What Makes a President Powerful??

Aristotle was one of the world greatest philosophers

• said politics was the “master discipline” because in order to understand politics, you must have an understanding of everything else

• Morris agrees (you can look at it from sociologic, economic, environmental way)

A great man theory (trait theories)

• Some people have certain personality traits, ways of seeing the world that makes them particularly good at being the president

• A good theory is a theory that is really short and not complex (what poli sci want)

  • Limit the number of traits as what is important

History of the presidency

After Jackson we get ups and downs

1860s, we get Lincoln (suspended Habeus Corpus)

After Lincoln we enter the dark ages of the American president

• We have one weak president after another

• Because they believed in absolutely nothing

• Country after the civil war was divided (north v south) (divided in each party)

  • Think of Andrew Garfield (republican party is divided into 4 factions. After a week, they invite speakers to try and convince people. Garfield gets called up, and says ‘this is ridiculous, we are going to lose to the Democrats. We need to figure out a Canadite and deal with this’ Garfield is then nominated for president simply because he said broad principles that didn’t offend anyone)

  • When he becomes president, he doesn’t have any agenda

  • After Garfield dies, there is civil service reform

Theodore Roosevelt - founded national park, Went down the amazon river

Get the worlds worst president - William Howard Taft (the exact opposite of Roosevelt)

next Powerful Presidents - Woodrow Wilson

1930s - FDR served through the great depression and WW2, and the new deal

• the new deal created economic regulation (regulate the boom and bust cycle of capitalism) and made work for people (if you put money directly in the hands of people, they will spend the money → businesses will have to hire people→ more jobs)

After FDR, the president is always more powerful than past presidents

A Political scientist looks at this map and tries to figure out why there are more powerful presidents after the 1900s:

• Traits? People who want to be president

  • Washington/Garfield didn’t want to be president

  • Now people want to be president

• Economics

  • How has our economy changed? After FDR, we want government to regulate the economy

• People

  • Build popularity among the people, president have more communication with their citizens

  • The more citizens support them, the more powerful they are?

• Crisis

  • Arthur Schlesinger book The Imperial Presidency

    • The change in America’s global position in the world has led to America’s change in the presidency. In times of crisis, we look for leaders (iron law of oligarchy). “we have a father figure leader” who is always in charge, fair, just, and right.

    • The 1900s have been one crisis after another, and the voters have looked for strong father figures

  • WW1, The Great Depression, WW2, The Cold War (West vs East Europe, Proxy wars (Vietnam/Korea), Nukes, Mutually Assured Destruction), 9/11, Crisis of What is True (Alternative Facts)