--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Many, if not most, of the difficulties we…" description: "\"Many, if not most, of the difficulties we experience in dealing with government agencies arise from the agencies being part of a fragmented and open po..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/45d/james-q-wilson-16701_agency_many-if-not-most-of-the-difficulties-we_2849780.jpg" --- # Many, if not most, of the difficulties we experience in… ![“Many, if not most, of the difficulties we experience in dealing with government agencies arise from the agencies being part of a fragmented and open political system…The central feature of the American constitutional system—the separation of powers—exacerbates many of these problems. The…” quote by James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/45d/james-q-wilson-16701_agency_many-if-not-most-of-the-difficulties-we_2849780.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/45d/james-q-wilson-16701_agency_many-if-not-most-of-the-difficulties-we_2849780.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/45d/james-q-wilson-16701_agency_many-if-not-most-of-the-difficulties-we_2849780.jpg) > “Many, if not most, of the difficulties we experience in dealing with government agencies arise from the agencies being part of a fragmented and open political system…The central feature of the American constitutional system—the separation of powers—exacerbates many of these problems. The governments of the US were not designed to be efficient or powerful, but to be tolerable and malleable. Those who designed these arrangements always assumed that the federal government would exercise few and limited powers.” [James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Government agencies are inefficient because the U.S. Constitution deliberately limits power and creates fragmented authority. **In simple terms:** The system’s design makes agencies slow and divided. Key Takeaway Accept limited efficiency and work within constraints. Themes government bureaucracy constitutional design efficiency power limits Mood cautious analytical Type political critical When to use this quote - policy analysis - public administration - legal reform - citizen advocacy Key Concepts separation of powers federalism institutional design Questions to Reflect On - How can citizens influence fragmented agencies? - What reforms could improve inter‑agency coordination? A Different Perspective Complex problems often need coordinated reforms, not just acceptance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Exercise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exercise/) [Federal government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/federal-government/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Political system](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political-system/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Separation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/separation/) [Separation of powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/separation-of-powers/) ## Related quotes > [ ...\[O\]ur Founding Fathers enshrined a constitutional separation of powers for the ages undeluded by the fantasy that angels would win elections. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-fein/o-ur-founding-fathers-enshrined-a-constitutional-separation-of-powers/) Bruce Fein > [Some people suggest that the problem is the separation of powers. If you had a parliamentary system, the struggle for power would not result…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-q-wilson/some-people-suggest-that-the-problem-is-the-separation-of-powers-if/) [James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) > [Most governments are designed to protect the government from the people, whereas the United States government was organized to protect the people from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-cooper/most-governments-are-designed-to-protect-the-government-from-the/) [Jeff Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-cooper/) > [The bedrock principle of separation of powers ought to be upheld regardless of the (D) or (R) that rests behind a given president's name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kayleigh-mcenany/the-bedrock-principle-of-separation-of-powers-ought-to-be-upheld/) [Kayleigh McEnany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kayleigh-mcenany/) > [The basic premise of the Constitution was a separation of powers and a system of checks and balances because man was perceived as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-moore/the-basic-premise-of-the-constitution-was-a-separation-of-powers-and/) [Roy Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-moore/) > [ “The political liberty, of the subject, (separation of powers), is a tranquility of mind arising from the opinion each person has of \[their\] safety.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baron-de-montesquieu/the-political-liberty-of-the-subject-separation-of-powers-is-a/) [Baron de Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baron-de-montesquieu/) > [Our political organization, based as it is on an eighteenth-century separation of powers and on a nineteenth-century nationalist state, is generally recognized to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carroll-quigley/our-political-organization-based-as-it-is-on-an-eighteenth-century/) [Carroll Quigley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carroll-quigley/) > [Under the doctrine of separation of powers, the manner in which the president personally exercises his assigned executive powers is not subject to questioning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-nixon/under-the-doctrine-of-separation-of-powers-the-manner-in-which-the/) [Richard M. Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-nixon/) > [“In any event, one must consider the broader implications of a frontal assault on the separation of powers as outdated, ineffective, and unaccountable. