Presidential Power and Domestic Security Issues

Introduction

The issues raised by the author in this chapter relate to the scope of presidential power and authority in various spheres of activity. In this context, Nixon’s War on Drugs and Saturday Night Massacre are initiatives closely related to domestic U.S. security issues. This allows them to be used as two contrasting examples of the President’s executive privilege use.

Discussion

In the first example, Nixon’s program aimed to combat the demand for drugs and actively prosecute people who had broken the law (Wehle 82). In this context, he used his power to ensure proper and effective law enforcement. Since the executive branch could not prevent all law violations, the President’s initiative focused efforts on drug users. In the second case, Nixon tried to use his legal privileges to win the power struggle and cover up the scandal around the Watergate Hotel (Wehle 93). In this case, all of the President’s actions to resign various individuals were entirely legal, but in the absence of cooperation turned against him. These examples demonstrate both the magnitude of the President’s powers and the potential for limiting them.

The second group of examples, however, focuses on external affairs. The President’s position as Commander in Chief is one of the most crucial in terms of influencing international relationships. It gives them enormous executive powers, according to which various military operations can be initiated. Simultaneously, although Congress has the power to declare war, the President can bypass it and independently act through executive decisions (Wehle 97). The War Powers Resolution could have resolved this controversial political issue, but it was never enforced. In its absence, as the cited examples show, the President has the right to conduct various military actions without further authorization (Wehle 98). A similar problem is posed by executive agreements, which function similarly to treaties ratified by Congress but can be issued in circumvention of Congress (Wehle 100).

Conclusion

In conclusion, in this context, the President is given an extensive scope of authority that can be exercised for various foreign policy independent actions. These examples demonstrate that the executive power of the head of state is highly flexible. Consequently, foreign policy can be primarily determined by the President alone.

Work Cited

Wehle, Kim. How to Read the Constitution – And Why. Harper, 2019.

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