Base your answer to question 25 on the passage
below and on your knowledge of social studies.
… Nor is there liberty if the power of judging is not
separate from legislative power and from executive
power. If it were joined to legislative power, the
power over the life and liberty of the citizens
would be arbitrary, for the judge would be the
legislator. If it were joined to executive power,
the judge could have the force of an oppressor.…
—Montesquieu, The Spirit of the Laws
In this passage, Montesquieu is making reference to
(1) an enlightened despotism
(2) a policy of mercantilism
(3) a separation of powers
(4) a social contract
In this passage, Montesquieu is making reference to the "separation of powers". The separation of powers began in the British Government and then served to be important in the United States.