Essay On How Does The Constitution Guard Against Tyranny

Having a certain amount of power is something the United States has focused on since the start of our country. Tyranny; a king or dictator; is often defined as harsh, absolute power in the hands of one. The Constitution is a set of rules (or laws) that were created to ensure our government will never be corrupted by tyranny. The Constitution guarded against tyranny with Federalism, Separation of Powers, Checks and Balances, and The Great Compromise. Tyranny continues to not be a problem due to the Constitution.

Federalism is just one of the few ways the constitution guards against tyranny. “The power surrendered by the people is first divided between two distinct governments…”(James Madison, Federalist Paper #51,1788), the thought was to

The judicial, executive and legislative branches were a need when creating the constitution to ensure the prevention of tyranny. The judicial branch focuses mainly on our court and interpreting laws, “... in such inferior courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish.” (Constitution of the United States of America, 1787). The quote provided says that if new laws were needed, the judicial branch may create them. Our executive branch is our president who enforces our laws, “..shall be vested in a President of the United States.”(Constitution of the United States of America, 1787), saying that any law made by Congress must be enforced by the President. The legislative branch is Congress, Senate, and House of Representatives, the jobs of these individuals is to create the laws that must be enforced by the other branches. Without the Separation of Powers, some branches may have more power than others, which could later create

“... (the three branches) should not be so far separated as to have no constitutional control over each other.” (James Madison, Federalist Papers #51, 1788), the branches may be separated but not to the extent of having no control over each other. There must be a time where they must make sure one branch doesn’t have too much power. “... the constant aim is to divide and arrange several offices in such a manner as that they may be a check on the other…” (James Madison, Federalist Papers #51, 1788), this is implying that each branch can agree or disagree with what the other is saying or trying to do. For example, the legislature can approve or disapprove Presidential nominations if they needed to check the power of the chief executive. The President can check the power of the Supreme Court (Judicial) by nominating new judges if necessary. If needed, the Supreme Court can declare laws made by the Senate unconstitutional. Checks and Balances reduces the possibility of tyranny erupting in the United States. Now, there are constant ways to prevent the branches from having too much