Contemporary basis for Presidential Power Sources of presidential

Contemporary basis for Presidential Power

• Sources of presidential strength: • Party • Popular Mobilization • Administration Contemporary Bases of Presidential Power

• Party • When the president’s party controls Congress and they share policy goals, the president can have tremendous influence • This is a two-edged sword when the opposing party is in power Contemporary Bases of Presidential Power

Groups as a Presidential Resource • Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal Coalition assisted the passage of New Deal legislation • Similarly, groups supporting Ronald Reagan permitted a number of legislative victories in the 1980 s

Presidential Success on Congressional Votes

• Going Public • 19 th century presidents were expected to be unifiers, and not speak out in public about policies • Now presidents must carefully cultivate their public image Contemporary Bases of Presidential Power

• First to use systematically – FDR • Link to people • Radio • FDR and Press relations innovations FDR and Going Public 7

Presidential Use of the Media • President’s have increasingly turned to the media to mobilize public support • President Reagan held spoke to the nation on a number of occasion to seek public support for his legislative agenda

Clinton innovation The “war room”, permanent campaign • • • Transform White House Communications Office Manage the news Bush continues practice Institutionalization of historical piecemeal practices Hughes “stay ahead of the news” 9

• Public is fickle • Some decline is inevitable = can’t fulfill all promises – sppt/ popularity decays over time • When support declines, influence decays • Less going public because of this • Go form offense GP to defensive GP Limits of Going Public 10

• The Administrative State: Presidents have tried to increase their power vis-à-vis Congress through three administrative mechanisms: • Enhancing the reach and power of the Executive Office of the President • Increasing White House control over the bureaucracy • Expanding the role of executive orders and other instruments of direct presidential governance Contemporary Bases of Presidential Power

• Executive Office of the President • 400 staff in WHO and 1, 400 in EOP • President’s staff are equal to the task of proposing legislation and countering Congress • Regulatory Review • White House determines how agencies should operate Contemporary Bases of Presidential Power

• Governing by Decree • • Executive orders Presidential decrees Executive agreements National security findings and directives Proclamations Reorganization plans Signing statements Contemporary Bases of Presidential Power

• Must be based in constitution or congress statute • When not = courts have held such actions void • Most Important case = Youngstown Co v Sawyers – steel case seizure of 1952 - Truman • No takeover of steel mills during Korean War • But courts have left broad boundaries on Presidental governance by administration. • • After the fact approval Acquiescence = approval Funding as approval Wide scope of military action based in Constitution Use of decrees bound by law, cannot do everything or anything 14

Significant Executive Orders, 1900– 1995 15

• Institutionalized by Ed Meese (Reagan) • Create a basis for action by executive agencies and become part of the legislative history of law for court interpretation • Use of artfully designed statements to attempt to reinterpret Congressional intent. • Nullification of certain provisions of certain laws. • Obama – “secret signing statements” Signing Statements 16

• The waning of more traditional tools of presidential governance – party, going public has lead to the growth of presidential powers using the Administrative Strategy+ • Congress should push back, but… • • In such battles Congress is on the defensive Recall “energy” Their reaction requires legislation = slow and cumbersome Collective action problem = large institutional concerns have lower priority than concerns for one’s own constituents/re-election. Advantages of Administrative Strategy 17