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History 301

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The Branches of Government

HIS/301
August 14, 2012

The Branches of Government
Articles I, II, and III of the Unites States Constitution outline the importance of dividing government into 3 branches, this system was designed by our forefathers to serve the people. With any division of power obstacles are bound to arise, usually when attempting to enact important legislation. Since the US Constitution was written to the present day there has been conflicts between the supporters of a strong federal government and campaigners of states’ rights. This paper will address these three aspects associated with the first three articles of the United States Constitution.
Reasons for Dividing the Government
The fact that power is abused if …show more content…

Another obstacle is that this long time frame spent debating a piece of legislation can end up costing the public more money than if a quick decision could be made. Another obstacle is that almost every piece of legislation ends up becoming a partisan strategy for gaining public favor. (Synel, 2008)
Conflict between Federal Government and State Rights Characterized
There have been some twists and turns in the evolution of the ideas of federal power versus states' rights. Originally those who supported a strong federal government typically represented the merchant class and "big business." Alexander Hamilton was the champion of the strong federal government policy. On the other hand the states' rights group led by Thomas Jefferson; were concerned with the interests of rural and southern states. In other words, those advocating a weaker central government were most concerned with the rights of the rural poor. Today this method is typically described from a different point of view. Those in favor of big business generally also favor states' rights and a weaker government. Those in favor of a strong central government identify the protection of the rural poor as a main reason. (U.S. Department of State)
Another intriguing fact is that Hamilton, supporting a strong central government, insisted that the U.S. government pay its debts in full and pay off the national debt entirely. Today the allocation of the central

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