How Can The Constitution Prevent The Centralization Of Government Power

The Constitution intended to create a new self-controlling central government of the United States. The country’s power was divided into three branches: legislative, executive and judiciary, and the strongest legislative branch was further divided into two houses: House of Representatives and Senate. This allowed them to check and balance each other, thus prevented the centralization of power in one branch. Therefore, by creating a government structure where no single group of people could seize absolute power, the state’s power over people and especially minorities was restrained.

Under the Legislative branch, the House of Representatives “shall be composed of Members chosen every second year by the People of the several States” (Article
Article 1 Section 7 Clause 2 stated that if the President rejected a bill, “he shall return it, with his objections to that House in which it shall have originated”. The President, who had the executive power, could veto a bill passed by the Congress. The Executive could provide a check on Legislative decisions and protects the minority, if the President believed the bill hurts the profit of certain groups of people. Article 1 Section 3 Clause 6 and Article 1 Section 2 Clause 5 gave both Houses “ the sole Power of Impeachments”, thus the Congress (the people and the states) could remove the President from the office if he failed to use his rights properly to protect the people. Also, Article 2 Section 2 Clause 2 stated that “He (the President) shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to make treaties… appoint Ambassadors… Judges of the supreme Court.” The Legislative was a check on Executive rights such as making treaties and appointing judicial officers. Therefore, the power of the government was divided, restrained, balanced and checked by itself and especially by the Congress, which provided security to individual’s