Forms of Government

THE USA POLITICAL SYSTEM

An unending flow of private and public criticism suggests that the people of the United States suffer from government, national, state and local, which is corrupt and inefficient. The criticism reflects the high standards which the Americans have set as their ideal. The political system has provided the rules for a society adapting itself to continuing rapid change on a scale never seen anywhere before, to immigration, to the development of the West, to the absorption of new technology, and to spontaneous economic growth. At the same time it has, on the whole, avoided oppression and provided the means of expressing reasonably well the wishes of this huge and varied population, so that violent grievances and discontents have been exceptional. Finally, it has provided the means for the United States to be a world power on a scale that has not been known before, using its power for influence, not conquest. There have been mistakes and tragedies, but judged by the standards of human history as a whole they have been rare, and overshadowed by successes

The form of government is based on three main principles: federalism, the separation of powers, and respect for the Constitution and the rule of law. Americans are subject to two governments, that of their state and that of the Union, and each has its own distinct function. The states have, under the Constitution, the primary functions of providing law and order, education, public health and most of the things which concern day-to-day life. The Federal government at Washington is concerned with foreign affairs and wit matters of general concern to all the states, including commerce between the states. This at any rate is how the system was planned at the beginning. But for a long time the Federal government has been extending its activities more and more. Many of the programme of action which a modern society demands need to be undertaken on a nationwide scale if they are to be effective. The Federal government in fact has been active in the fields of social services, education, research of many kinds, and regulation of business and of the ordinary productive processes. Some of these developments have been made possible by formal amendments to the original Constitution, but the words of the Constitution are so imprecise that they have been interpreted in new ways, so that some federal powers have grown within the system.

The United States is a representative democracy. All government power rests ultimately with the people, who direct policies by voting for government representatives. The nation’s constitution defines the powers of national and state governments, the functions and framework of each branch of government, and the rights of individual citizens. All public officials of the national as well as state governments must swear to abide by the Constitution, which was created to protect the democratic interests of the people and the government.

Дата добавления: 2015-07-20