The Constitution says, "All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives." This sentence is, perhaps, more important than most people realize. Neither the President, nor the Supreme Court have any power to make law.

How many times have you heard someone credit a President with a change in the law? How many times have you heard someone describe a Supreme Court decision as if it were a law? Only Congress can make law, although the President's agreement is required without a two-thirds supermajority vote.

It is true, however, that the Executive Branch regularly writes regulations. Regulations are practical applications of the law based on the Executive Branch's interpretation of a law's intent. Regulations have the force of law, and you can be legally punished for violating them. Likewise, since 1803, the Supreme Court has exerted its own influence on defining the law. The courts routinely clarify vague or old language in laws passed by Congress, and sometimes throw out laws completely by calling them unconstitutional.

Unfortunately, the actions of the Executive and Judicial branches sometimes bear very little resemblance to the original intent of laws passed by Congress.

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