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Zusammenfassung von The American Presidency

Name: The American Presidency
Rating: 4.3 (29 reviews)
Author: Charles O. Jones

Charles O. Jones

A Very Short Introduction

4.3 (29 Bewertungen)

14 Min.

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Demokratie Politik der USA

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The American Presidency
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What’s in it for me? Take a peek into the office of president.

From dropping the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima in 1945 to signing the Civil Rights Act two decades later, American presidents have had an incalculable influence on the world we live in. In fact, it can sometimes seem like the US president wields utterly unchecked power – like he can simply do as he pleases.

But is this the case?

Not by a long shot. The US president is severely limited in his powers by the American system and the American Constitution. The Founding Fathers, made wary by the tyrannical rule of Britain, designed a system that barred any single person from becoming all-powerful.

So what are the rules that govern a president, and how were they instated? These blinks take you through the long and changing history of the American presidency.

You'll also learn

that the American presidency was really an experiment;
what the White House was originally called; and
why a separation of offices leads to unity.

The American presidency was part of an experimental concept of governance.

In 1783, rebel forces in the New World of America defeated the British monarchy and won their independence. After this victory, it fell to a group of men commonly referred to as the Founding Fathers to come up with a constitution and set the rules of government for the newly established republic.

It took some time, but in 1787, they unveiled the new structure for the United States government – a constitutional democracy with a president occupying the highest executive position.

The president was to be somewhat like a monarch, somewhat like a prime minister. He would lead the government, and take care of day-to-day decision-making, as well as be the face of the nation.

The creation of this position was an experiment in governance, and so rather than the old title of “governor,” which had been tainted by British colonials, they chose the more neutral “president.” This stems from the Latin term praesidere, meaning “to preside,” so it was free of any British association.

The Founding Fathers also wanted to move away from the system of British nobility. So, to appoint this new kind of leader, they came up with an experimental new electoral system.

They based the system on the principle of separating to unify – that is, they divided power among the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government, so that no single individual or organization could ever seize control and establish a monarchy or some other despotic form of government.

But disagreement arose over how this system should operate. There were two ideological camps. On the one hand, there were the Anti-Federalists. They wanted power to be given to the states, and suggested the president be elected by whichever party had the most state representatives in Congress. On the other hand were the Federalists. Who wanted the president to be elected by the people. They believed this process would match the centralized, executive authority of the presidency.

In the end, a compromise was made in the form of the electoral college.

This experimental institution is made up of members, or “electors,” who are chosen by the citizens of the state. Each state is permitted a number of electors proportional to its population. The presidential candidate who wins the majority of the electoral votes wins the election. If no candidate wins a majority, the vote moves to congress.

This is the process that was agreed upon in the original Constitution, and it’s still in place today.

From the start, the role of the presidency and the branches of government were clearly defined.

Early on, US leaders believed their new nation needed its own capital city, separate from any one state, where the president would reside, in a house that matched the grand stature of the position.

This was decided in 1790, when Washington, DC was born through the legislation of the Residency Act. Congress eventually agreed on the centrally-located land between Maryland and Virginia, along the Potomac River.

The US election process has changed over the years.

As you’d expect with an innovative new government, there were some wrinkles that needed to be ironed out early on.

One of the bigger wrinkles was the process for electing a vice president. Originally, the role of vice president went to the candidate who got the second most votes from the electoral college. But as you can imagine, this would tend to provide the executive office with two people from different political parties, such as in 1796, when fierce rivals John Adams and Thomas Jefferson were president and vice president, respectively.

Due to the unique nature of the US government it can be difficult for a president to take action.

Remarkably, America’s interdependent system of government, which was devised in the eighteenth century, is still in place today. But that doesn’t mean it always runs as smoothly as the Founding Fathers hoped.

If a president has any hope of creating a new law, he needs to secure the cooperation of every branch of the government, which, to say the least, isn’t so easy.

The nature of the US presidency has evolved, and will continue to do so.

We’ve seen why the United States government has long been referred to as “the great experiment.” It’s an appropriate description, and as the nation continues through its third century, many are wondering what lies ahead for this unique brand of government.

While there have been many changes to the US government over the years, one aspect that continues to evolve on a regular basis is the role of the president.

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Worum geht es in The American Presidency?

The American Presidency (2007) offers an introduction to the US presidency and the unique role each president must play in world politics. Find out what kind of thinking went into the creation of this job and how it has changed over the years. America’s Founding Fathers created a uniquely experimental government when they broke free from British influence; even today, their experiment continues to surprise us.

Bestes Zitat aus The American Presidency

The two branches were to be independently elected, if interdependently empowered.

—Charles O. Jones

Wer The American Presidency lesen sollte

Readers interested in American history
Students of politics or public policy
Frustrated voters trying to understand the electoral college

Über den Autor

Charles Jones is a political scholar who works at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center of Public Affairs, as well as the Governmental Studies Program at The Brookings Institution. He is the author of many books, including Separate But Equal Branches: Congress and the Presidency and An Introduction to Public Policy.

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