With Congress, every time they make a joke it's a law, and every time they make a law it's a joke. — Will Rogers
The power to declare war, including the power of judging the causes of war, is fully and exclusively vested in the legislature. — James Madison
Legislators represent people, not trees or acres. Legislators are elected by voters, not farms or cities or economic interests. — Earl Warren
The government has the right to change laws and rules and regulations. — Jamie Dimon
All legislation is founded upon the principle of mutual concession. — Henry Clay
Congress is responsible for every major change in India — Sonia Gandhi
No man's life, liberty, or property are safe while the legislature is in session. — Mark Twain
Congress seems drugged and inert most of the time... its idea of meeting a problem is to hold hearings or, in extreme cases, to appoint a commission. — Shirley Chisholm
The people are the only legitimate fountain of power, and it is from them that the constitutional charter, under which the several branches of government hold their power, is derived. — James Madison
The liberty to make our laws does not give us the freedom nor the license to break our laws! — William McKinley
Legislation can neither be wise nor just which seeks the welfare of a single interest at the expense and to the injury of many and varied interests. — Andrew Johnson
Country is run by... financial powers & corporate interests [who] send their lawyers to Congress to make laws so that they don't have to pay taxes — Gore Vidal
It will be of little avail to the people that the laws are made by men of their own choice if the laws be so voluminous that they cannot be read, or so incoherent that they cannot be understood. — James Madison
The freedom of a government does not depend on the quality of its laws, but upon the power that has the right to create them. — Thaddeus Stevens
Judicial Branch Quotes
To consider judges as the ultimate arbiters of all constitutional questions is a very dangerous doctrine indeed, and one which would place us under the despotism of an oligarchy. — Thomas Jefferson
Historically, the judicial branch has often been the sole protector of the rights of minority groups against the will of the popular majority. — Diane Watson
. . . [The Judicial Branch] may truly be said to have neither FORCE nor WILL, but merely judgment; and must ultimately depend upon the aid of the executive arm even for the efficacy of its judgments. — Alexander Hamilton
It is emphatically the province and duty of the Judicial Department to say what the law is. — John Marshall
It is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is...If two laws conflict with each other, the courts must decide on the operation of each...This is of the very essence of judicial duty. — John Marshall
When justices seize authority from the other branches of the federal government, as well as state and local governments, under the rubric of judicial review, that’s tyranny. — Mark Levin
[T]he opinion which gives to the judges the right to decide what laws are constitutional and what not, not only for themselves, in their, own sphere of action, but for the Legislature and Executive also in their spheres, would make the Judiciary a despotic branch. — Thomas Jefferson
A judiciary independent of a king or executive alone, is a good thing; but independence of the will of the nation is a solecism, at least in a republican government. — Thomas Jefferson
The International Court of Justice (a.k.a. World Court) is the judicial branch of the United Nations and in the early 1990's a campaign started and it was supported by civil society non-governmental groups around the world. — John Burroughs
One single object . . . [will merit] the endless gratitude of the society: that of restraining the judges from usurping legislation. — Thomas Jefferson
Branches Of Government Quotes
There are currently 3 branches of Government: 1. Raytheon 2. Black Rock 3. Pharmaceutical Companies. Follow the money. — Douglas Macgregor
Charity is no part of the legislative duty of the government. — James Madison
Watergate provides a model case study of the interaction and powers of each of the branches of government. It also is a morality play with a sad and dramatic ending. — Bob Woodward
The executive branch of this government never has, nor will suffer, while I preside, any improper conduct of its officers to escape with impunity. — George Washington
What kind of man would put a known criminal in charge of a major branch of government? Apart from, say, the average voter. — Terry Pratchett
The Council on Foreign Relations is the American branch of a society which originated in England ... [and] ... believes national boundaries should be obliterated and one-world rule established. — Carroll Quigley
The reality is that our independent judiciary is the most respected branch of our government and the envy of the world. — Ted Olson
It matters enormously to a successful democratic society like ours that we have three branches of government, each with some independence and some control over the other two. Thats set out in the Constitution. — Sandra Day O'Connor
The Supreme Court and courts in general have been usurping the role of the legislative branch of government. — Todd Akin
