It is obvious the president was not given enough power under the Constitution. This is in part because Article II of the Constitution was written in a short period of time with little thought. Many presidents have had to make unclear decisions with little information about the circumstance in the Constitution and the president is beginning to take over the government due to increasing implied powers. However the president’s power has recently proven that it has outgrown the constitution and is swiftly evolving. The Constitution gave the president broad but vague powers, including the authorization to appoint judges and other officials with the Senate’s consent, veto bills, lead the military as commander and chief and make sure “that the Laws be faithfully executed.” Many of these powers however are shared with the Legislative Branch, and cause conflict within the government. The Executive Branch was supposed to be much less significant than the Legislative Branch. In fact, James Madison wrote, “Rarely if ever happen that the executive constituted as ours is proposed to be would have firmness enough to resist the legislature,” in his notes during the Constitutional Convention. Partially due this and not wanting to offend George Washington, whom was expected by the founders to be the first president, the founders focused very little on Article II of the Constitution. The largest role the president is supposed to play in the government is making sure that laws are followed. However, the Constitution does not explain how the president is supposed to do this. As a result, future presidents have had to interpret the Constitution and assume implied powers that were not directly stated in the Constitution. Barak Obama was never supposed ... ... middle of paper ... ...t is too late. Works Cited Annenberg. "Topic Overview Unit 7." Annenberg Learner. Annenberg, 2013. Web. 13 Nov. 2013. Jrank. "The Executive Branch And The Constitution." Executive Branch. Jrank, 2013. Web. 12 Nov. 2013. Krieger, David. "The War on Iraq as Illegal and Illegitimate by David Krieger." The War on Iraq as Illegal and Illegitimate by David Krieger. Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, 2013. Web. 13 Nov. 2013. Linder, Doug. "Presidential Powers: An Introduction." Exploring Constitutional Law. Exploring Constitutional Law, 2013. Web. 13 Nov. 2013. McMahon, Robert. "Balance of War Powers: The U.S. President and Congress." Council on Foreign Relations. Council on Foreign Relations, 1 Sept. 2013. Web. 13 Nov. 2013. United States Senate. "Official Declarations of War by Congress." United States Senate. United States Senate, n.d. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.
The case of Clinton v. City of New York brought about some constitutional issues like whether or not the president should be able to have the kind of power that he does. The Snake River Farmers’ believe that President Clinton, actually any president shouldn’t be allowed the power to delete a portion of any bill. I believe that it is okay for the President to have some sort of power. The question has been brought ...
Can you imagine president controlling your life? The constitution use three different forms to make a group or a person from getting too much power on his hands. The are three types of power that each contusion have in order to keep power equal. One of them is Legislative Branch Congress “Can approve Presidential nominations”(Document C). It’s a example how governments try to keep power equal.
The power of the Executive branch has expanded over time to become the most authoritative division of government. In contrast to the Constitution 's fundamental designer, James Madison, who predicted the Legislative branch would dominate due to it’s power in making laws and regulating taxes/spending, the executive powers have proven to be superior and ever broadening. From the birth of the Republic, the President has sought to protect his rights and seek beyond his restriction of power. Setting the precedent as early as 1795, George Washington refused to relay documents relating to the Jay Treaty to the House of Representatives and saw his actions as a justified act of “executive prerogative.” Moreover, weaving throughout the Nineteenth century, presidents such as Andrew Jackson and Abraham Lincoln conceived and added functions, such as the extensive use of the veto and the president’s direct and active role as Commander in Chief to their executive tool-belt. The Constitution communicates very little details regarding the President’s use of the power of veto and the role as Commander in Chief, but it was these presidents which established the major authority of the executive branch in these areas.
According to John Acton in 1887, “Absolute power corrupts absolutely”, meaning that if unlimited power is given to any one person, they can be corrupted by it. The framers of the Constitution recognized this and built in a plan to prevent this from happening and a result of this, the Constitution spreads power equally between the three branches of government: The Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches. These built-in checks and balances are very important to our government, because they keep one branch from gaining too much power over another. This balance of power prevents any branch of our government from being “corrupted absolutely”. This thesis will argue that this part of the Constitution is as important today as it was when first
... law. No one should supersede their roles or take advantage of it, as President Bush did when he went behind the backs of Congress and proceeded with his unconstitutional tactics. Warren G. Harding, 29th President of the U.S, once said “America’s present need is not heroics but healing; not nostrums but normalcy; not revolution but restoration.” This is what America needs, a stable and able president and government to provide us with safety and protect our freedoms.
... in office and how the congress will act toward the President; whether he be a President that demands respect or one who forfeits it and whether the Congress gives in to the demands of the Executive or if the Congress comes down on t he Executive like a hammer on a nail. This can be accomplished by viewing the circumstances in which a President takes office, the manner in which he carries himself during his term, and the way in which the President leaves as Commander in Chief. Conclusion: The President has neither gained nor lost power. There exists the same balance between Executive and Congress as there was when Washington was sworn in as America's first President. The only difference between then and now, is the fact that today we must wade through the layers of insignificance and precedents that history has forged against us, the political thinker and historian.
