How did our founding fathers decide to use separation of powers as a constitutional principle?
Glorious revolution
The reestablished monarchy had clear limits placed on its absolute power, however, as was made clear in the bloodless Glorious Revolution of 1688, in which the English people overthrew a king they deemed unacceptable and basically chose their next rulers, from James II to William III and Mary II. This is separation of powers because they balanced the powers of the two rulers, and removed the power from James.
Senate and Consuls
The republic, divides the roles and power between the Senate and Consuls. This is pretty self explanatory on why this is limited government.
Magna Carta- Parliament vs King
It was signed by King John and the nobles (parliament). The document was a series of written promises between the king and his subjects that he, the king, would govern England and deal with its people according to the customs of feudal law. Magna Carta was an attempt by the nobles to stop King John from abusing his power with the people of England suffering. This is separation of powers because it basically separated the nobles and the peoples power between the king.
The Three Branches
The parts of government are separated into three branches, who keep the power between all three of them. They used a system of checks and balances so one branch will not overthrow the others, and this was a successful event of separation of powers.
Montesquieu
Montesquieu falls under separation of powers also, because he did separate the government as well as limit it. Montesquieu described division of political power among an executive, a legislature, and a judiciary. He based this model on the British constitutional system, in which he perceived a separation of powers among the monarch, Parliament, and the courts of law.
The reestablished monarchy had clear limits placed on its absolute power, however, as was made clear in the bloodless Glorious Revolution of 1688, in which the English people overthrew a king they deemed unacceptable and basically chose their next rulers, from James II to William III and Mary II. This is separation of powers because they balanced the powers of the two rulers, and removed the power from James.
Senate and Consuls
The republic, divides the roles and power between the Senate and Consuls. This is pretty self explanatory on why this is limited government.
Magna Carta- Parliament vs King
It was signed by King John and the nobles (parliament). The document was a series of written promises between the king and his subjects that he, the king, would govern England and deal with its people according to the customs of feudal law. Magna Carta was an attempt by the nobles to stop King John from abusing his power with the people of England suffering. This is separation of powers because it basically separated the nobles and the peoples power between the king.
The Three Branches
The parts of government are separated into three branches, who keep the power between all three of them. They used a system of checks and balances so one branch will not overthrow the others, and this was a successful event of separation of powers.
Montesquieu
Montesquieu falls under separation of powers also, because he did separate the government as well as limit it. Montesquieu described division of political power among an executive, a legislature, and a judiciary. He based this model on the British constitutional system, in which he perceived a separation of powers among the monarch, Parliament, and the courts of law.
What are two examples of how this constitutional principle has been applied in U.S. history?
Separation of powers example #1- Watergate Scandal-
The water scandal was where there were several burglars arrested on the morning of June 17, 1972, for attempting to wiretap phones and stealing documents. They were arrested/ located in the Watergate building in Washington D.C. and were found being connected to President Nixon reelection campaign. He tried to hush people with bribes, and tried to prevent people from looking into the case, and said it was "because he was the president." However, the Judicial branch said that he could not do that even if he was the president. In August 1974, after his role in the Watergate conspiracy had finally come to light, the president resigned. His successor, Gerald Ford, immediately pardoned Nixon for all the crimes he “committed or may have committed” while in office. Although Nixon was never prosecuted, the Watergate scandal changed American politics forever, leading many Americans to question their leadership and think more critically about the presidency. This is showing separation of powers because the Judicial branch prevented him from being unfair and a corrupted reelected president.
The water scandal was where there were several burglars arrested on the morning of June 17, 1972, for attempting to wiretap phones and stealing documents. They were arrested/ located in the Watergate building in Washington D.C. and were found being connected to President Nixon reelection campaign. He tried to hush people with bribes, and tried to prevent people from looking into the case, and said it was "because he was the president." However, the Judicial branch said that he could not do that even if he was the president. In August 1974, after his role in the Watergate conspiracy had finally come to light, the president resigned. His successor, Gerald Ford, immediately pardoned Nixon for all the crimes he “committed or may have committed” while in office. Although Nixon was never prosecuted, the Watergate scandal changed American politics forever, leading many Americans to question their leadership and think more critically about the presidency. This is showing separation of powers because the Judicial branch prevented him from being unfair and a corrupted reelected president.