Consolidation of Power?

John Dean’s article, Vice President Dick Cheney’s Incredible and Deadly Lie, is interesting and informative because it exposes the vulnerability of modern day separation of powers. The author suggests that checks and balances instilled by the creators of our republic can only function if elected representatives respect and nurture “the law of the land” that is our Constitution. After examining a possible breakdown in the way information was distributed between the branches before the war in Iraq, Dean gives a brief historical recount of why the Framers came to choose a republic over other forms of government. He then goes on to site the Harvard Law Journal’s article, “Separation of Parties, Not Powers,” that argues “Madison’s vision of separation of powers has, in fact, been trumped in America by political parties.” This article is a good read for lovers of the Constitution and/or haters of Cheney.