Why The Judicial Branch Is The Most Powerful

Solomon Habib
Mid Term Essay
Poli-Sci 121 – 5692
11/4//15
What branch of government is the most powerful?

A conception of the American public opinion is that the judicial branch is our most powerful branch of government. It can be argued as such that our judicial branch is in charge of deciding the meaning of laws, how to apply them to real situations and whether the law breaks the rules of the Constitution. Obviously our Constitution is the highest law of our Nation. But does the judicial branch really find itself more powerful than the legislative and executive branches? I firmly believe that this is a misconception and hold the theory that our legislative branch is by far the most powerful. Not only is it constructed in our constitution

but the execution of powers shows that the legislative branch is the most powerful by far.
Article I of the Constitution establishes Congress as the legislative branch. Our framers placed in Article I as well the delegated powers of the national government. This placement apparently was also a reflection of the framers’ desire to make certain that the representative parts of the national government (House of Representatives and the Senate) would be the primary source of authority at the national level. This interpretation can be construed as an idea that our legislative branch of government has the most power in our country.
Our legislative brand is made up of the two houses of Congress-the Senate and the House of Representatives. Our framers were united in the belief that the legislature should play the central role in governing. Article I of the Constitution charges Congress with making laws. Section 8 of Article I lists a series of specific congressional powers, known as the enumerated powers. Congress may exercise the powers that the Constitution grants it. Section 8 also gives Congress the power “to make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States.”
Among the duties of Congress is the setting of taxing and spending policies for the nation. These fall under the enumerated powers “To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defense and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties; Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States.” According to the Constitution, bills raising revenue (taxes) are to originate in the House, but because the Senate may amend these bills, the distinction is not particularly significant. As with many other things this too must run through Congress.
Another controversial area is the spending decisions by our country (appropriations) that Congress makes each year and incorporates as the federal budget.

The past four decades has seen Congress attempt to centralize the budget process and place restraints on overall spending. The passage in 1974 of the Budget and Impoundment Control Act, Congress established a new budget committee in each house. These committees receive the president’s budget and analysis provided by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). The CBO was created with expertise equivalent to that possessed by the Executive branch. You could infer that creating such an office only implies more power to Congress considering they are working around the Executive branch in this instance. Although the president can recommend a budget for Congress to consider, the actual appropriation of funds is in the hands of the House and

Senate.
The power that Congress has to control public funds has created precedents and shows how powerful our legislative branch can be. During Lyndon Johnson’s administration, Congress authorized the U.S Department of Health, Education, and Welfare to withhold federal funds from school systems that refused to desegregate. This gave strong incentive to communities to comply with the Supreme Court’s ruling in 1954. Without pressure from congress (legislative) our judicial branch had trouble getting communities to comply.
In addition to representing constituents on policy issues questions, members of Congress are expected to provide their constituents with personal services, called casework. This casework involves getting helped by Senators, representatives, and their staffs getting through the heavy work involved with federal programs and benefits. This casework can involve making phone calls, expediting the passport service among many other benefits. This casework is considered good electoral politics.
Congress is responsible for overseeing the activities of the executive agencies that are to implement public policies. This is a form of legislative oversight, which is a crucial aspect of congressional work. This oversight function has many forms and can involve keeping an ear to the ground with particular constituents and a lack of function as well as requiring executive officials to prepare periodic reports of their activities. Often though the oversight function is performed as part of the appropriation process. Sometimes referred to as just a way to “let them know that someone is watching them.” Congress may exercise oversight by conducting committee investigations.
An argument can be made that the idea of one form of government having the “most” power is counter intuitive to the principle of checks and balances, however each branch can be interdependent while still being counterbalancing. The key element in the system of checks and balances is the distribution of shared powers among the three branches of government. Each branch depends on the others to accomplish its objectives, but each also acts as a counterweight to the others. The President can veto legislation can in turn have the veto be overridden by a two-thirds vote of both chambers of Congress. Many have complained that the veto is of limited value because it offers the president with no alternative but to either sign or veto an entire bill. He is given no option for dealing with a specific provision of a bill that he may want to revise.
Beyond the powers granted to the President in the Constitution, Congressional authorization must be given to undertake any course of action.

The Senate also has the authority to approve or disapprove treaties through its treaties ratification powers.
The argument that the judicial branch has the most power can be countered with the power Congress has in the form of impeachment. This is based on Article II, Section 4, of the Constitution, which holds that “The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” The removal process involves two steps, and both being by the two equal parts of Congress:
• The House of Representatives votes articles of impeachment, or formal charges, against the

official.
• Once impeached, the official is tried by the U.S Senate. If found guilty by a vote of the Senate, the official is removed from his or her position.
An argument on can make in favor of the judicial branch is that of judicial review, by which the can declare acts of Congress to be in conflict with the Constitution. Judges and justices play an integral role in interpreting the Constitution. Although not explicitly provided for in the Constitution, the power of judicial review was established in the case of Marbury v. Madison (1803).
Even then with judicial review, the executive branch harbors some influence over the judicial branch with the fact that the president has power to appoint federal judges with the advice and consent of the Senate. Congress can also use its power to counteract court decisions. It is apparently an arduous process but overturning court rulings can be done with a congressionally initiated constitutional amendment. The Twenty-Sixth Amendment lowered the voting age to eighteen, which overturned the decision in Oregon v. Mitchell (1970).
The executive branch faces many obstacles when getting issues resolved. The greatest and most persistent problem facing any president is working with Congress. In 1973 Congress moved to limit the president’s war-making powers by passing the War Powers Resolution of 1973. Part of the provision of the resolution required the president “in every possible instance” to consult with Congress before dispatching troops into hostile or potentially hostile situations. Such provisions as these show the influence the legislative branch has over the executive branch.
An argument that the legislative branch is the most powerful branch of government is not farfetched by any means. Our founding fathers instilled a system of checks and balances that made each system of government work together but that still is countered with the separation of powers with each branch in its own right. As discussed, Congress appropriates the money and is responsible for drafting laws. Congress is the only body with the right to impeach. Without the authorization from the legislative branch, no money would be spent. Considering our nation is dependent on a strong economy and the legislative branch works closest with the economy there can’t be much in terms of arguing otherwise.