Division of Power
Politics is the process which determines whose values will prevail in society. In the United States, no one has total control over the power and policy, as politics is divided by democracy, constitutionalism and free markets.
Politics is based on a conflict over scarce resources and competing values. The side which has more power have the authority, thus, it wins the conflict and controls government and policy choices. Power is fundamental to politics. The United States has rules which keep politics within peaceful bounds. Democracy is a system of majority rule through elections, an operative form of democratic government. Majoritarianism appears when political leaders fulfill the demands of the majority. However, it has limits as most policies forms through responding to demands of the group that has an immediate interest in the issue. Constitutionalism reflects the idea of restrictions on majority power. Officials are divided into three branches: legislative, executive and judicial. They are obliged to act within the limits of the law of their branch to protect individual rights. Ordinary citizens can exercise power through judicial action using courts as a means of asserting rights and interests.
The free-market system is an economic system based on the idea that government should not be involved in the economic transactions processes. Free enterprise and self-reliance are the core principles of free-market. Government intervenes free-market only through regulatory, taxing and spending policies. Enormous concentration of wealth and power in the hands of large corporations creates a corporate power which operates through the influence that firms have on policymakers. American politics is characterized by the widespread division of power. It is also dynamic as women and minorities who were excluded from the exercise of power are now part of the political system.
American politics is based on the constitutional system which defines how the power is to be obtained and exercised. It works according to the rules that include democracy, constitutionalism, and the free-market …
