1) Popular Sovereignty- The poeple of the country establish the government and give it power. The goverment receives its power from the people, so it can only govern with their consent. The Constitution's Preamble states, "We the people...", which announces this fact. An example of popular sovereignty is when people go to the polls to vote for laws, the election and city council members. The government has to claim their decisions based on what the people vote for.
3) Separation of Powers- The government is not only limited, but is divided as well. Specific powers are assigned to each of the three branches: The legislative (Congress), the executive (President), and the judicial (Federal Courts). This system was created to prevent mususe of power by one branch of government. An example of the separation of powers is the U.S. government giving each branch certain powers:
LEGISLATIVE (CONGRESS)
-Makes laws -Create lower federal courts -Override presidential vetoes - Propose amendments to the Constitution -Confirm executive appointments -Ratify treaties -Impeach and remove officials -Can declare war
EXECUTIVE (PRESIDENT)
-Carries out the laws - Propose laws -Approves or veto laws - Call special sessions of Congress - Make appointments - Negotiate treaties - Appoint federal judges and officials - Grant pardons to federal offenders -Acts as commander-in- chief of the Armed Forces
JUDICIAL (FEDERAL COURTS)
- Interprets the Laws - Declare laws unconstitutional -Declare acts of Congress or executive officials unconstitutional -Presides over impeachment trials
5) Judicial Review- Judges in the federal courts determine if an act of government oversteps the limits placed on it by the Constitution. The federal courts have the power to review government acts and to nullify, or cancel, any that are unconstitutional, or violate a provision of the Constitution. An example of judicial review is the Miranda Rule and the Exclusionary Rule. The Court compared the procedures for questioning suspects by state and local police, and the rules for admitting evidence into state courts, and found that some of these rules and procedures violated various provisions in the Constitution. The Court ruled that suspects must be read their rights before they can be questioned; and that evidence illegally seized must be excluded from use in court.
2) Limited Government- The people give the government authority and even the Constitution contains limitations of the government's power. Neither the government nor any government official is above the law and can't overstep the bounds of the Constititution. An example of limited government is Magna Carta document of England that was made on June 15, 1215. This document limited the King's sovereign. While its limits protected only a small portion of the English population, it did state that the king's barons had rights that they could assert against the him.
4) Checks and Balances- Extends the restrictions established by the separation of powers. Each branch of government has the authority and responsibility to restrain the power of the other two branches. This system makes government less efficient and prevents tyranny by one branch of government. An example of checks and balances is the U.S. legislative branch passing a law, while the executive branch checks this by agreeing or vetoing or rejecting the law. The legislative branch has the chance of cancelling the veto. The judicial branch apprehends the law and the executive branch checks that by choosing the justices of court.
6)Federalism- A federal system divides power between a central government and smaller, local governments. This shared power is to ensure that the central government is powerful enough to be effective, but not powerful enough to threaten States or citizens. It also allows individual States to deal with local problems-so long as their actions are constitutional. An exampleis the U.S. federal system. Each state has individual sections called counties, which are governed by a state government made up of multiple branches. Each state is ultimately governed by a federal government made up three branches. Two of the branches, the legislative and the executive, are elected positions.