Let’s look at what each of the three courts within the judicial branch can do. This keeps the system of checks and balances relevant as beliefs, attitudes, and opinions change. At the time, the Supreme Court held that the congressman’s case lacked standing because he couldn’t give any specific examples of how the Line Item Veto Act was causing harm to people. To give you a better idea of how the branches work together to check each other, we’ve laid out the different checks and balances in a table below. Former President George W. Bush, who was President of the United States from 2001–2009.

The judicial branch is made up of three different courts: the Supreme Court, the Appellate Courts, and the District Courts. Checks and balances operate throughout the U.S. government, as each branch exercises certain powers that can be checked by the powers given to the other two branches. ACT Writing: 15 Tips to Raise Your Essay Score, How to Get Into Harvard and the Ivy League, Is the ACT easier than the SAT? Appointments to the Supreme Court are made for life, so when the President nominates justices and the Senate approves them, it’s a really big deal.

How do they work?

The three branches of the U.S. government are the legislative, executive and judicial branches. They wanted to form a government in the United States that guarded against the kind of overreach they’d witnessed in the English government. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! The Line Item Veto Act of 1996 allowed the president—Bill Clinton, at that time—to veto parts of bills selectively, rather than vetoing bills in their entirety. The Appellate Courts hear appeals from the District Courts and, when appropriate, appeals court decisions to the Supreme Court. They don’t act like rival sports teams (usually)! Take a look at current events and you'll probably see examples of checks and balances today in government proceedings. This is one key way that the president receives both support and accountability in carrying out the duties of the executive branch. And then things started to get a bit ugly. To really understand why checks and balances are such a big deal in the United States government, we need to start with the following: Understanding the history and background of our checks and balances government will lay the foundation for a checks and balances definition that you can use on the AP exam.

Each branch of the government has specific procedures only they can follow that help protect against fraud, errors, and illegal actions. In 2015, the Supreme Court ruled that same-sex marriage was legal in federal terms. It was narrowly defeated.

Any powers not specifically noted were meant to be under the control of individual states. Whether it’s courts striking down executive orders or governors vetoing legislation, checks and balances are constantly working to keep the United States government functioning. First, their primary job is to protect the fundamental rights of every citizen, regardless of economic status, race, or class. In the end, Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes wrote an influential open letter to the Senate against the proposal; in addition, one older justice resigned, allowing FDR to replace him and shift the balance on the Court. The American people liked this Act because it promised to ensure congressional fiscal conservatism. If you were paying attention, you may have picked out some of the checks and balances that were involved in the whole scenario surrounding the Line Item Veto Act. The executive branch of the federal government is established by Article Two of the Constitution and is made up of the president, the vice president, the Cabinet, executive departments, independent agencies, and other boards, commissions, and committees. The big takeaway is that the system of checks and balances was written into the U.S. Constitution because the Founders knew it would be essential to the proper functioning of the United States’ form of government.