American political institutions frequently collide because the Constitution distributes authority rather than concentrating it. Courts interpret laws, Congress writes them, and executive officials administer them.
Judicial review can place important limits on government action, but courts depend on legal cases brought before them and on institutions that implement judgments. Congress can change statutes, control funding and conduct oversight. Executive agencies have expertise and operational capacity.
The result is a system of negotiation and constraint. Political power is real, but it is rarely absolute. Much of American governance consists of determining where one institution’s authority ends and another’s begins.