Checks and Balances

The authors of the United States Constitution did not want a government that was too powerful. A powerful government could take away people's rights. So, the Constitution separated the powers of government into three branches.

To keep any branch from growing too powerful, the Constitution also created a system of checks and balances. The system allows each branch to check, or limit, the powers of the other two branches. By checking each other's power, the branches remain balanced.