The Power and Authority of the Government
Power can be seen as the capacity of a government to get its citizens
to comply with it. Power is quite broadly used and can even be seen as
obedience as this shows a deliberate self restraint of citizens that
might otherwise resist the government. It has a direct connection with
authority as authority carries the implication that the institution
that has power is supported in its decisions by a substantial amount
of people and therefore should be obeyed whether or not the individual
agrees with it. A government can have power, but it must be somewhat
representative to have authority.
The distinction between power and authority can be seen in our system
of checks and balance. Arguably, in this case, governments do need
both to succeed as shown in the balancing of the legislature and the
executive. The latter’s exercise of power is curtailed by the formers
authority as a sovereign. However, in practise, the executive power
usually gives it a certain authority due to its powers of the state.
We accept a liberal democracy because its powers are limited by a
constitution and it operates in a just way, if it does not do this its
authority is questionable and armed resistance can then be legitimate
or justifiable. For example, the Catholic minority viewed the police
as applying the law selectively, which would give the IRA legitimacy.
They could portray themselves as defenders or protectors of the
Catholic people, this is an example of negative power.
Power can be described as ‘concerning fact or actions’ whereas
authority is described as ‘concerning right’ (Goodwin). A government’s
authorit...
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...tract concepts that have a heavy dependence on the political
culture at the time and the stability of the government. Having power
itself generates authority in many cases or the image of authority,
which is often enough to operate under without experiencing a
backlash. The legitimacy of power comes from whether it is
representative of the majority wish and whether it adheres to the
contemporary situation, for instance, authority may be given for a
government to act more extremely when an event has allowed them to do
so. In this way, I think that although you can have power without
authority, this power will only be able to be exercised in the short
term, in the long term it is necessary to have authority to exercise
power, as this makes it legitimate and prevents an eventual uprising
or overthrowing of the government.
You little tyrant king george off with your head.Since the Americans had a bad experience with one person having too much power they made a constitution that guarded against tyranny by, dividing power, making the branches able to check or limit each other, and dividing power between big and little states.
power in order for it to be seen in a simpler light and to emphasize the egalitarian nature of
The goal of the American government has always been the same through out the years. Although the government attempts to pursue common goals to improve the United States, citizens are not content due to them having to sacrifice individual values. US senate member, Chairman Michael McCaul, values order and equality by focusing on the security and the economy’s problems in the United States. When order and equality are implemented, individual freedom is given up. These values play important role in the way the government makes its laws in America. They have to take all these values into consideration due to the ever-enduring debate known as the, “Two Dilemmas of Government.”
Contrary to what I believed in the past, the United States federal government retained and expanded their power and authority during the years of the Civil war along with the period of Reconstruction. Through drafts and monitored elections, they exercised this power during the Civil War. Then, as Reconstruction began, they initiated other methods of increasing their authority over the citizens. Military was placed in Southern states, by the federal government, in order to keep control over the rebellious people. Not only that, but, the idea of putting the federal government in charge of Reconstruction and rebuilding an entire nation gave them an enormous amount of power. Finally, the creation of the 14th and 15th Amendment were two more big achievements on the part of the government.
The fear of government control is a leitmotif in many dystopian literature stories; therefore, strong, oppressive central governments feature prominently in this genre. Both Brave New World and 1984 provide examples of this type of government, which superficially appear to be quite different. Although the outward aspects of these governments appear to be in opposition, they both use conditioning and societal manipulation to maintain control of their citizens in worlds affected by industrialization.
The U.S. Constitution is without a doubt the foundation of U.S. Law from which all other laws stem from. Not only does the constitution outline the basic civil liberties and laws, but also protects U.S. citizens from an unfair government. This safe guard to the American people provides a special brand of freedom, and protection from the government. Though all laws abide by the constitution, not all of them can be perfectly aligned with each special situation that individual states may carry; this is where amendments nine and ten come into action, to provide a statement of reserved powers. With the creation of the Constitution, the U.S. became its own, allowing its citizens freedoms that were not clearly defined before.
People have their own perspective of a government that they envision for their people. Thomas Jefferson has been the president of the United States and ruled under a monarch. Jefferson couldn’t tolerate the abuse from a monarch, so he rebelled against the British crown. In 1776, Thomas Jefferson wrote The Declaration of Independence, and declared the colonies were free from British rule. Before he became the author of The Declaration of Independence, Jefferson was established “ as an ardent republican and revolutionary” (Jacobus 77). Jacobus states Jefferson is, “one of the most versatile Americans of any generation” (Jacobus 78). In The Declaration of Independence, Jefferson and the founding fathers envisioned a government that would govern the people, and the people would be free. The people must be governed with rights, Jefferson implies it’s the government’s duty to guide and secure the people, therefore, he believes the government’s obligation to the individual is more important than the individuals obligation to the state.
