Checks and Balances

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and introduced to avoid tyranny, in order to make sure that not a single branch of political power would gain absolute power. The authors of the US Constitution believed that such a system was of crucial importance for ensuring freedom: "It is by balancing each of these powers against the other two, that the efforts in human nature toward tyranny can alone be checked and restrained, and any degree of freedom preserved in the constitution" (Encyclopædia Britannica). So we have a judicial review, which means that the courts have the power to examine the actions of the legislative and the executive branches in order to make sure that their decisions are constitutional. Other checks and balances include the presidential veto of legislation, although Congress may override it by a two-thirds vote. Only Congress can accept and allocate funds, so that every transaction is verified by others to avoid possible abuse of power. Congress also proposes constitutional amendments, which may ...

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