Essay on The executive branch of government has been too powerfull

“The executive branch of government has become too powerful in recent times”

The American democratic system is based on several strong democratic principles, including the separation of powers and checks and balances.

The assertion that the executive branch has become too powerful in recent years can be illustrated in several ways, including the evolution of the powers of the U.S. President - and in particular his inherent powers.

The President of the United States cannot declare war. Yet the Civil War of 1861 and more recently the Iraq War of 2003 and the subsequent conflicts have given the respective presidents more rights in this area. Ironically, however, Congress tried to curb this power grab with the War Powers Act in 1973, but many experts believe that it has had the opposite effect.

The legislative branch, and thus Congress, is the only one that can create laws, while the executive branch must enforce them. However, the President can, through some of these prerogatives: Recommendation Clauses, veto power... strongly influence - even lead - the global policy of the country. He can even in some particular cases create "laws" called "executive agreements".

Finally, the last administration has also highlighted the difficulty for the judicial and legislative powers to apply a counter power on the executive power. The doctrine of executive privilege (recognized by United States v. Nixon in 1974), but also the tacit agreement of the administrations (even those on opposite sides of the political spectrum) to preserve and maintain their past privileges, has eroded over time the means of action against the executive branch.

It is important to note that the evolution of the executive power took place without any constitutional change. The question naturally arises as to how the judicial and legislative institutions will operate to rebalance the forces within the American system? Are there existing means in the constitution or do we need to create new ones ?

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