So that the executive and legislative branches of the national government depend upon, and emanate from the states. Every where the state sovereignties are represented; and the national sovereignty, as such, has no representation. — Joseph Story
Legislative Process Quotes
Question Period is not part of the legislative process,and has nothing to do with it. It is a means of monitoring the Executive that the Government cannot evade. — John Allen Fraser
First, the American legislative process isn't well suited to large and complex measures. — George J. Mitchell
Eastern Washington has experienced a number of deadly forest fires this season, and it is crucial that we have bipartisan legislation that will expedite the research and restoration process. — Cathy McMorris Rodgers
We all understand that compromise is part of the legislative process, yet at the same time, I would submit that wilderness is not for sale. — Nick Rahall
There is an increasingly pervasive sense not only of failure, but of futility. The legislative process has become a cruel shell game and the service system has become a bureaucratic maze, inefficient, incomprehensible, and inaccessible. — Elliot Richardson
This has not been a legislative process worthy of the Senate. Members of the Judiciary Committee, as I just said, were implored to save their amendments for the floor. Then, when we got here, we were told no amendments could be accepted. — Russ Feingold
I learned some valuable lessons about the legislative process, the importance of bipartisan cooperation and the wisdom of taking small steps to get a big job done. — Hillary Clinton
We`ll go through the legislative process and I`m make it clear what I support, don`t support and what I think is good for Arkansas. — Tom Cotton
Going through the legislative process is always better, in part because it's harder to undo. — Barack Obama
From where you sit, the White House may look as untidy as the inside of a stomach. As is said of the legislative process, sausage-making and policy-making shouldn't be seen close-up. Don't let that panic you. Things may be going better than they look from the inside. — Donald Rumsfeld
Three Branches Of Government Quotes
The Three Branches of Government: Money, Television, and Bullshit — P. J. O'Rourke
You know, when you get to the New World and you develop your three branches of government and you have a civil society, you can just jettison all the barbarism I recommended in the first books. — Sam Harris
The Congress is a dysfunctional institution; its broken. One of our three branches of government is broken. — Carl Bernstein
The question is: What can we, as citizens, do to reform our tax system? As you know, under our three-branch system of government, the tax laws are created by: Satan. But he works through the Congress, so that's where we must focus our efforts. — Dave Barry
The courts are truly the least dangerous of the three branches of our government. — William Weld
Thank God for the founding fathers, who set up three separate branches of government. And the media acting as the Fourth Estate. — Andre Carson
Under our system of three branches of government, the courts ultimately are the checks on the legislative and executive branches when they exceed or even abuse the limits of their power. — Nina Totenberg
You know, we have three branches of government. We have a House. We have a Senate. We have a President. — Charles Schumer
In our Constitution governmental power is divided among three separate branches of the national government, three separate branches of State governments, and the peoples of the several States. — Robert Welch
I believe that Americans should be deeply skeptical of government power. You cannot trust people in power. The founders knew that. That's why they divided power among three branches, to set interest against interest. — James Comey
Executive Branch Quotes
I believe Watergate shows that the system did work. Particularly the Judiciary and the Congress, and ultimately an independent prosecutor working in the Executive Branch. — Bob Woodward
In the executive branch, winning by a whisker is as good as winning in a landslide, but not so in the Senate. — Lincoln Chafee
The advance planning and sense stimuli employed to capture a $10 million cigarette or soap market are nothing compared to the brainwashing and propaganda blitzes used to ensure control of the largest cash market in the world: the Executive Branch of the United States Government. — Phyllis Schlafly
Under the doctrine of separation of powers, the manner in which the president personally exercises his assigned executive powers is not subject to questioning by another branch of government. — Richard M. Nixon
I am mindful of the difference between the executive branch and the legislative branch. I assured all four of these leaders that I know the difference, and that difference is they pass the laws and I execute them. — George W. Bush
For those who believe executive branch officials will voluntarily interpret their surveillance authorities with restraint, I believe it is more likely that I will achieve my life-long dream of playing in the NBA. — Ron Wyden
The Supreme Court must serve as an independent check on abuses by the executive branch and the protector of our liberties, not a cheerleader for an imperial presidency. — Edward Kennedy
