Essay
Presidential Power 30 Marker
- Module
- Presidency
- Institution
- PEARSON (PEARSON)
Presidency past paper exam question (can't remember which one)
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Evaluate the extent to which presidential power has become increasingly constrained. (30)Presidents hold a huge majority of power as the head of state and head of government. Within the
constitution, the President is responsible for the execution and enforcement of the laws created by
Congress. However, due to the increase of powers for Congress and the authority of Supreme Court,
it raises the question on how limited the powers of the president are.
To commence, growing partisanship in Congress means that even when Congress is controlled by
their own party, it is difficult for the president to secure the passage of legislation. This was seen
when Trump introduced his plans to build a wall between America and Mexico. Despite having an
overall majority in Congress, he struggled to obtain support from his own party members, therefore
leading for it to be difficult to be passed. However, it could be argued that Presidential powers are
not limited as Presidents are able to utilise executive orders and sign statements. A recent example
of Presidents using Executive Orders for immediate action is Executive Order 14066 of March 8,
2022, to stop imports and investments towards Russia in support of Ukraine. This proves that the
president is significant and has not had their powers limited.
Presidential power has become increasingly constrained is due to Congress being controlled by the
opposing party. During midterms, there is a high likelihood that either the House or Senate is
controlled by the opposing party, which makes passing the president’s agenda difficult. This can be
seen in the 2022 midterms, as the Senate is controlled by the Democrats whilst the House is
controlled by the Republicans. However, presidential power is seen to not be constrained as
Congress is often too disunified to use the power of the purse to obstruct the presidential agenda.
This was seen in the government shutdown of 2013, where it failed to defund the Affordable Care
Act. This proves that the powers of the president has not become restricted.
Nominations to the judiciary are often ignored by the Senate, which could mean that the powers of
the president have been constrained. This was seen when Senate rejected President George
Washington’s nomination of South Carolina’s John Rutledge to be chief justice of the US. However,
with the presidents power to veto, he is able to resist any attempt by Congress to advance their own
agenda. As the President has an absolute veto over any Security resolution, the President has the
ultimate power as the Chief diplomat to make regulations when it comes to military advancements in
other countries. This was seen in 2020, when Trump vetoed a bill for the Iran War Powers Resolution.
Which demonstrates that the presidential power has not become constrained.
The Presidential Power has become constrained due to media group influence which can force a
change in policy. This was seen in 2022, when Roe v Wade was overruled by the Supreme Court,
which meant that there was opposing views and opinions on the issue from Americans worldwide
and from American politicians. However, the president is still relatively unchecked by congressional
restraints when it comes to foreign policy. Despite the legislative branch acting as a check on the
president and can hold hearings that generate debates and expose decisions to public scrutiny, but
the overall decision relies on the President which can show that the presidential power has become
less constraint.
To conclude, it is evident to say that the presidential powers are not constraint as they still hold a lot
of powers when it comes to vetoes and the utilisation of executive orders. This makes the president
more powerful than Congress as they can make decisions on foreign policy and the disunite of
Congress makes decision makings within it difficult.
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