that democracy was forming, to watch how much power the monarchy was exercising. They served as the last line of defense against political overreach.
The executive, legislative, and judicial branches give us the very best of each type of government. Because there are good things to each. Monarchy gives us a person, a symbol, to follow. Democracy gives us the freedom and the forum to be heard. Oligarchy gives us a stable middle ground between tyranny and anarchy.
But, each type of government has its evils. Monarchy does turn to tyranny, democracy does turn to anarchy, and oligarchy does turn to feudalism.
The Founders wanted to safeguard against those things.
The American government is beautiful. It works because people have to work together. One can't disregard the others; one can't just break away. There are checks on that. They balance each other out - just like a good relationship.
In every relationship, problems will come up. There will be disagreements, arguments, and power shifts. But, the sign of a good relationship is that, after things get shaken up, it can return to a normal, well-balanced coexistence.
Any changes to one of these branches could throw the whole system off balance to the point where it can't right itself anymore. While adjustments need to be made as the nation moves forward, putting too much faith in one branch over the others, insisting that changes be made when it's not ready to change, elevating one type of government and despising the others, can destroy the perfect balance that was intended.
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