6- The personal Presidency

Question 1

The constitutional position of the President automatically gives him ?

Answer 1

The constitutional position of the President automatically gives him the most visible role on the American political stage. The source of this visibility is article II of the Constitution which makes the President the Head of State

Question 2

Beyond politics and ideology,

Answer 2

Beyond politics and ideology, the president has a purely ceremonial and symbolical function

Question 3

advantages of this function :

Answer 3

It is a very prestigious function
It is highly consensual : in times of crisis, the President is the symbol of the whole country

Question 4

What is the president for Rossiter

Answer 4

he becomes a unifying “father image” in the words of Rossiter.

Question 5

Examples of this father image

Answer 5

Reagan after the Challenger explosion of 1986(a space shuttle that exploded and killed 7 crew member)

Bush 43(rd Psdt) (=son) speaking in a bullhorn at ground zero a few days after 9/11

Question 6

This Constitutional position is all the more crucial why?

Answer 6

This Constitutional position is all the more crucial because it perfectly corresponds with the expectation of the contemporary media. In a world of 24/7 information, the media constantly need new images, new stories; the ceremonial dimension of the Presidential function offers an endless stream of patriotic and/or consensual images.

→ For instance, the President meeting olympic champions the white house or president Reagan riding his horse on his californian ranch, or Clinton Kayaking with his daughter etc (pas obligé retenir)

Question 7

In the jargon of American journalists,
what is the president ?

Answer 7

In the jargon of American journalists, “the President is the news” whereas Congress & Senators cannot compete with this level of media attention, if not fascination.

Logically, this Presidential preeminence in the media has deep political and constitutional consequences

Question 8

The main characteristic of the modern presidency is that it has become a

Answer 8

The main characteristic of the modern presidency is that it has become a “personal presidency” in the words of Theodore Lowi which means that : the traditional division of power between the 3 branches has been replaced by a system where most powers are concentrated not only on the Executive branch but more precisely within the Executive in the person of the President.

Question 9

So a new constitutional quid pro quo has appeared

Answer 9

So a new constitutional quid pro quo has appeared : the public has accepted the give all the extra authority in the President’s figure since FDR. In exchange, the public except that the president will deliver his promises.

Question 10

But there are 2 problematic aspects to such “a new social contract”

Answer 10

1) The government is reduced to a direct relationship between the President & the Electorate “where do Congress and the Supreme Court fit in this new Constitutional picture ?”

2) This is not necessarily a positive bargain for the Presidency because the more direct the relationship btw the President and the electorate is , the more the president will promise dramatic thing and will give the impression to be all powerful, the more difficult it will be for the President to deliver on this promises, the more the people who were made to think that the President owed them something personally (they see the president as their own property so they will be disappointed by the actions of the President, the more the credibility of the institution of the presidency risks losing.

Question 11

The growing personalisation of the Presidency would not have been possible without what?

Answer 11

without the development of the modern media. In particular television. Since the 1950s-1960s, the President has become a ubiquitous figure on American TV.

Question 12

The first brilliant practitioner of TV

Answer 12

The first brilliant practitioner of TV was JFK,

Question 13

Nixon & TV

Answer 13

Nixon was the first one who really theorised about the asset TV represented for the President. He came up with the concept of the Permanent campaign after his election : the President must govern as if he was still on the campaign trail. And the distinction between campaigning & governing must disappear.

⇒ As a consequence, the President must appear on TV, practically on a daily basis BUT this media presence must be organised on the President’s own terms because he must control his image. Therefore, this evolution rest on a paradox : the President uses the media but at the same time he distrusts journalist especially newspaper journalists

If he lets journalists be in charge of conveying his message, they will most probably interpret or comment on it whereas he want his message to reach the people unfiltered.

⇒ As a result, Presidents have elaborated several strategies to ensure direct communication between them and the American people

Question 14

Nixon
quote media

Answer 14

He had a very explicit ambition regarding the media : “President must try to master the art of manipulating the media.”

Question 15

solution Nixon x media

Answer 15

⇒ His solution was to limit as much as possible Press conferences where journalists can ask political and critical questions and to replace them by Prime Time addresses, live for the office whereas Presidents like FDR or Truman would give press conferences all the time.

