Hello all, this is my first post here and I've had this nagging question bothering me, which led me to create an account on here. The question is: What exactly does "enforce" mean when it comes to the function of the executive branch in most modern democracies as related to the laws created by the legislative branch? I tried a bit of searching, but I couldn't really find any relevant information. When searching for "the function of the executive branch", I receive responses saying that one of its functions is to enforce laws, but not answer really explained what it means to enforce a law. Is it on the same level of enforcement as that of the police, in terms of making sure people follow the law? Or perhaps the power given to the police to force people to follow the law is directly given by the executive branch? Any kind of clarification would be much appreciated!
To Leviathan: Law enforcement agencies are in the Executive Branch, while punishment belongs to the Judicial Branch. There is a crossover in that the court determines the applicable punishment, while law enforcement agencies do the punishing. The Legislative Branch cannot enforce or punish. There is a shadowy exception. Enforcing and punishing tax law violations appears to give the Legislative Branch powers that belong to the other two branches even though the police and the courts still perform their original functions. Incidentally, you should separate the federal government from state governments in your research.
Selective enforcement of the law can potentially be tantamount to oppression. For example, a government might allow rogue groups to attack political opponents without any protection or substantial enforcement or punishments, but then punish or attack the political organisations when they undertake actions to try to defend themselves. This is just one of the reasons why gun control is so concerning. When citizens give up the power to defend themselves, when it becomes illegal to practically defend oneself, all the power lies in the hands of the government. It is not just political groups, it can be ethnic groups also. We can see an example of this in the Bible (Esther, Chapter 8 ).
