Imperilled presidency
Encyclopedia
The theory of the Imperilled Presidency was created by former President of the United States
Gerald Ford
in contrast to Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.'s theory of the Imperial Presidency
. The theory suggests that rather than being too powerful, the President does not have enough power to be effective.
The growth in the size of the bureaucracy surrounding the President since the New Deal
of the 1930s has made the executive
more difficult to control. Ford argued that
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Gerald Ford
Gerald Ford
Gerald Rudolph "Jerry" Ford, Jr. was the 38th President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977, and the 40th Vice President of the United States serving from 1973 to 1974...
in contrast to Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.'s theory of the Imperial Presidency
Imperial Presidency
Imperial Presidency is a term that became popular in the 1960s and that served as the title of a 1973 volume by historian Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr. to describe the modern presidency of the United States...
. The theory suggests that rather than being too powerful, the President does not have enough power to be effective.
The growth in the size of the bureaucracy surrounding the President since the New Deal
New Deal
The New Deal was a series of economic programs implemented in the United States between 1933 and 1936. They were passed by the U.S. Congress during the first term of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The programs were Roosevelt's responses to the Great Depression, and focused on what historians call...
of the 1930s has made the executive
Executive (government)
Executive branch of Government is the part of government that has sole authority and responsibility for the daily administration of the state bureaucracy. The division of power into separate branches of government is central to the idea of the separation of powers.In many countries, the term...
more difficult to control. Ford argued that
[A] principal weakness in the presidency is the inability of the White House to maintain control over the large federal bureaucracy. There is nothing more frustrating for a President than to issue an order to a Cabinet officer, and then find that, when the order gets out in the field, it is totally mutilated.