United States
The United States performs relatively poorly internationally (rank 23) in the category of horizontal accountability.
Inspectors general monitor government agencies for unlawful or inefficient actions. They are highly respected, and seen as less politicized than other government actors. While there is no single national data protection authority, the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general fulfill some of these functions.
The United States has two legal systems: federal law and state law. The Supreme Court’s decisions are binding across all courts, though most cases are handled by state systems. Federal judges are appointed in alignment with the president’s legal philosophy. State judges are often subject to election, sometimes with a partisan label.
The Department of Justice is a significant actor in pursuing entities that infringe on individual rights. The individual chambers of Congress have their own ethics and anticorruption rules. Congress has very extensive resources, and participates in shaping policy. However, if the majority is of the same party as the president, it rarely seeks to hold the executive accountable.