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Article
Yes, Virginia (Tech), Our Government is One of Limited Powers
Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy (2001)
  • Michael R Dimino
Abstract
The Framers of the Constitution designed the national government to be one of limited powers. Distrustful of the
accumulation of power in any single body, the Framers provided for the division of powers both within the national, or general, government, and between the national government and the state governments. The separation of powers among the national government's legislative, executive, and judicial branches requires each branch to secure the acquiescence of the other two for the successful implementation of any policy, while the federalism that divides power between the national and the state governments prevents either from obtaining
totalitarian control over the citizenry by limiting the authority of each to particular realms. In this sense, "a double security arises to the rights of the people. The different governments will controul each other; at the same time that each will be controulled by itself."
Keywords
  • constitutional law
Disciplines
Publication Date
2001
Citation Information
Michael R Dimino. "Yes, Virginia (Tech), Our Government is One of Limited Powers" Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy Vol. 24 (2001)
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/michael_dimino/8/