Branches of Government Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Branches of Government Paper - Essay Example This principle of the separation of powers is embedded in the American system of checks and balances. The system is quite a complex set-up but has amazingly worked for the past centuries since this country gained its independence from its former colonial master (Hargrove, 2000, p. 8). Main Benefits – besides safeguarding democracy and freedom in the new nation by ensuring no one individual gains absolute political power, each of the three branches are also independent and co-equal from each other. In other words, the three branches which are the executive, legislative and judicial branches can check and balance on the other two branches. It was the great French political philosopher and social commentator Montesquieu who gave the founding fathers this idea of separation of powers as a preventive measure against abuses and some critics of this system had said it had led to periods of political paralysis in which an agenda of the government cannot be pursued due to blocks within this system. The main benefit of this separation of powers through checks and balances is that all three branches are encouraged to do their best in performing their duties and responsibilities least they be criticized and censured by the other two branches of the government.