But the primetime addresses of Nixon were much more formal : the President is in a position of authority and he is free to say what he wants without any interruption or question coming from journalists. So the President can speak directly to the nation with this method and not to the press. There is no filter between him & the population

Question 16

Other strategy of Nixon

Answer 16

Nixon had another strategy : he created the White house office of Communication to serve as the President’s own News Agency.The office of Communication would publish daily press releases relating the actions of the President.

They were mostly directed at the local press which offered a double advantage :
→ they were like pre-written articles for news paper with no journalist in Washington which guaranteed that the presidential spin would directly reach the readers of local newspaper.
→ Moreover, regional newspapers are always less critical of the President than the national press (like NY times or Washington post for instance) or the TV networks (like ABC, CBS or NBC).

Question 17

Reagan

Answer 17

He was a master of the manipulation of the media.

First, because as a former actor he was an excellent & charismatic orator. He was nicknamed “the great communicator”.

Second, because he multiplied innovations in the field of Presidential communication. Like FDR and his fireside chats, he resorted to the radio to convey his message by creating the President’s weekly radio address.It was a short speech heard every Saturday. The practice was continued by his successors until Trump ceased doing so 17 months into his term.

Reagan turned the State Of The Union Speech (SOTUS) into a Media events, transforming it into a kind of show with special guests : well-known people or anonymous heroes like cops or firefighters for instance. TThe first invited into the presidential box was the first lady.

Above all, he made communication the priority of his administration. Under Reagan, 30% of the White House staff worked for the Office of Communication and everyday was organised around photo opportunities meaning staged events where the President would appear in front of the Press to discuss one specific issue and to give an impression of success.
→ For instance he would visit a high school to discuss the dangers of teenage drunk driving.

The President never appeared publicly in spontaneous or unplanned circumstances because he was actually very hesitant and prone to gaffes when he participated in unscripted events. Which is why like Nixon he rarely organised press conferences.

Such a mastery in matters of communication had deep political consequences : Regan flooded the American media with so many consensual and artificial images that the Press paid little attention to the concrete aspects of his policies.

⇒ As a consequence, he remained a very popular President even during the difficult times of his presidency like the Iran-Contra scandal (1986), which concerned illegal sale of arms to Iran. His popularity decreased a little but not so much.

Another nickname for him was the Teflon President since no scandal would stick on him

Question 18

Clinton

Answer 18

Clinton was a very talented orator but unlike Regan he was also brilliant at improvising. In 1992 he used a very original method of campaigning, resorting to non-traditional media like talk shows or appearing on MTV.

Once in the White House communication was also his priority to such a point that observers described his presidency as the rhetorical presidency. He also believed in the concept of permanent campaign and devoted a lot of time to fund raising even years before his 1996 reelection campaign.

Question 19

Bush 43

Answer 19

(his father = Bush 41)

Bush is an interesting example that proves that even an untalented orator can become a great Presidential communicator by applying strategies perfected by 2 former Republican presidents : Nixon & Reagan.

This strategy consisted in :
→ Very rare press conferences because the rare ones were often disastrous.
→ Communication exclusively centred on photo-obs organised by his brilliant adviser until the summer of 2007 : Karl Rove.

He was also greatly helped by the support of a new type of media with an overt Republican bias like the fox news channel or the vast radio network of right wing talk shows like for instance rush limbo shows.

Question 20

The personalisation of the Presidency is also illustrated by

Answer 20

The personalisation of the Presidency is also illustrated by the ever-weakening link btw the President & his political party.

Question 21

decline of parties started when ?

Answer 21

the decline of parties started under the New Deal when the new socio economic function of the federal government started to replace the traditional function performed by parties at the local level.

Question 22

What happened since the 1960s

Answer 22

But, since the 1960s, this disconnexion btw the President & parties has accelerated

Question 23

disconnexion btw the President & parties has accelerated

Answer 23

→ in 1972, Nixon ran his campaign completely independently from the Republican Party through a group created exclusively to guarantee his re-election : the CREEP = Committee to Re-Elect the President.

⇒ this shows that parties have ceased to be the intermediary between the presidential candidate and the voters.

The main symptom of this decline, of this weakening identification of voters with a particular party is the increase of ticket-splitting since 1968. Hence more and more frequent periods of divided government

Question 24

Ticket-splitting

Answer 24

voting for a Republican for the House of Representatives and a Democrat for the Senate when elections held on the same day

Question 25

An important factor that has rendered presidents more and more independent and more and more isolated from political parties derives from?

