Does the President have too much power, or is there another branch more powerful than the President ?

There are three branches of government in our political system. The writers of the Constitution established a system of separation of powers and checks and balances. The purpose of these ideas was to prevent any branch or any person from becoming too powerful.

The legislative branch makes the laws. This is a significant power. The executive branch, led by the President, carries out the laws. This also is an important power. The judicial branch interprets the laws. The courts determine if laws are constitutional or unconstitutional. This is a very powerful role.

There is enough evidence to support the statement that no branch has too much power. Since each branch can control the others, no branch should be too powerful. The President can veto laws.  Congress can override a veto. The President can fill vacancies on the Supreme Court. The Senate has to approve a President’s nomination for a Supreme Court judge. We can see how that power is being checked today. In March, the President nominated Merrick Garland to fill an opening on the Supreme Court. The Senate has yet to act on that nomination. The courts can declare a law or an executive order unconstitutional. However, Congress can impeach a judge if the judge abuses his or her power or breaks the law.

Many times when people say the President has too much power, it is nothing more than partisan politics. The Republicans will say a Democratic President is doing too much and vice versa. If each branch uses its powers as written in the Constitution, no branch should have more power than another branch, especially with the ability of each branch to control the other branches.