The Doctrine of Separation of powers is that political power should be divided among several bodies as a precaution against tyranny. The ideal is opposed the absolute sovereignty of the Crown, Parliament, or any other body. The blueprint for United States' separation of powers is laid out in the U.S. Constitution and expanded upon in the Federalist Papers. The checks and balances of the US government involve the vertical separation of powers among the executive (the Presidency), the legislature (the two houses of Congress themselves arranged to check and balance one another), and the judiciary (the federal courts). There is also a horizontal separation between the federal government and the states. Defenders of separation of powers insist that it is needed against tyranny, including the tyranny of the majority. Its opponents argue that sovereignty must lie somewhere, and that it is better, and arguably more democratic, to ensure that it always lies within the same body. The United States wanted to instate a government structured in such a way that each branch was separate but equal. We will see, however, that it is not always a black and white arrangement and that t

America's institution of judicial review gives the court enormous supervisory power over the other branches of government. It permits the court to define whatever powers of self-defense the other branches have against the judiciary. Therefore, overtime the Supreme Court has acquired, in a way, the jurisdiction to regulate the separation of powers as they see fit.

Finally, Article III deals with the judicial powers of the United States. It states that the judicial powers shall be vested in one supreme court, and in such inferior courts as Congress may establish. This becomes a check of Congress of the judicial branch. Judges are to serve as long as they are considered to be in good behavior and that too is to be monitored by the other branches. In addition the income of judicial employees is to be determined by congress.

Following the listed powers of the legislative branch, Article II tackles the area concerning the executive branch, or the Presidency. Section 2 deals with the details of executive powers. The President becomes, as he was intended, a major player in foreign affairs. The first segment grants the President with the Position of Commander in Chief. This includes the powers to grant Reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment. More relevant however, are the following segments (Sec. 2-2 through Sec. 3) which more specifically portray the relationship between executive powers and the legislative branch.

Judicial Review is a distinctive power associated with the Supreme Court that is not specifically mentioned in the Constitution. Chief Justice John Marshall in Marbury v. Madison asserted the major principle on which judicial review rests by saying that, "[i]t is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is." Through judicial review the Court most dramatically asserts its authority to determine what the Constitution means. This power to interpret the law becomes the determining factor in the most powerful branch of government. The argument against the ability to exercise judicial review is that it gives judges the power to legislate. If the court b

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Approximate Word count = 1471
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)