Presidential History

Question 1

Has the system of Checks and Balances changed?

Answer 1

Since the adoption of the Constitution in 1787, the system of Checks & Balances, although not altered in theory, has been transformed in practice.

Question 2

Who was the first branch of federal government originally?

Answer 2

Congress, was seen as the most dominant power in the American system

Question 3

The power of the executive branch?

Answer 3

It is the weak power in theory but strong in practice.

Question 4

Opinion of supporters during the Philadelpha convention of 1787?

Answer 4

divided between supporters of a strong executive and supporters of a weak one.

Question 5

Why was the executive power created?

Answer 5

• the executive was created because the legislative power had proved too weak and inefficient to govern the country under the article of confederation ratified in 1781.
• At the same time, many leaders, fearing tyranny and dictatorship, wanted to divide the power into several branches.

Question 6

What were the major concerns during the creation of the executive?

Answer 6

Efficiency and safety.

Supporters of a strong executive favoured efficiency while their opponents rather stressed the risk of tyranny as they tended to associate the executive branch with their experience of the British monarchy.

Question 7

What are the powers that were shared by executive and legislative?

Answer 7

war powers, appointment, legislative process, etc. Several phrases in the text were deliberately vague or general so that the constitution could be adjusted to evolution of government in practice.

Question 8

The opinion of the founding fathers on the presidency

Answer 8

most founding fathers initially distrusted the presidency and considered congress as the first and the main branch of government. From the beginning the prominent leaders such as Alexander Hamilton believed that the executive was bound to lead the nation because it was by essence more dynamic and more action oriented than the legislature.

Question 9

What happened throughout the 20th century?

Answer 9

theory of congressional/legislative primacy prevailed but a few presidents took historic initiatives that asserted executive authority, and set precedents for their successors of the modern era.

Question 10

Washington actions that had an impact on presidency?

Answer 10

He raised issues of presidential in foreign policy when
* he issued his neutrality proclamation in 1793
* he refused participation of the house of representatives in negotiation of Jay’s Treaty in 1794.

Question 11

The neutrality proclamation

Answer 11

concerned war powers and it declared the nation neutral in the conflict between France and Great Britain.

Question 12

the Jay Treaty

Answer 12

The Jay Treaty was a treaty of amity, commerce and navigation between his britannic majesty and the USA. It resolved issues remaining since the Treaty of Paris 1783, and it facilitated 10 years of peaceful trade between the US and Britain in the midst of the French Revolutionary wars

Question 13

What were the reaction to the issues raised by Washington?

Answer 13

• Hamilton supported Washington initiative arguing that the Constitution by vesting the executive power in the presidency gave broad powers to the president
• Maddison argued that the power to decide on war and peace was specifically reserved to Congress.

⇉ In the end, Washington and Hamilton prevailed.

Question 14

What unilateral decisions in foreign policy were taken by presidents?

Answer 14

• Jefferson purchased Louisiana without congressional authorisation in 1803 from the French.
• Monroe issued the Monroe doctrine in 1823
• Polk tarted the Mexican war in 1846 without a declaration of war and then he forced congress to recognise the state of war.

Question 15

the Monroe doctrine

Answer 15

a principle of US policy that any intervention by external powers in the politics of the Americas is a potentially hostile act against the US

Question 16

What about domestic policy

Answer 16

Congress generally prevailed.

Question 17

Why did Jackson’s presidency mark a turning point?

Answer 17

• his impact was related to the evolution of the party system and the electoral process as the states gradually abandoned voting restrictions
• Unlike his predecessors, Jackson could claim popular legitimacy.
• Jackson had won a mandate from the people, this tightened the link between the presidency and the people at the expense of Congress.
• He was the first president to use his power of veto in an assertive way as an effective means to block legislation he disapproved of.

Question 18

What did Lincoln do that changed the presidency?

Answer 18

• he used extraordinary powers without consulting Congress during the Civil War and even suspended the Habeas Corpus.
• He conducted the war alone for months as commander-in-chief. He then asked Congress to approve which it did.

Question 19

How is the historic assertion of Presidential powers justified?

Answer 19

by emergency circumstances

Question 20

Why did the turn of the 20th century pave the way for modern presidency?

Answer 20

• that change was favoured by the new international context and massive social and economic changes at home
• with the victory in the Spanish-American war in 1898 McKinley asserted the president’s authority as the commander-in-chief.
• Roosevelt extended his authority in domestic and foreign policy. He appealed to the people to force Congress to pass legislation. He proposed a presidential legislative program, this was the beginning of a new era.
• The trend was affirmed by Wilson’s presidency, he won exceptional powers during WWI, especially to regulate the economy. He established press conferences and he ensured the passage of progressive legislation.

Question 21

F.D.R

Answer 21

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Question 22

Why is FDR important

Answer 22

• the New Deal, 1933-39
• After F.D.R, the presidential power was accepted as a positive good

Question 23

What did the New Deal do overall?

Answer 23

it imposed presidential authority in government, it transformed the regime from Congressional to Presidential primacy. Such transformation was made possible by two emerging situations: The Great Depression and WWII.

Question 24

What was the general opinion of the expension of powers between WWII and the early 70s

Answer 24

• politicians, academics and the public all approved of it.
• Schlesinge who later criticised the Presidency was an advocate of strong executive powers in the 1950s.

Question 25

The American Presidency, 1956

Answer 25

written by Clinton Rossiter

described the new role of the president in the modern era with enthusiastic words, he defined the modern president as commander-in-chief, diplomat, Chief executive, legislative leader and opinion leader.

Question 26

Presidential Power, the Politics of Leadership, 1960

Answer 26

written by Richard Neustadt

he argued that the American system of government was based on shared powers but that for modern government to be effective, the president had to struggle for power and was forced to use all possible means to persuade all other actors to do what he wanted. In other words Neustadt’s thesis was a modern variation of Hamilton’s doctrine of an “energetic executive”

Question 27

Vietnam War

Answer 27

1955-1975

Question 28

the Watergates scandal

Answer 28

1972-74

which affected President Nixon who resigned because of the scandal. (Nixon’s administration was accused of spying on their opponents: the Democrats, camera and microphone were put in the building of their meetings.) There was no impeachment because he resigned before.

Question 29

What were the result of the Vietnam War and the Watergates scandal?

Answer 29

The result was that by 1973, presidential power had lost its prestige and it was deemed dangerous. 1973 is also the year of the publication of Schlesingler’s book, The Imperial Presidency. Nixon’s presidency marked the end of the consensus on the presidency.

Question 30

What is the situation since 1973?

Answer 30

the actual power of the Executive branch has not been curbed, it is indeed still dominant in the current system but people have been divided as the debate over checks & balances has been revived. Critics of presidential powers argue that the modern presidency undermines checks & balances and jeopardises democracy. Advocates of presidential powers claim presidential prerogatives are a necessity in the contemporary world. Most recent scholars try to offer a balanced view on the issue of legitimacy but most agree in the fact that the presidency is the strongest power today.

Question 31

What does Theodore Lowi study on modern presidency up to 1985 says?

Answer 31

traces the emergence of what he calls the “plebiscitary presidency”, he argues that the major development of the modern era has been a personalisation of the presidency through the creation of a direct relationship between the president and the people at the expense of Congress and parties. Yet, he shows that such a relationship condemned the President to failure as it is impossible for a President to meet expectations in the modern context. They are bound to become alienated from the public who elects them.

Question 32

A compléter : présidents importants & leurs parties politiques