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-o-sargentich/in-any-event-one-must-consider-the-broader-implications-of-a-frontal/) [Thomas O. Sargentich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-o-sargentich/) > [“In a recurring theme among progressives, Croly condemned the Constitution’s separation of powers, a doctrine essential to averting centralized tyranny, as the main obstacle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-r-levin/in-a-recurring-theme-among-progressives-croly-condemned-the/) [Mark R. 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The Constitution clearly delegates the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-rohrabacher/i-rise-in-support-of-the-separation-of-powers-as-established-by-our/) [Dana Rohrabacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-rohrabacher/) > [It was the separation of powers upon which the framers placed their hopes for the preservation of the people's liberties. Despite this heritage, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-byrd/it-was-the-separation-of-powers-upon-which-the-framers-placed-their/) [Robert Byrd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-byrd/) > [I believe in the separation of powers. If a judge crosses the line between interpreting and making the law, he has crossed the line…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orrin-hatch/i-believe-in-the-separation-of-powers-if-a-judge-crosses-the-line/) [Orrin Hatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orrin-hatch/) ## More by James Q. Wilson > [What most needs explanation is not why some people are criminals, but why most people are not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-q-wilson/what-most-needs-explanation-is-not-why-some-people-are-criminals-but/) [James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) > [I believe we ought to subsidize some health care for the poor, but Medicare subsidizes everyone's health care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-q-wilson/i-believe-we-ought-to-subsidize-some-health-care-for-the-poor-but/) [James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) > [Character is not the enemy of self-expression and personal freedom, it is their necessary precondition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-q-wilson/character-is-not-the-enemy-of-self-expression-and-personal-freedom-it/) [James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) > [In the long run, the public interest depends on private virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-q-wilson/in-the-long-run-the-public-interest-depends-on-private-virtue/) [James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) > [I believe that the high rates of property crime (and some of the increase in violent crime) are part of the price you pay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-q-wilson/i-believe-that-the-high-rates-of-property-crime-and-some-of-the/) [James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) > [I will have an administrative system where there is no way to extricate red tape.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-q-wilson/i-will-have-an-administrative-system-where-there-is-no-way-to/) [James Q. 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Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) > [Crime is the price society pays for abandoning character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-q-wilson/crime-is-the-price-society-pays-for-abandoning-character/) [James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) > [A government without the power of defense! It is a solecism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-q-wilson/a-government-without-the-power-of-defense-it-is-a-solecism/) [James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) > [Public order is a fragile thing, and if you don't fix the first broken window, soon all the windows will be broken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-q-wilson/public-order-is-a-fragile-thing-and-if-you-don-t-fix-the-first-broken/) [James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) > [Boys are more likely to develop a masculine personality and acquire strong moral standards when they have a loving and nurturant rather than a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-q-wilson/boys-are-more-likely-to-develop-a-masculine-personality-and-acquire/) [James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) > [The most remarkable change in the moral history of mankind has been the rise - and occasionally the application - of the view that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-q-wilson/the-most-remarkable-change-in-the-moral-history-of-mankind-has-been/) [James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) > [I mean that the function of the police is to solve problems that have law-enforcement consequences in a way that is based on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-q-wilson/i-mean-that-the-function-of-the-police-is-to-solve-problems-that-have/) [James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) [Explore all 39 James Q. Wilson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) ## More Agency quotes > [The work, the work, the work. This is what the business is all about. This is the fun, the glory, the pleasure. It's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-dusenberry/the-work-the-work-the-work-this-is-what-the-business-is-all-about/) [Phil Dusenberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-dusenberry/) > [Anyone who's read my 'Terror in the Skies' series knows that I have not been writing with an eye toward approval from any government…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-jacobsen/anyone-who-s-read-my-terror-in-the-skies-series-knows-that-i-have-not/) [Annie Jacobsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-jacobsen/) > [ We have no clear ideas of the agency of \[demonic\] spirits, nor is it necessary. 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