“The numbers tell us that there’s a need for more public education on how these principles work,” said Michael S. Greco, the new president of the American Bar Association. “ There are some significant gaps in peoples’ knowledge, and the more people know, the more they appreciate these important constitutional concepts.”

The survey, commissioned by the ABA and conducted by Harris Interactive(r), revealed that 82 percent of adult Americans feel the concept of separation of powers is important, with 61 percent feeling it is “very important.”  Greco has appointed a Commission on Civic Education and the Separation of Powers to improve public understanding of the government’s functions.  Retiring Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor and former U.S. Sen. Bill Bradley of New Jersey will serve as honorary co-chairs.

Greco said broader public understanding of the separation of powers is especially important now, as certain members of Congress are threatening federal judges with retaliation over rulings they disagreed with.

Among the 45 percent who correctly identified the meaning of the concept of separation of powers as “Congress, the President and the Federal Courts each have different responsibilities,” 88 percent thought it was important.

Even more profoundly, 86 percent of adults feel that the concept of checks and balances is important, with 69 percent saying it is “very important.”  And similarly, among the 64 percent who correctly identified the meaning of the concept as “A division of power among the branches of federal government that prevents any one of them from going beyond their constitutional authority,” 92 percent thought it was important.

”What really distinguishes America from countries where freedom suffers is an independent judiciary, whose judges aren’t controlled or fired by the executive branch or the legislature,” said Greco.