Answer 25

An important factor that has rendered presidents more and more independent and more and more isolated from political parties derives from the reforms of the primary process which started after the disastrous democratic convention of 1968 and were first applied at the 1972 democratic convention and then adopted by the GOP (Grand Old Party = Republican)

=> They consist in the multiplication of State primaries with a more transparent and democratic selection process leading to delegates more representative of the population at large.

The effects of such a reform have been tremendous because they have opened the door of presidential politics to independent candidates meaning candidates not connected to the party establishment.

Question 26

example of candidates not connected to party establishment :

Answer 26

Jimmy Carter in 1976
Bill Clinton - 1992

Question 27

Jimmy Carter in 1976

Answer 27

After the trauma of WaterGate, this completely unknown democrat ran as an outsider unspoiled by the corrupted political system in Washington. He insisted on his competence rather than on his ideology and he separated himself from the party.

His campaign was run from his home state of Georgia and not from the national democratic committee headquarters in washington.

⇒ as a consequence he had no close contact with the party, which means that after his victory, the democrats and congress left him on his own and were very reluctant to cooperate with him.

Very few reforms occurred during his presidency. His popularity was low and his defeat in 1980 was humiliating

Question 28

Bill Clinton - 1992

Answer 28

Like Carter he was also not very famous, not very well financed governor from a small southern state but he managed to compensate for such shortcomings by appearing on non traditional media venues like MTY and Larry King live and Mary king live.

Question 29

Thanks to the media, there was a passage

Answer 29

Thanks to the media, there was a passage from party-centred campaigns to candidate centred campaigns.

Question 30

Ross Parrot

Answer 30

Ross Parrot : was an independent Texas billionaire and ran in 1992 and 1996. He ran without a party relying exclusively on the media : especially talk show and TV spots (30 minor 1 hour long commercials)

He received 19 persons of the vote in 1992 and 8 parsons in 1996 so not exactly a success

Question 31

Another factor which explains the rise of candidates disconnected from their parties ?

Answer 31

Another factor which explains the rise of candidates disconnected from their parties was the new campaign finance system adopted in the 1970s with the Federal Election Campaign Act voted in 1971 and amended in 1974.

This law imposed limits on individual donations to political campaigns and it created a system of public financing of campaigns. If candidate promises to limit his expenses, the federal government will finance his campaign

This system is far from perfect and often abused but at least it made it possible for candidates who were not their parties favourite to run.

Question 32

A key dimension of the personal presidency is

Answer 32

A key dimension of the personal presidency is the isolation of the president. The modern president is isolated from other political entities which have traditionally shared powers with him.

Question 33

This evolution works on 2 levels.

Answer 33

There has been a concentration of powers in the hand of the executive branch at the expense of the legislative branch

Question 34

Milkis

Answer 34

“executive-centered government”
=> Meaning There has always been a concentration of power in the hands of the president at the expense of the cabinet.

Question 35

The personal presidency def

Answer 35

means that the president is the unique symbol of power and the only locus power

Question 36

III. The plebiscitary presidency
A- The decline of the cabinet

Answer 36

A key dimension of the emergence of the imperial presidency since the 1930s has been the birth of the administrative presidency meaning the massive and uninterrupted growth of executive bureaucracy.

The first step was the creation of the executive office of the president (EOP) in 1939. The more staff & responsibilities the EOP has been given,the more power the cabinet has lost

Question 37

Executive ?

Answer 37

Executive = President, Vice president & cabinet

Question 38

This historical phenomenon (creation of EOP) has reinforced the personalisation of the presidency because of 2 factors

Answer 38

1) The EOP is directly attached to the White House whereas cabinet members do not work in the White house. They head their own administration whose interests sometimes differ from the ones of the presidency.
Nixon was particularly worried of the independence of the cabinet. So in 1971 he tried to reduce its size by keeping the 4 main positions : the State, the treasury, defence and justice.
⇒ This obvious presidential power grab failed.

2) Some of the traditional responsibilities of the Cabinet have been taken over by the EOP. For instance, today, the national Security Advisor, a position created by the national security act of 1947 has more power than the Secretary of State or the secretary of Defence.
→ Under Nixon, the Vietnam war was largely run from the White House by National security advisor Henry kissinger.
→ Under Regean, the secretary of State and the secretary of defence were never informed of the arms sales to Iran to free the american hostages in Lebanon.
→ During the first term of Bush 43, National Security adviser Condoleezza Rice had much more influence over the President than Secretary of state Colin Powell.

