Blog 5

            The United States national government is a representative democracy, meaning the people of the nation hold the power. Citizens of the United States use this power by voting to elect their representatives, who then make decisions on behalf of the citizens. The purpose of creating a government that is controlled by the people of the United States is that no one person or group of people will have too much power over the rest of the nation. This is an important reason as to why the United States government has been so successful for so many years.

Another way the United States government is built to keep the power out of the hands of just one person or group is through the three branches. The United States government consists of the executive branch, the legislative branch, and the judicial branch. The executive branch consists of the president, the legislative branch is made up of Congress (House of Representatives and Senate), and the judicial branch is the federal courts. Each of these branches use a system of checks and balances to make sure that none of the three become too powerful. In addition to that, the president is elected for a four-year term and may not serve more than two consecutive terms. Members of the House of Representatives are elected for two-year terms and Senators serve six-year terms. The Supreme Court Justice is chosen by the President and confirmed by the Senate, and may serve as long as they maintain good behavior. Because of these laws, the United States government is governed by the entire population of voting citizens, meaning no single person or group will be able to have too much control of the nation.