The Broken Branch: How Congress Is Failing America and How to Get It Back on Track, written by political scientists Thomas E. Mann and Norman J. Ornstein, is a novel which describes how Congress has failed to fill its responsibilities to the people of the United States, and how Congress’s role in the American Constitutional System differs from the part it was designed to play. Mann and Ornstein describe the shift from Congress being a decentralized, committee-based institution to a more regimented one that focuses on political parties rather than committee. The authors believe that Congress cannot succeed in getting the United States back on track unless they start to follow the rules dictated in the Constitution. In addition, Mann and Ornstein …show more content…
Each branch is given specific powers and responsibilities, many of which overlap. However, “it is clear, when push comes to shove, that Congress can trump the other two branches” (14). Congress struggles to keep its head above the water when communicating with the other branches. Article One of the Constitution is about the Legislative branch and is twice as long as Article Two, which is about the Executive branch. In contrast, Article One is four times as long as Article Three, which is on the judiciary. The Framers of the Constitution did this to make it “clear that Congress was to be first among equals of the three branches” (14). …show more content…
Mann and Norman J. Ornstein argue that the Legislative branch is the most broken branch of government. Congress was designed by the Framers of the Constitution of the United States to be an independent and powerful party. The Framers wanted the Legislative branch to represent the vast diversity of people of the United States, to deliberate on important issues and policies, and to check and balance the other branches. However, Congress’s role in the American Constitutional System differs from the part it was meant to play. The authors argue that Congress has failed to fill its responsibilities to the people of the United States because of the division of the Democratic and Republican parties, which leaves little room for compromise and negotiation. Members of Congress focus on their own needs and interests, and will travel to far lengths to prove that their political party is the most powerful. Congress has turned a blind eye to the needs of the American people. Congress cannot succeed in getting the United States back on track unless they start to follow the rules dictated by the Framers of the Constitution. A vast series of decisions made by Congress, driven by Congress’s disregard for institutional procedures, its tendency to focus on personal ethics, and the overpowering culture of corruption, led to Congress failing to implement important changes in the United States
In the past century, people continued to express an increasingly discontent view of Congress especially true when one looks back before the Clinton Impeachment debacle As the size of the nation and the number of congressman have grown, the congress has come under attack by both public influences and congressman themselves. Yet looking at one congressman's relationship with his or her constituents, it would be hard to believe that this is the branch of government that has come under suspect. In “If Ralph Nader says congress is 'The broken branch,' how come we love our congressman so much?” author Richard F. Fenno, Jr., provides insight into this view and why, through congress coming under fire, constituents still feel positively about there congressmen. Although congress is often criticized, its fine tuned functioning is essential in checking the power of congress without hindering the making of legislation.
Davidson, Roger H., Walter J. Oleszek, and Frances E. Lee. Congress and Its Members. Washington, D.C.: CQ, 2009. Print.
...ilities of Congress is that minorities and factions exist: dissent takes place, not disagreements. Verbal brawls take place rather than actual argumentation, and that is what kills democracy. That is why things never get done.
"This inquiry will naturally divide itself into three branches- the objects to be provided for by a federal government, the quantity of power necessary to the accomplishment of those objects, the persons whom that power ought to operate," writes Alexander Hamilton in the Federalist #23 in reference to the separation of powers. The basic concept here is the idea of the federal government being divided into three separate branches that would balance excessive democracy through a system of checks on each other. The three branches, respectively known as the legislature (Article I), the executive (Article II), and the judiciary (Article III), were designed to entice the opponents of the Co...
The United States of America has engaged in the battle known as political polarization since before its foundation in 1776. From the uprising against the powerful British nation to the political issues of today, Americans continue to debate about proper ideology and attempt to choose a side that closely aligns with their personal beliefs. From decade to decade, Americans struggle to determine a proper course of action regarding the country as a whole and will often become divided on important issues. Conflicts between supporters of slavery and abolitionists, between agriculturalists and industrialists, and between industrial workers and capitalists have fueled the divide. At the Congressional level there tends to be a more prevalent display of polarization and is often the blame of Congress’ inefficiency. James Madison intentionally designed Congress to be inefficient by instating a bicameral legislation. Ambition would counter ambition and prevent majority tyranny. George Washington advised against political parties that would contribute to polarization and misrepresentation in his Farewell Address of 1796. Washington warns, “One of the expedients of party to acquire influence within particular districts is to misrepresent the opinions and aims of other districts.” Today, the struggle to increase power between political parties results in techniques to gain even the smallest marginal gains. To truly understand political polarization, we must examine data collected through a variety of means, the effects of rapidly changing technology, and observe what techniques are used to create such a polarized political system.
In the late 1940’s and the early 1960’s books written by liberal Democrats and aggravated members of the articulate tribe sought solutions to find structural reform in the constitutional separation of powers. However, in Congress-Bashing for Beginners by Nelson W. Polsby he says instead of reforms weakening Congress, what happened is we got a considerably strengthened presidency.
