The Presidency‑Pols Y318

Paper Topic # 1-Due 10/23

Fall 2008

It is of the nature of war to increase the executive at the expense of the legislative authority.

The Federalist # 8

The authors of the Federalist recognized that foreign and domestic crises would increase

presidential power. Yet for all the resources available to the executive in time of crisis, some

presidents have been more successful than others in achieving their goals. Presidents, of course, must confront many challenges. The Constitution, Congress, Supreme Court, media, and public opinion

are some of the most significant obstacles limiting the president’s exercise of power.

In this paper you will choose one of the presidents from among those listed on the syllabus section B.2 through 5 and analyze his successes and/or failures in exercising power in time of crisis. The paper should include the following:

   Identify the crisis and the key issues it raises

   Discuss the background events leading to the crisis

   Discuss the president’s exercise of leadership in meeting the challenges posed by the crisis?

   What is the president’s view of executive power?

   Does this view raise any serious constitutional questions or differ from prior approaches to the use of executive power? Cite contemporary challenges

   Does the president’s exercise of power in this crisis conflict with his own view of executive power? If so, how does he justify his power?

   Did the president’s use of power in this crisis change the way we understand executive power?

An 5-7 page research paper requiring the use of primary and secondary sources and appropriate footnotes and references. Relevant primary sources include: the Federalist and other founding era documents, writings of the president, newspapers, journals, etc. Secondary sources include books and articles by historians and political scientists.