The main powers of the executive branch rest with the President of the United States of America. Powers granted to him by the constitution include serving as commander in chief of the armed forces; negotiating treaties; appointing federal judges, ambassadors, and cabinet officials; and acting as head of state. The president also has a cabinet which includes officials such as the attorney general and the secretaries of State, Treasury, Defense, Interior, Agricu...
The familiar division of federal power among the President, the Congress and the Supreme Court was just the beginning. The Constitution also made it possible to impeach anybody who abused his power. In addition, the crucial 10th Amendment to the Constitution said that the federal government had the power to do only what it was specifically authorized to do, while the people or the states could do whatever they were not specifically forbidden to do.
When the framers created our government over 200 years ago, they were very weary of history repeating itself in regards to the monarchy created by the King of Great Britain. Their concerns about having a president included someone who would gain too much power using it to overthrow the state governments, continue to run for election, or become a tool of the senate. To avoid their fears they allowed congress and the legislative branch to be the first branch of government. Today however, I think Congress has gained more power than the founders ever thought it would. I believe that the president’s perception of power has decreased over time. The powers that the president had at the beginning of our country, and th e powers they have now are very similar. The difference is Americans are more educated and involved in politics than they were before. Today the President not only has to deal with Congress to get anything done, but the people as well. If Americans are unhappy they want the president to hear them, sometimes that means by being close with their congressmen, or by protesting and rioting. Nowadays protests and riots are prodcast everywhere by the media, and if the president ignores them, everyone knows about it. Another reason the presidential office is not as powerful as it once was is that
Presidential power has become a hot topic in the media the in recent years. There has been extensive debate about what a president should be able to do, especially without the involvement of Congress and the American people. While this debate has become more publicized since the Bush administration, similar issues of presidential power date back to Truman and the Korean War. As with much of the structure of the U.S. government, the powers of the president are constantly evolving with the times and the executives.
The President has specific powers given to him by the constitution. These powers being the power to sign or veto any legislation, commanding the armed forces, convening or adjourning congress, grant reprieves and pardons, ask a written opinion of their cabinet and receiving ambassadors. Although these are the powers given to the president's by the constitution, some presidents have taken advantage of these powers. Some presidents even went against these rules and powers set by the constitution. President Lincoln would be one of the presidents who didn’t follow some of the rules made by the constitution during the Civil War. Lincoln did not want the Union to fall apart and therefore acted on the civil war without congressional consent. Lincoln also disbanded Habeas Corpus in order to just put people straight into jail. Things like this allows for the power that the President is given to be taken advantage of. Overtime, the President's responsibilities have grown. When the times change, the constitution has to change as well. When threats and new modern technology is threatening the people of the United States, you have to be able to fight and protect your country. With that being said, powers have to change in order
Power can easily be abused, as history has attested to. Prominent historical figures and groups such as Henry VII, Al Qaeda, and Hitler have declared hostility and the campaign of terror waged by these organizations have helped to constitute a new paradigm of war by abusing their power. This hunger for power and for control has had its detrimental consequences. However, those who used their power in a more responsible manner, when given a position of authority, were able to accomplish what many view as honorable actions. The use of power is exemplified in two texts, notably a New York Times article and a quote from Alexander Hamilton. In the article titled ‘Too Much Power for the President’, the authors believe the government has been given too much power over decisions that affect the lives of innocent citizens on American soil whereas Alexander Hamilton believes the upper class government should be
The United States government is designed with checks and balances to ensure that no one branch can become more powerful than another. Though this may be the case, it is still possible that one branch of the our government can still be more powerful than the others. The equality of power in our government has constantly changed over the course of the life of the United States. Although these changes have occurred, we still have not made all of the branches equal and the inequality has been due to meet the demands of the time. For example, in 1938 our country was facing a depression and nothing was getting done. So, Roosevelt took it upon himself to give the Executive branch more power, to then in turn, help the country creep back out of the hole it had dug itself. After the country didn’t need the reform bills and the size of the government that Roosevelt had put it, things were then downsized and put into a more stable equilibrium. Though there were attempts to make everything equal, the Legislative Branch now holds the majority of the power, and is the most powerful branch that our government has.
Several aspects of the executive branch give the presidency political power. The president’s biggest constitutional power is the power of the veto (Romance, July 27). This is a power over Congress, allowing the president to stop an act of Congress in its tracks. Two things limit the impact of this power, however. First, the veto is simply a big “NO” aimed at Congress, making it largely a negative power as opposed to a constructive power (July 27). This means that the presidential veto, while still quite potent even by its mere threat, is fundamentally a reactive force rather than an active force. Second, the presidential veto can be overturned by two-thirds of the House of Representatives and Senate (Landy and Milkis, 289). This means that the veto doesn’t even necessarily hav...
Even with the very few examples I’ve included, it’s easy to note that every president is given the same powers and it’s up to them if they want to use them or not. Some may use some while other presidents favor others. Powers of the presidents don’t always change and have been used since the Constitution was drawn up. Continuing on from now, each president will continue to use these powers to further keep up with the order amongst the country. The United States depends on the president and needs it in order for its well-being. The country wouldn’t be what it is today without the president of the United States of America.