The Framers of the Constitution created an awesome system of checks and balances. Not only did they create the three branches of government to check each other, but they also created checks and balances within the branches themselves. Within the legislative branch, that check and balance was established by creating an upper house to represent the states and the lower house to represent the people.

The framers of the Constitution and the founding fathers totally distrusted “that far away government.” (While geographically the distance to our current government may not be so great, comparatively, Washington, DC may be even more “far away” than even King George was to the colonists of 1775.) Consequently, not only did they create a system of government that would be local and responsive to the people, but they also created a system of checks and balances that would allow for a strong federal government that could be brought under the authority of the people.

Our founding fathers and framers of the Constitution knew the dangers of a powerful, centralized government. The abuses suffered under the King of England and as well as an understanding of the fall of the Roman Empire influenced those men to design a Constitution of the United States of America that would protect the citizens from the evils of an overarching, overreaching government.

Tragically, the 17th Amendment totally destroyed the check and balance of state representation. With its addition to the Constitution, it shredded the very fabric of protection previously imposed by the states by allowing for centralization and putting extreme power in to the hands of the federal government.

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