Congress, the President, the Supreme Court - how do they all fit together? The structure of the US government may sound complicated, but it's split into only three main branches (or categories): the Legislative Branch, Executive Branch, and Judicial Branch. The structure also has built-in checks and balances - with each branch helping to maintain the balance of power.
US Government Structure Explained
The structure of the US government is described in the Constitution. While the basic structure hasn't changed, some things look very different today than in the 1790s - for example, the staff of the president's Executive Office has increased from zero funded positions to almost two thousand! Additional departments, such as the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Homeland Security, have also been added over the years in response to the growing needs of the country.
A complicated diagram of the structure of the US Government from the 19th century. Don't worry, we'll break it down! Source: Wikimedia Commons
US Government Structure Map
Take a minute to look at this map of the government's structure before we dive into understanding each branch and what it does!
US Government Structure Branches
The main structure of the government is in three separate branches. Each branch has its area of jurisdiction, but they each have their areas of overlap too.
The Legislative Branch
The main body in the Legislative Branch is Congress and was created under Article I of the Constitution. As part of the Legislative Branch, Congress's job is to propose, draft, debate, and pass legislation.
An aerial view of the Capitol building in Washington, D.C. Source: Library of Congress
While Article I does give Congress a lot of authority to pass laws needed to unify the states and maintain peace and prosperity, it doesn't give Congress unlimited power. Throughout the history of the United States, many laws that were passed by Congress have been struck down by the Supreme Court as unconstitutional.
The Judiciary Branch (through the Supreme Court) can evaluate laws passed by Congress and determine whether they are valid and constitutional. This authority is one of the checks that the Judiciary Branch has on the Legislative Branch's power.
The Senate and the House
The United States Congress is a bicameral legislature, meaning that it's made up of two houses or levels: the Senate and the House of Representatives.
This system was designed during the Constitutional Convention in 1787 as a compromise between the large states and small states. One house, the Senate, would have the same number of delegates regardless of the size of the state. Each state would have two senators with one vote each no matter what. In the other house, the House of Representatives, the number of representatives from each state would be determined based on the state's population. States with more people would have more representatives, and states with fewer people would have fewer representatives. The process of determining how many representatives a state should have is called apportionment.
Apportionment is the process of determining how many delegates a state will have in the House of Representatives based on the state's population.
The issue of apportionment wasn't as simple as it seemed. It immediately initiated a debate about slavery - namely, whether enslaved people should count towards a state's population for purposes of apportionment. In the end, they came up with the infamous Three-Fifths Compromise, which said that for purposes of apportionment, enslaved people would count as three-fifths of a person.
Within Congress, both the Senate and the House have their Congressional Committees where they send legislation to be reviewed and voted on before going to the full chamber for consideration. Once both chambers agree on a piece of legislation and vote to pass it, it goes to the president. The president can choose to either sign the piece of legislation into law or veto it.
The presidential veto is another example of a check and balance. The president has the power to check Congress's power by vetoing legislation that they pass. However, Congress isn't powerless to the veto either - if a piece of legislation is vetoed, they can override the veto if they have a two-thirds majority.
The Executive Branch
The Executive Branch is responsible for executing - or "implementing" - the laws passed by Congress. The Executive Branch is headed by the President. Under the president, the Executive Branch figures out how to get it done. It includes the Executive Office, the Departments, and the Office of the President. The Vice President also falls under the Executive Branch.
The president lives and works in the White House. Arian Zwegers, CC-BY-2.0. Source: Wikimedia Commons
Article II of the Constitution establishes the president's executive powers, which fall under both "head of state" and "head of government." The president also serves as the Commander-in-Chief and leads international diplomacy efforts. The president oversees the Cabinet (see President's Cabinet) and the Office of the President.
The president has the power to nominate people to serve on the Supreme Court and to head the various executive departments, but each of the nominees must be approved by Congress.