Question 39

This concentration of power within the White house is rather problematic because

Answer 39

This concentration of power within the White house is rather problematic because of a crucial distinction between the EOP and the Cabinet.

The composition of the Cabinet is the result of a democratic process because Cabinet members are nominated by the President and then confirmed by the Senate, whereas EOP nomination are much less transparent and much more ideological.

Question 40

B - Circumventing congress

Answer 40

odern presidents think they can govern while trying to ignore the very existence of Congress by negating its fundamental mission which is deliberating & voting laws, and acting as an intermediary between the government and the people.

⇒ This explains why Modern Presidents have fought to obtain a line-item veto or they frequently resort to signing statements

But above all, Presidents have been able to govern without Congress thanks to the principle of the mandate. During the campaign, the candidate presents & explains his agenda to the voter. The people understand the agenda, accept it, and decide to vote for the candidate.

A “contract” has been negotiated directly btw the candidate and the electorate and Congress doesn’t fit into the picture at all.

⇒ The new president draws from this contract a clear legitimacy to act on his promises

Question 41

line-item veto

Answer 41

(= the power of a president, governor or other elected executive, to reject individual provisions of a bill

=> line item veto + signing statement = allow the president to bypass congress

Question 42

Reagan 1980

Answer 42

He ran what was said to be a “brilliant campaign” centred on an ambitious & radical reform agenda, very conservative, and summarised by Regean himself in his inauguration speech.

“Government is not the solution to our problems, Government is the problem.”

He presented himself as an outsider who would go to Washington to restore the prosperity & the honour of the US after the terrible years of the 1970s (Vietnam, Water Gate, Economic crisis..). His campaign was marked by his optimism.

Question 43

Democrats & Regean

Answer 43

Even though the Democrats managed to keep the majority in the house of representative, democratic leaders were so impressed by Regean victory and his popularity (all the more so after a failed assassination attempt in March 1981), that democrats did not dare oppose his policy,they did not block the historical reforms he launched in 1981
(30% tax-cuts for the highest tax bracket,
drastic cuts in social & welfare programs
Dramatic increase in military expenditures)

⇒ This shows that it is very hard for Congress to go against the wishes of a very popular president, especially just after his election. It would be political suicide to oppose his policy.

Question 44

Strategy after election time ?

Answer 44

After election time, the Modern Presidency tried to cultivate this direct relationship with the electorate while keeping Congress there. This strategy is called going public = when the president informs the public before Congress when he has a new idea

Once again, the media are a central instrument at the service of the Modern Presidency. Thanks to the Media, presidents can talk directly to the people and can personally appeal to the population to defend their policies instead of informing Congress and debating with it about the President’s plans.

⇒ The idea is that once the President has convinced the population to support his policy initiatives, or his supreme court nomination for instance, the population will put pressure on Congress to go along (through emails, lobbies, phone calls, opinion calls

Obviously, such a governing strategy is particularly worthwhile during periods of divided governance. Regean & Clinton frequently relied on it for instance

Question 45

plebiscitary presidency

Answer 45

Such a conception of the link between the President and the people not mediated by parties or by Congress anymore has deeply transformed the very nature of the Presidency

It is more than just a personal presidency, it has become a plebiscitary presidency. The whole constitutional order is affected : the President is the only visible source of authority in washington ; all other political actors are relegated to the background.

The priority of the President is to cultivate his personal bond with the people. This bond became the unique source of his legitimacy and it is then tested every 4 years, at election times.

Question 46

Bush, 2004, after his reelection

Answer 46

“We had an accountability moment, and that’s called the 2004 elections.”

“I earned capital in the cmapagn, political capital, and now I tend to spend it.”

Question 47

Shlesinger quote

Answer 47

“Nixon was carrying the imperial Presidency toward its ultimate form in the plebiscitary Presidency - with the President accountable only once every four years, shielded in the years between elections from congressional and public harassment, empowered by his mandate to make war or to make peace, to spend or to impound, to give out information or to hold it back […], all in the name of a majority whose choice must prevail till it made another choice four years later.”