BoumTAC

The Separation of Powers: An Obsolete Theory

Published on January 29, 2026

The separation of legislative, executive, and judicial powers is a fundamental principle of representative democracies. We all learned about it in school. Every democracy clings to it like a totem. It's supposed to block the path to absolute power, to pure and simple dictatorship.

A Principle From Another Era

This principle is not new and has existed for a long time. Thucydides already spoke about it in ancient Greece, then John Locke in the 17th century. The problem is that this theory was conceived when the State had infinitely less power than it does today.

Back then, the State didn't meddle in our daily affairs. It didn't decide:

  • The color of our shutters or the minimum temperature of our air conditioners
  • The transmission power of our internet boxes
  • Whether a backup camera was mandatory on our cars
  • Whether we must give ourselves a gift card at the end of the year, paid from our own pocket, to be spent only at Fnac or Maisons du Monde
  • Whether we have the right to work overtime or not (because working too much is suspicious)
  • Whether we must give our money so our neighbor can have a free apartment while we pay full price for ours

In short, the State's impact was limited. Today, it controls everything, down to what you eat on your plate.

"Today's governments have far more reach, and this is proving to be unstoppable. A limited-government conservative today is dreaming of what a centralizer was hoping for only a few decades ago." - Nassim Taleb

The State is everywhere and unstoppable.

The Multiplication of Unelected Powers

Wikipedia mentions several "state advisory bodies, more or less independent": Council of State, Republic Mediator, Rights Defender, Court of Auditors, or National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (Insee). None are elected. How do they represent us if they're not elected by the people?

The Senate, with its bloated budget of 378 million euros, votes on laws and monitors the government – exactly like our 577 deputies we elected at great cost. Except senators fall from the sky without going through the ballot box.

The Powerlessness of the Elected

The President of the Republic, elected by 67 million French people, actually has no real power. He can promise mountains and wonders during his campaign, but once elected, he discovers he can't do anything without the agreement of dozens of other institutions. Same for the government: ministers are appointed, give beautiful speeches, but find themselves prisoners of a bureaucratic system that overwhelms them.

The National Assembly, with its 577 deputies, is so numerous that it's impossible to agree on anything. Everyone pulls in their own direction, everyone defends their small local interests. How do you expect to govern effectively with so many people managing everything and anything?

And even in the rare cases where, by miracle, they manage to agree – as was the case with the immigration law adopted at the end of 2023 – the Constitutional Council, nine self-proclaimed wise men, shows up. This institution, elected by no one but having full powers, censors a large part of the text. The French voted, the deputies debated and voted, but in the end, it's nine people that no one chose who decide for France.

No One Is Responsible for Anything Anymore

The problem with the separation of powers is that there are now people everywhere. No one is responsible for anything and nothing moves forward.

Look at our current government that changes every month: they are elected but have no power anymore. Even if they wanted to, they can't do anything. Result? They chatter because they can't do anything else, nothing changes, and in the end we don't know whose fault it is.

It's the same with the European Union. They make decisions that no one asked for and are responsible for nothing. We have no power over them.

Concrete Examples of Irresponsibility

Let's take concrete examples: the death of Jean Pormanove , tortured live on the Kick platform in August 2025. ARCOM (Authority for the Regulation of Audiovisual and Digital Communication) and the justice system had already been notified.

But 50 million euros in budget and 350 employees aren't enough to handle cases of torture. What do these 350 employees do every morning when they arrive at the office? At the time of the debate on the death penalty , don't you think ARCOM's leaders should be held accountable?

And what about justice in all this? What did the prosecutor do? The judges? The Minister of Justice? No one is held responsible? No one is punished for not doing their job and letting a French citizen die.

By the way, that was 6 months ago. The torturers are still not in prison, why? We have the evidence, everything is there. What is justice doing? Two months after killing Jean Pormanove, they are again torturing another person, this time on Twitch .

When will this stop? Isn't this a reason to encourage the French to consume locally, to bring out the guillotine, pride of French genius, and put under it not only the torturers but also the Minister of Justice? Why isn't justice being applied? What prevents coming to get the torturers at 6am at their homes, judging them in the afternoon and putting them in prison for life as provided by the Penal Code ? No one is responsible for anything anymore.

An International Problem

It's the same story with the murder of Irina Zaroutska in the United States. This is not a uniquely French problem. Racist crime committed by an individual already arrested for 14 offenses, including armed robberies. Magistrate Teresa Stokes had released the perpetrator on a simple written promise. Why isn't she being judged? No one is responsible anymore. It was her job and because of her actions, an innocent woman died in cold blood.

Trump had been elected with Elon Musk behind him to shrink the government, make savings and return money to Americans. Elon Musk had thrown himself into the task with his DOGE which had made a big noise. He had been elected for that. But Congress decided otherwise and it was impossible for Elon to make savings. No one is held responsible for this sabotage. The people vote for spending reductions but bureaucrats act against the people's interests.

Everyone manages everything, but no one is held accountable. Shouldn't we judge the people who prevented Elon from doing what Trump was elected for?

The Disconnect Between Elected Officials and Popular Will

It's the same in France: the French want less immigration and more justice. Yet, the opposite is happening, always more immigration and always more laxity. No one is responsible, but everything is fine, the separation of powers is well delineated, that's the most important thing. The 5th Republic is stable.

It's the same with social benefits or the giant pensions of boomers. The French want to reduce these expenses. Yet, these benefits keep increasing, to the point that the average pension is higher than the average salary of active workers. But everything is fine, "democracy" is respected, the separation of powers is well there.

Conclusion

The separation of powers was created at a time when the State was a thousand times smaller, where everyone had to be responsible. You only have to look at the Count of Monte Cristo : General Morcerf commits suicide from shame because death awaited him otherwise.

Nowadays, in the era of an obese State where for every 12 farmers in France we have one agent at the Ministry of Agriculture (Do they count the cows?), no one is responsible for anything. Each power is well distributed in an impossible tangle to unravel. Money is confiscated and circulates through various organizations.

It might be time to revise this separation of powers so that everyone is held accountable.