Like Congress, the president has some implied powers that aren't specifically stated in the Constitution. For example, they often use the power of the Bully Pulpit and the fact that they have a large audience to set the policy agenda during their term. Some presidents have focused on healthcare (such as Barack Obama) while others focused on Deregulation (such as Ronald Reagan).
The president usually exercises authority through Executive Orders and Signing Statements, which have the power to change the powers under the Executive Branch. Even though the president has no authority to pass legislation or decide case law, their influence in the political parties and in government has proved a very powerful force in both the legislative and judicial branches.
The president has a check on the Supreme Court's power by nominating candidates to serve on the Supreme Court. The candidates then have to be approved by Congress.
Congress has a check on the president's power through the process of impeachment, where they can formally charge the president with a crime.
The Judicial Branch
The Judicial Branch is established under Article III of the Constitution. It's led by the Supreme Court, which is the highest court in the United States. Under the Supreme Court are a series of district courts and local courts. Only the most controversial and complicated cases go to the Supreme Court to determine their constitutionality. Even if a lower court made a decision already, the Supreme Court gets the final say.
The Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C. Source: Senate Democrats, Wikimedia Commons
The Supreme Court has a check on Congress by reviewing its laws and determining constitutionality. The President and Congress can check the Supreme Court's power through the Supreme Court Appointment Process.
The Supreme Court has made some critical decisions that have shaped US policy. For example, in Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States, the Supreme Court ruled that the federal government had the authority to legislate civil rights issues and prohibit discrimination by businesses.
The Judicial Branch can check Congress's power by determining whether the laws they pass are valid under the Constitution. It can also check the president's power by striking down the president's executive orders.
US Government Structure Functions
Now that we've gone over the main functions of the three branches, let's look at some other important aspects of the government's structure.
The Federal Budget
The Federal Budget impacts all aspects of government. All three branches, especially Congress and the Executive Branch, have a role in managing the budget. The budget looks at the country's revenue (see US Federal Government Revenue) through things like tariffs and taxes, and spending (see US Federal Government Spending).
Congress is responsible for passing a budget plan. The budget includes a detailed plan showing the budgets of each federal department along with various projects. As you can imagine, with 15 executive departments and hundreds of offices, bureaus, and projects, the federal budget can quickly become complicated and overwhelming! Passing a budget is usually one of the biggest political issues for Congress.
The budget deficit (see US Federal Government Deficit) plays a major political role in politics. It describes the difference between how much the government makes and how much it spends. The deficit has increased every year since 2001. It currently stands at over $3 trillion.
The Federal Bureaucracy
The Federal Bureaucracy falls under the purview of the President and the Executive Branch, but many of its functions closely interact with the other branches. The Federal Bureaucracy employs millions of workers. Between all of the departments, government corporations, and independent agencies, an estimated 9 million people work for the federal government. The bureaucracy is made up of:
The 15 Federal Departments (ex: the Department of Transportation, the Department of State, the Department of the Interior, and the Department of Justice).
Government Corporations (ex: the Federal Financing Bank, AMTRAK, and the US Postal Service).
Independent Agencies, which are insulated from the control of the president or Congress and are used to maintain Bureaucratic Accountability (ex: the Federal Reserve, Securities and Exchange Commission, Central Intelligence Agency, and National Science Foundation).
US Government Structure Chart
Below is a chart highlighting the major structures of the US Government!
| Branch | Head | Sub-Structures |
| The Executive Branch | President | Federal Departments, Bureaucracy |
| The Legislative Branch | Congress | Senate, House of Representatives |
| The Judicial Branch | Supreme Court | District Courts, Appellate Courts |
US Government Structure - Key takeaways
- The structure of the US government can be found in the Constitution, although there have been some changes over time.
- The government is separated into three branches: the legislative branch, executive branch, and judicial branch.
- The branches don't operate in isolation - each branch helps maintain the balance of power with the other branches.
- The federal bureaucracy employs over 9 million people and includes the federal department, governmental agencies, and independent agencies.
Explanations 
Exams 
Magazine 
