Presidential Power
Title
Presidential Power
Author
Howell, William G.
Research Area
Class, Status and Power
Topic
Political Power
Abstract
For the better part of 40 years, the study of presidential power was understood within a strictly bargaining framework—one that emphasized presidential dependence on other political actors to do things that the president cannot accomplish on his own, and that recognized personal reputation and prestige as the keystones of presidential success. But in the past 15–20 years, the presidency field as a whole has undergone significant change. Scholars have begun to investigate a broader array of actions that presidents can take, many independently, to affect public policy; and the foundations for these actions do not depend, at least exclusively, on the particular endowments of the individual presidents who stand in office. In this short essay, I recognize a sampling of the most significant advancement in three areas of the study of presidential power: unilateral powers, the political control of the bureaucracy, and public appeals. I then underscore the importance of continued investments in theory building for the study of presidential power.