Thesis on "Congress and Presidency"

Thesis 4 pages (1353 words) Sources: 5 Style: APA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Congress and the Presidency

Separation of Powers

Separation of powers is the concept adopted by the Founding Fathers that prevents any branch of government -- executive, legislative, or judicial -- from governing the U.S. without "checks and balances" from the other two branches. It was meant, in the time of kings and emperors, to prevent a monarchy or dictatorship.

Each branch of the government is given certain limited and specific powers. An example would be that the legislative branch can introduce and pass laws, but the President, or executive branch, can veto them. Another example is that, though the U.S. Supreme Court is appointed for life, it is the executive branch which must appoint the justices, and the legislative branch must approve the selection and has the power to impeach.

It may be important to note that, in the beginnings of our country when the politicians wrote the first articles of confederation of the states in 1781, there were no checks and balances. The only power designated by the articles was Congress which consisted of one representative from each state and ran everything -- everything that the states allowed them to run. Remember too, though, that prior to these articles, states had been and were still the primary power group in the colonies. To impose a strong central federal government that held any level of power over the states was tyranny to many, at best. So, the fact that the articles did just that with a weak though centralized Congress was a major step. Separation of powers did not exist, at least not in any real sense.

In 1786 it became apparent to all that the articles of confederation were not working. In 1787, the Philadelphia Convention arrived at the "Great Compromise" and a brand new U.S. Constitution. The articles were completely rewritten in a broad and courageous step outside the individual states' powerful interests. These "founding fathers" were committed to a stronger union and to the states' demands for a separation of powers between federal and state governments. As well, they knew that no unit of the federal government could become so powerful as to produce a ruling body vis-a-vis the British crown. Thus, the bi-cameral legislature, the executive and the judicial branches were born and a system of checks and balances put in place by dividing separate powers and duties for each.

Executive Branch Success With Domestic Policy Initiatives

As there is no "power" that gives any branch of the government the right to deal with domestic or foreign policy, it has fallen within the purview of the presidency to do so as he is the one branch of the government elected by all the people and is their representative. He also maintains the Constitutional right to oversee the law of the land and to ensure legislation is implemented. Due to his "bully pulpit" it is the presidency which has the most influence over the other two branches in this domestic arena.

The executive branch, through the president's cabinet and many other internal organizations, is organized to establish and deal with domestic policies. Domestic policy is a vast mass of bureaucratic dealings in an almost unlimited number of areas to include everything from national parks to oil drilling, from AIDS research to the Patriot Act, and from healthcare to gay rights.

Presidents since Franklin Roosevelt in the 1930s have established cabinet posts, agencies, committees, boards, groups, and staff posts solely to deal with the president's main emphasis -- domestic policy (Rudalevige, 2009).

In a sense, the executive branch is a finely honed domestic policy machine developed over decades utilizing the savvy, intelligence, and strategies of numerous presidents and their hand-picked advisors. No other branch of our government is organized to accomplish this task.

Finally, it is crucial to note that the executive branch can effectively implement domestic policy without the approval of the legislative branch. Through rule-making, appointments, re-organizations, executive orders, proclamations, etc., the president wields a mighty sword when it comes to controlling the domestic agenda.

But it is the president that makes… READ MORE

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