“... the constant aim is to divide and arrange the several offices in such a manner as that they may be a check on the other….” (James Madison, Federalists Paper #51, 1788). The Executive Branch can nominate judges and veto laws. The Legislative Branch can approve presidential nominations, override a president’s veto, and impeach the President and judges. Lastly the Judicial Branch can declare laws and presidential acts unconstitutional and confirms the president’s nominations. This shows that the three branches should not control each other, but check and balance
The old idea of the separation of branches has proven to be able to solve modern day issues. However, recent issues have also proven to disregard the system, in which selfish needs over power and manipulate its uses. One example of this would be the over-empowerment of a singular branch within the government. A recent IRS scandal brought up the question as to whether or not the Presidential (executive) branch used the IRS to intimidate the opposite party, in which skepticism arose towards the “equality” of the separated branches. Another example of questionable equality of the balance of branches would be the passing of the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act” (Obamacare) within 2008-10, which was a law passed without the consent of the other branches besides the executive. These are clear examples of how modern day issues can twist and ruin this ‘flawless’ system. These examples, however, show the greater need for the separation of powers in today’s government. As society has grown and evolved, the government’s people, their job being the voice of the people of the country, has turned into a way to achieve selfish wants for our representatives, creating an even more significant need for the separation of powers.
America's republican form of representative government was premised upon the idea of three co-equal branches of government: Executive, Legislative, and Judicial. The three branches, in theory, operate independent of one another and serve as check upon one another. It is this structure of this government, the founders believed, that would retard any establishment of monarchial government that the American Revolution was fought upon. However the civil war, and more specifically the Reconstruction period following it tested these principles to the core. While it may be accurate to characterize governmental struggles that defined Reconstruction as ones that were inter-branch, a more detailed and nuanced survey reveals it was borne more so out of ideologies that were incumbent within each branch. This essay surveys the ideological battles between the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the federal government, and evaluates its impact on the idea of American Federalism from the past going forward.
One of the key branches of the American government is the Congress of the United States which was established with the purpose of enacting legislation across the United States of America. In recent years Congress has not been a subject that the general population is well educated on, and many do not believe that Congress is strong enough as a major governmental branch. Many individuals do not believe that Congress is solving problems like it should be, or has in the past. Although Congress does not seem to be working as well as in the past, it still plays an important role in the American government today. Recent cases and legislative processes have proven that Congress can have a one-sided view on issues
Throughout history, there have typically been shifts from harmony to conflict between the three branches of American government. The framers of the Constitution created the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government in order to form a system of checks and balances to prevent a single area of the government from becoming too powerful. This system of checks and balances has been accompanied by vast amounts of discord throughout its existence. The shifts in interbranch relations can be seen through Congressional deference prior to and during the beginning of the Vietnam War, Congressional resurgence after the Vietnam War, and a shift back to Congressional deference following the attacks of 9/11.
The legislative, executive, and judicial branches represent the constitutional infrastructure foreseen by the Founding Fathers for our nation 's governing body. Together, they work to maintain a system of lawmaking and administration based on checks and balances, and separation of powers intended to make certain that no individual or embodiment of government ever becomes too controlling. America is governed by a democratic government or a democracy which is a government by the people, in which the power is established in the people themselves. The people then elect representatives who carry out their power in a free electoral system. The United States government’s basic claim is to serve the people and only through a combined effort can we
As seen quite often in the Obama administration, legislation gets stuck and lost in Congress due to the polarization of the parties in recent years. In Obama’s case, he has frequently threatened to go around the House and Senate if they could not reach an agreement or would shoot down his plans. Cato’s Pilon points out, however, that the hurdles of Congress are no mistake. Pilot states that the framer’s of the Constitution knew what they were doing, and this was intended to keep the checks and balances as well as accountability to the public (Lyons,
Otto von Bismarck once said, “Laws are like sausages, it is better not to see them being made.” The arduous process that a bill undergoes in order to become a law may seem grueling and pointless; however, the processes high caliber of difficulty allows for the extreme prestige and exclusivity of bills that are passed. Because the process is so exhausting, and filibusters, subsequently requiring a super-majority vote to pass a bill, have always been such a threat in Congress, historically, bills that attempt to reform sensitive issues have not fared well in the legislative branch. However, when Congress does pass controversial laws, it then also faces the task of effectively enforcing them. But, when the process is carried out to completion, laws that are enforced have significant impacts on the everyday lives of the American people—such as laws concerning abortion rights. In the United States, the government and Congress have significantly affected the rights of women with regard to abortions through laws that either restrict or guarantee their legality and availability, while the government’s capacity to do so is affected by the principle of federalism along with that of the separation of powers.
There are only a few things keeping the Legislative branch from getting out of control and that is its size and the implied powers that they have given to the other branches. Currently the United States congress is comprised of two houses, The Senate, and The House of Representatives. In which the senate is made up of one hundred people, fifty from each state. And the House of Representatives is made up of four hundred and sixty five publicly elected officials. With so many conflicting ideologies, because of geography and other factors, it is hard to please enough people to sway into deci...