Legislative and Executive Powers of Government

A notable development of the machinery of government was the change from the indirect election of United States Senators by state legislatures to direct choice by the state electorate. In many others, however, the municipal legislature was wholly overshadowed by the executive, and even its financial powers were seriously curtailed as in New York and Boston, and in many of the larger cities the executive was more trusted than the legislative branch of the government. In relation to the enormous amount of current legislation in the United States, there had been relatively little reliable information on which to base laws and relatively little attention was given to precision in the form of the law. The control of legislative bodies by political machines and bosses in many instances by bi-partisan machines and bosses, made popular control over representatives more difficult than ever. Direct legislation involves the serious weakening of representative government, and its further degradation.