The government of the United States Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The government of the United States - Essay Example The government of the United States is based on a constitution first developed in 1789 making it the first constitutional state in the world. The constitution relies on the principles of federalism which provides for a mechanism of power-sharing between the federal states and the central government. The fact that the country has fifty semi-autonomous states coming together under one central government influenced the formation of an effective and concrete constitution that captures the interests of all the states. Additionally, the racial segregation later in the history of the country and the subsequent abolition of the slave trade resulted in the formation of the American bill of rights to safeguard the interest of every citizen. The bill of rights provides for the respect of human life and to oversee this is the judicial arm of the government constituted of independent courts which exercise their powers thus ensuring obedience to the laws of the land. The constitution defines power s of both the executive and the Congress which are crafted in a way to defend the interest of the citizens and uphold the values of equality among all Americans irrespective of their diverse backgrounds. Wood (1998) asserts that the American government has three arms namely the judiciary, the executive, and the legislature all of which are independent in their operations. The three tires approach to governance protects the citizens from exploitation thus resulting in a more responsive form of governance over time.