Question

as an enlightenment thinker, the baron de montesquieu is most well known for his ideas about how government power should be organized. he claimed that governments should divide up power into three branches, or groups. this idea became known as \separation of powers.\ with a separation of powers, no one person or group controls all parts of a government. each branch has separate duties and equal amounts of power.
read the following summarized passage from montesquieus book that describes why separation of powers is needed. then answer the question below.
when the power to make and enforce laws are united in the same person, or in the same governing group, there can be no liberty.
there is also no liberty if the courts powers are not separated from the power to make and enforce laws. if the courts powers were joined with the lawmaking powers, the freedoms and rights of the people would be in danger. if they were joined with those who enforced the law, the courts might behave with violence and cruelty.
what reasons does montesquieu give to support separating out the powers of government? select the two that apply.
peoples freedoms can be taken away when one group holds all the power.
society would become weak once government powers were separated.
with a division of power, kings couldnt be questioned by the people.
without a separation, the courts could abuse their power.

Explanation:

• The text states that when power to make and enforce laws is united (one group holds power), there's no liberty (freedoms taken away).
• It also mentions that if courts' powers aren't separated, they might behave with violence and cruelty (abuse power). The option “Society would become weak once government powers were separated” is incorrect as the text emphasizes benefits of separation. “With a division of power, kings couldn't be questioned by the people” is not supported by the text.

Answer:

• People’s freedoms can be taken away when one group holds all the power.
• Without a separation, the courts could abuse their power.