Is the Judiciary Really the Weakest Branch of Government
POL 1001
Response paper number four
In your educated opinion, is the Judiciary really the weakest branch of government? Explain your answer. Has the Court gained or lost power over time? How would Hamilton respond to your argument?
Judicial Branch is established under Article III of the Constitution. It was created to be the weakest of all three branches of government. Each branch has its own characteristics, but what distinguishes this branch from other two is that Judiciary is passive. It cannot act until someone brings case in front of them. Even if some law or act is unconstitutional, courts are powerless to do anything on their own. Contrary to Judiciary, other two branches are active, and have power to attack other subjects.
The reason that Judiciary has passive role is because it supposed to serve as defense mechanism and to protect rights and privileges of the people. In fact, Alexander Hamilton pointed out in his Federalist paper number 78 “The Executive … holds the sword of the community. The legislature … commands the purse … prescribes the rules … The judiciary, on the contrary, has no influence over either the sword or the purse; no direction either of the strength or of the wealth of the society; and can take no active resolution whatever. It may truly be said to have neither FORCE nor WILL, but merely judgment…” It is clear from this that Judiciary is the weakest branch of government or at least it was.
Many people believe that Judiciary gain much more power than the frames intended to give and interpretation of intended rights is different from what it should be. The Article III is short and it would seem that answer on the question “what rights did the framers intended to give?” should be also short and simple. However topic is controversial and there is no one right answer. The simple reason for that is because even among the framers there was no consent about every single issue, or section and article they put into constitution. The content of
Response paper number four
In your educated opinion, is the Judiciary really the weakest branch of government? Explain your answer. Has the Court gained or lost power over time? How would Hamilton respond to your argument?
Judicial Branch is established under Article III of the Constitution. It was created to be the weakest of all three branches of government. Each branch has its own characteristics, but what distinguishes this branch from other two is that Judiciary is passive. It cannot act until someone brings case in front of them. Even if some law or act is unconstitutional, courts are powerless to do anything on their own. Contrary to Judiciary, other two branches are active, and have power to attack other subjects.
The reason that Judiciary has passive role is because it supposed to serve as defense mechanism and to protect rights and privileges of the people. In fact, Alexander Hamilton pointed out in his Federalist paper number 78 “The Executive … holds the sword of the community. The legislature … commands the purse … prescribes the rules … The judiciary, on the contrary, has no influence over either the sword or the purse; no direction either of the strength or of the wealth of the society; and can take no active resolution whatever. It may truly be said to have neither FORCE nor WILL, but merely judgment…” It is clear from this that Judiciary is the weakest branch of government or at least it was.
Many people believe that Judiciary gain much more power than the frames intended to give and interpretation of intended rights is different from what it should be. The Article III is short and it would seem that answer on the question “what rights did the framers intended to give?” should be also short and simple. However topic is controversial and there is no one right answer. The simple reason for that is because even among the framers there was no consent about every single issue, or section and article they put into constitution. The content of