The Political Role and Effects of the U.S. Federal Judicial Power

The judicial power in American federal government has derived from the political theory on separation of powers in the West, and, with the further development on separation of powers and checks and balances in America and the claim made by the Supreme Court on judicial review, it ultimately has evolved into powerful political authority unique to America as observed by Alexis De Tocqueville. With the interplay and clashes between principles of rule of law and democracy and those between preferences of judicial activism and judicial restraint, the judiciary has deeply influenced and changed American politics increasingly and profoundly. Nevertheless internal weaknesses of judicial power and external restrictions constitute the insurmountable barriers for judicial power due to its self-expansion.