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The Constitution sets up a federal system of government by dividing powers between the national, state and local governments.

Two characteristics of this three-tier system of American government are fundamental. First, citizens elect officials to serve in the national, state and local governments. The authority of each level rests with the people. Second, each level of government raises money through taxation from the citizens living in the area it serves. Unless each level of government can raise its own fiscal resources, it cannot act independently.

The idea of separating powers among the various elements of government was designed to restrict governmental power and prevent its abuse. Wherever possible, the Founding Fathers built a system of "checks and balances" into the Constitution so that no one part of the government could supplant the other.

At the national level, the federal government is further divided into three autonomous branches.

The executive branch, symbolized by the office of the president of the United States, enforces the law.

The legislative branch, symobolized by the U.S. Congress, makes the laws.

And the judicial branch, symbolized by the Supreme Court, interprets these laws and decides whether they are compatable with the Constitution.

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