When the American people look at the political process play out, they hear all the spinning and all the doctrinaire language, and they still walk away with the belief that they're not being represented in Congress, that there's no trust in the executive branch. — David Gregory
In an era where the White House is abusing power, is excusing and authorizing torture and is spying on American citizens, I find Judge [Samuel] Alito's support for an all-powerful executive branch to be genuinely troubling. — Samuel Alito
What prudent merchant will hazard his fortunes in any new branch of commerce when he knows not that his plans may be rendered unlawful before they can be executed? — James Madison
No man has a natural right to commit aggression on the equal rights of another; and this is all from which the laws ought to restrain him. — Thomas Jefferson
The question whether the judges are invested with exclusive authority to decide on the constitutionality of a law has been heretofore a subject of consideration with me in the exercise of official duties. Certainly there is not a word in the Constitution which has given that power to them more than to the Executive or Legislative branches. — Thomas Jefferson
Of the over 100,000 wildfires that happen in the U.S. each year, not a single one would get started without the fire triangle: Oxygen, heat and fuel. Fire needs all three to exist. It's like the three branches of our government: Legislative, judicial and executive. The fewer there are, the safer we are. — Stephen Colbert
Our executive branch does not believe in interfering with what the legislative branch chooses to do. We believe in federalism. — Kellyanne Conway
Every proper exertion has been made and will be continued to carry out the wishes of Congress in relation to the tobacco trade, as indicated in the several resolutions of the House of Representatives and the legislation of the two branches. — Martin Van Buren
In our system of government, the judicial and legislative branches have different roles. Judges are not politicians. Judges must decide cases, not champion causes. Judges must settle legal disputes, not pursue agendas. Judges must interpret and apply the law, not make the law. — Orrin Hatch
The government of the United States is a definite government, confined to specified objects. It is not like the state governments, whose powers are more general. Charity is no part of the legislative duty of the government. — James Madison
What's brilliant about the United States system of government is separation of power. Not only the executive, legislative, judicial branches, but also the independence of the military from civilians, an independent media and press, an independent central bank. — Feisal Abdul Rauf
[W]ar is a question, under our constitution, not of Executive, but of Legislative cognizance. It belongs to Congress to say whether the Nation shall of choice dismiss the olive branch and unfurl the banners of War. — Alexander Hamilton
You can't have the legislative and executive branch working in a parallel universe...the partisanship that has gripped Washington has prevented us from dealing with the issues that this country needs to grapple with to determine its future. — Olympia Snowe
Global climate change is real. The legislative branch of our government is our last line of defense against pollution which is why I am so grateful to have the NRDC making our voice heard. — Kyra Sedgwick
I have a duty to protect the Executive Branch from legislative encroachment. — George W. Bush
It's really not a stretch. The checks and balances are the same. The drums are the executive branch. The jazz orchestra is the legislative branch. Logic and reason are like jazz solos. The bass player is the judicial branch. One our greatest ever is Milt Hinton, and his nickname is "The Judge." — Wynton Marsalis
Good union leaders make excellent public leaders in the legislative and executive branches. — Robert Kennedy
A representative assembly, although extremely well qualified, and absolutely necessary, as a branch of the legislative, is unfit to exercise the executive power, for want of two essential properties, secrecy and dispatch. — John Adams
The most effective executive branch officials try to help legislators develop explanations for the votes they are being asked to take. — Robert Zoellick
The U.S. has become a defacto one-party state, with the legislative branch permanently controlled by an incumbent's party and every president exploiting his role as Commander-in-Chief to expand on the imperial prerogatives of his office. — Andrew Bacevich
"Empathy" is the latest code word for liberal activism, for treating the Constitution as malleable clay to be kneaded and molded in whatever form justices want. It represents an expansive view of the judiciary in which courts create policy that couldn't pass the legislative branch or, if it did, would generate voter backlash. — Karl Rove
Last year, I was proud to be an original co-sponsor of legislation that would increase federal judges' salaries by more than 40 percent. It also built in a cost of living adjustment, so the Judicial Branch would not be dependent on the Legislative Branch for increases each year. — Debbie Wasserman Schultz
The people in general ought to have regard to the moral character of those whom they invest with authority either in the legislative, executive, or judicial branches. — John Witherspoon
