On American Independent Counsel System

Because of the Watergate Scandal in 1972 which was the serious scandal in American history, government credit had fallen greatly. In order to restore the credit, Congress passed the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, upon which Independent Counsel System was established. Independent Counsel System is one of the characteristic systems in America, and it also helps to improve the check and balance system. The study of Independent Counsel System could help us to understand the history of America and its political process more fully and deeply. This thesis is divided into four parts.Part one deals with the establishment of Independent Counsel System.After Watergate Scandal, Congress tried to save people's confidence in government by passing a law. After six year's hearings and debate, they passed an act named Ethics in Government Act, which meant the establishment of Independent Counsel System. The law was a compromise among the House of Representatives, the Senate and the President. It appeared as a measure to cope with the Watergate Scandal, but in fact, it has significant impact on American political system.Part two concerns about the evolvement of Independent Counsel System.The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 contained a "sunset provision," requiring congress to reauthorize the provisions of independent counsel every five years. That is to say, they had to revaluate the practices of Independent Counsel System and decided whether to pass, repel or revise it. By doing this, Independent Counsel System can always evolve with the times.Part three discusses Starr's investigation and the ending of Independent Counsel System.Many factors led to the ending of Independent Counsel System, such as the defects in itself and the influences by kinds of politics, but most of all, it was the investigation of Starr that led to its ending immediately. He insisted on investigating the sexual scandal of President, which embarrassed the President very much. His investigation had made the public discontented. The public opinion became discontent with Starr's abuse of the power of independent counsel. Because of this, Independent Counsel System came to its end in1999.Part four makes some evaluations of Independent Counsel System.The U.S. Congress passed the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, with the aim to restore public confidence in government, and to make sure that even though the ones who commit crime were the high-level officers including the President, they could also be investigated justly. The practices of Independent Counsel System for more than twenty years indicated that the aims of the law had not been fully achieved, however, the law played very important roles in establishing the principle of the rule of law, restraining government corruption and making sure the investigation could be made justly.