The executive power is nowadays the most powerful office in the United States. But it was not always thus. As proposed initially by James Madison in his Virginia Plan, the executive branch had the power to appoint certain offices and to only execute national laws dictated by the legislature. The presidency had also the power to veto any legislative act that he deemed contrary to the interests of the nation. At the time of the adoption of the constitutional text, the United States had a handful of international ties and did not possess a standing army, so the executive was considered the least powerful of the three branches of government . Indeed, this office was designed while having in mind the problems brought by kings and emperors who had absolute and unrestrained power in Europe . So the real power was concentrated in the congress for most of the nineteenth century .
However, during the twentieth century, the president of the United States has become one of the most powerful people in the world. Although there have been times when the president sees himself limited in their power, as was the case with Bill Clinton when he faced a series of congressional investigations and an impeachment process, other presidents have experienced little limitations. This was the case of George Bush, who could start two wars, restrict civil liberties and cut taxes during his mandate. This creates a contradiction because, formally, all presidents should have the same powers, but apparently some presidents get to wield power more freely than others. Therefore there must be some informal rules or powers which presidents can tap but are not expressed in the constitution.
According to the constitutional text, the president is the chief executive, the chief legislator, the chief diplomat, the commander in chief, and the chief of state. The most common way to exert the executive power and influence the national political agenda is through the use of presidential directives, which are written declarations issued by the president. Those can be divided into two kinds: Executive orders, or instructions given to officials on how to perform their duties, and presidential proclamations, which are statements directed to a group of people communicating a declaration or decision reached. One other way the president has to shape the political agenda is through the appointments or removal of top officials.
On the other hand, there are limitations imposed by the legislative branch to the actions of the president. One of the main obstacles or limitations that the executive can find is its monetary dependence in the congress. Indeed, the legislature has something called the power of the purse, which makes it impossible for a president to spend funds that are not appropriated by the congress. This is a precaution taken by the founding fathers in order to separate the power to wage war from the ability to fund it. However, this has been tried to be bypassed. In 1987, Ronald Reagan sought to finance the Contras movement in Nicaragua using the CIA and other sources of financing, to which the congress responded by creating a legislation which explicitly limited the executive to use only the funds appropriated by the congress.
Other political resources
Reputation for power can be said to be a source of power itself. The perception the world and the congress have of the power of the president can help him influence foreign governments and internal actors such as congressmen, interest groups and great part of the executive bureaucracy. It can fluctuate greatly as many factors seem to affect the president´s reputation. For example, people seem to support the president when the nation faces an international threat or when military actions are initiated. Presidents often take advantage of this and push for their legislative projects knowing that their reputation can be translated into legislative victories.
The executive branch uses the media more effectively than any other national power in the United States. With the aid of the White House Press Corps, the executive branch can mobilize people´s support for presidential programs and agenda. Presidents try to open press conferences to focus attention on particular issues that they try to include in the legislative agenda, to get popular support. The use of television and public appearances makes it important to develop a charismatic personality as the public seems willing to approve of the job of the president if it thinks he cares about their problems.
These aspects are important because the executive often has a political agenda that they present to the congress and expects the country to follow the lines expressed in it. Therefore, the president must sell this agenda to the people and act as a lobbyist. If the president does not succeed, he would project an image of weakness which might make it harder for him to find support for his policies in congress or abroad.
Although the power of veto is a constitutionally granted tool for the executive branch, it provides the president with an informal leverage over the congress. It is seen now as a bargaining tool that can hardly be overridden. It is used to force opponents to negotiate or bargain, especially when the congress is composed of a majority of rivals, giving him leverage over the legislative process.
As can be seen, the executive power has clear advantages over the other two branches of the government. One might imagine that the congress still has much power over the executive branch, but that has changed in the last decade. After the 9/11 attacks, when the people rallied around the president in times of need, George Bush sought the help of the congress in order to attain more discretional power over the military under the assumption that the provisions of the War Power Resolution would be followed. This granted the executive branch unprecedented powers and is ever increasing, even today after more than a decade has passed.
The nature of the presidential power in the United States was to be the weakest of the three branches. The idea behind it was to prevent the power to be concentrated in just one of the three branches. However, it has gradually increased, and right now I believe it should be something that has to be kept on constant check.
References
Dye, Thomas. Politics in America. New York: Longman, 2011.
Fisher, Louis. "How Tightly Can Congress Draw the Purse Strings?" The American Journal of International Law 83.4 (1989): 758-766.
Grimmett, Richard. "Authorization for the Use of Military Force in Response to the 9/11 Attacks (P.L. 107-40): Legislative History." 16 January 2007. Federation of American Scientists. Web. 27 January 2014. <http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RS22357.pdf>.
—. "The War Powers Resolution: After Thirty Years." 11 March 2004. Federation of American Scientists. Web. 27 January 2014. <http://www.fas.org/man/crs/RL32267.html#_1_33>.
Welch, Susan, et al. Understanding American Government. Boston: Cengage Learning, 2012.