Philosophers have struggled with determining the proper role of government. In the absence of government and laws, people could do whatever they wanted, and some of them would try to slaughter others and steal their property. This is the state called anarchy. People have realized that the safety of the people and the country would be in jeopardy in such a state. Thus, it is necessary for a country to have a government and/or ruler. However, a ruler must not have absolute power nor lack authority. But the protection of the people and the country alone is not enough for a country to prosper. The property and the natural rights of the people and the government must also be protected. Thus, the proper role of government is to protect the people’s natural rights, their property, and the people themselves.
Liberty and power were seen as adversarial terms when it came to republican government in the 1800’s. The American people of this period did not have a strict definition for liberty, but instead a group of values and ideas they associated with it. These values were freedom to improve yourself, morally and materially, freedom of religion, freedom from a privileged aristocracy, and freedom of expression. Personal liberty was allowed to prosper, as long as it stayed within state and federal constitutions and did not infringe on another man’s liberty. The biggest threat to liberty was power, often used by governments and private authorities to remove rights they did not have control over. The issue of promoting liberty while restricting power was maintainable when America was largely an agrarian society. The yeoman mentality, of a self-sufficient farmer, growing crops to sustain his family, and with any surplus he could sell or trade for what he could not make himself, was the ideal image of personal liberty. As commerce and industry began to create a new economy, the distance between liberty and power became more indiscernible.
The United States government is designed with checks and balances to ensure that no one branch can become more powerful than another. Though this may be the case, it is still possible that one branch of the our government can still be more powerful than the others. The equality of power in our government has constantly changed over the course of the life of the United States. Although these changes have occurred, we still have not made all of the branches equal and the inequality has been due to meet the demands of the time. For example, in 1938 our country was facing a depression and nothing was getting done. So, Roosevelt took it upon himself to give the Executive branch more power, to then in turn, help the country creep back out of the hole it had dug itself. After the country didn’t need the reform bills and the size of the government that Roosevelt had put it, things were then downsized and put into a more stable equilibrium. Though there were attempts to make everything equal, the Legislative Branch now holds the majority of the power, and is the most powerful branch that our government has.
Access to the law and legal system is the ability to shape it, both in its meaning and
Karl Weber, a sociologist and political economist, describes authority as a form legal domination. Followers comply with the rules of these individuals because they consider their authority to be legitimate. While the legitimacy of domination does not have to be rationality, right, or natural justice, it is legitimate because individuals accept, obey, and consider domination to be required. The president of the United States is considered a traditional, legal and charismatic authority, where the legitimate domination rests on the idea of the legality of enacted rules for these individuals elevated to their status to give commands. The news article Obama's Executive-Power Use Shows He Still Holds Some Cards by NPR.com shows the President Barrack Hussein Obama II, the 44th president of the United States, as a traditional, legal and charismatic authority figure based on the characteristics of domination defined by Karl Weber.
Power can go from hands on contact to figuratively speaking, such as beating a prisoner while incarcerated, or not paying any attention...
Power is defined in the course study notes as the “ability of individuals or groups to get what they want despite the opposition”. Power is derived from a variety of sources including knowledge, experience and environmental uncertainties (Denhardt et al, 2001). It is also important to recognize that power is specific to each situation. Individuals or groups that may be entirely powerful in one situation may find themselves with little or no power in another. The county Registrar of Voters, who is my boss, is a perfect example. In running the local elections office, she can exercise the ultimate power. However, in a situation where she attempted to get the county selected for a desirable, statewide pilot project, she was powerless, completely at the mercy of the Secretary of State. Power is difficult to measure and even to recognize, yet it plays a major role in explaining authority. In organizations, power is most likely exercised in situations where “the stakes are high, resources are limited, and goals and processes are unclear” (Denhardt et al, 2001). The absence of power in organizations forces us to rely on soley hierarchical authority.
Certainly one may think that the constitution and constitutional courts are the “weapons” in hands of power to set down mutual interests and relations. However, constitutional law, establishing a framework for the society and its members, belongs to every and each one, who can count on it either it is unwritten or written.