It is the union of independence and dependence of these branches - legislative, executive and judicial - and of the governmental functions possessed by each of them, that constitutes the marvellous genius of this unrivalled document. — J. Reuben Clark
I've been in the legislative branch and now the executive branch and in each case I felt it was important we use our constitutional responsibilities to the fullest. — John Engler
In the United States there are three parts of our government - the judiciary, the legislative and the executive - and the powers are divided on purpose. And that was - that - so that no one branch could run off. — Philip M. Breedlove
If you want to right-size executive power relative to the other branches of government, the best way to do that is to have a healthy Congress in which the two parties are debating, disagreeing, but also occasionally working together to pass legislation. — Barack Obama
The Senate was the equivalent of an aristocracy at the beginning. Senators were not even elected; they were appointed in the early days. Then that changed, and senators did become elected. But the Senate is designed to slow down out-of-control, madcap activity elsewhere in the legislative branch (i.e., in the House), and the 60-vote rule was part of that. — Rush Limbaugh
The most powerful country in world history, which is sure to set its stamp on what follows, placed the entire government (executive, legislative, judicial branches) in the hands of an organization - the Republican Party - dedicated to escalating the race to disaster. — Noam Chomsky
I do think that there has to be a legal solution, a legal solution on the part of the nation's legislative branch, an immigration proposal. — Marco Rubio
[Nicolas Maduro] completely controls the judicial branch, controls the courts, has denied their basic rights and the responsibility that the legislative branch has in that country. — Marco Rubio
The do-not-call registry is still being challenged in court. Yet, the conclusions of the American people, the legislative branch, and the executive branch are beyond question. — George W. Bush
I am one who believes that the people's views and values are represented by those who they elect in the legislative branch and not unelected federal judges appointed for life. — George Allen
To be true to its constitutional role, the Supreme Court should refuse to be drawn into making public policy, and it should strike down legislation only when a clear constitutional violation exists. When judicial activists resort to various inventions and theories to impose their personal views on privacy and liberty, they jeopardize the legitimacy of the judiciary as an institution and undermine the role of the other branches of government. — Mark Levin
The dignity and stability of government in all its branches, the morals of the people, and every blessing of society depend so much upon an upright and skillful administration of justice, that the judicial power ought to be distinct from both the legislative and executive, and independent upon both, that so it may be a check upon both, as both should be checks upon that. — John Adams
The first ten amendments were proposed and adopted largely because of fear that Government might unduly interfere with prized individual liberties. The people wanted and demanded a Bill of Rights written into their Constitution. The amendments embodying the Bill of Rights were intended to curb all branches of the Federal Government in the fields touched by the amendments-Legislative, Executive, and Judicial. — Hugo Black
We are very hip on the fact that America's always No. 1. On this we are not, in terms of the number of women in our legislative branches and obviously as head of state. We need to push on that. I hate to say this: It isn't all men's fault. I think some of it is our own attitude and approach. Some of it very healthy, that women want to make choices about their lives and how they want to spend their time, and what they value. — Madeleine Albright
The pornography of tough-mindedness, covert action, and preparedness for "peace through strength" has had a predictably hypnotic effect on the legislative branch, turning it from legal watchdog to lapdog. — Christopher Hitchens
It must be an independent House, having a free action of its own, for it is only valuable as being a regulating body, calmly considering the legislation initiated by the popular branch, and preventing any hasty or ill considered legislation which may come from that body, but it will never set itself in opposition against the deliberate and understood wishes of the people. — John A. Macdonald
In republican government the legislative authority necessarily predominates. The remedy for this . . . is to divide the legislature into different branches; and to render them by different modes of election, and different principles of action, as little connected with each other as the nature of their common functions, and their common dependence on the society, will admit. — James Madison
Experience has instructed us that no skill in the science of government has yet been able to discriminate and define, with sufficient certainty, its three great provinces the legislative, executive, and judiciary; or even the privileges and powers of the different legislative branches. — James Madison
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