Political Institutions And Their Ability To Dominate Government Decision-Making

Question 1

Introduction

Answer 1

The US government is split into three separate branches the Executive, Legislative and Judicial, this is so not one branch of the Constitution can gain more power than another therefore making the federal system balanced through checks.
- In this essay it will be argued through the Power of Veto, Power of Appointment, Commander-in-Chief and Executive Orders, that the Executive branch can dominate government decision making however it will be argued that this Executive power can successfully be checked by the other two branches of the federal government.

Question 2

Power of Veto - can dominate

Answer 2

• One way the executive branch can dominate government decision making to an extent is through the Power of Veto.
• This is when the President has power to decline or reject a law put forward by Congress.
• An example of this is Donald Trump vetoed the Yemen War Powers Resolution on the 2nd of May 2019 after it passed the House of Representatives.

Question 3

Power of Veto - can dominate (analysis)

Answer 3

• Arguably, this shows that the executive branch can dominate government decision making as Donald Trump could reject a Bill passed by Congress therefore the President had overall power.

Question 4

Power of Veto - cant dominate

Answer 4

• However, the executive branch does not fully dominate government decision making as Congress can override a veto.
• This is when Congress overrides a Presidential veto if a bill is countered and passed by two thirds of representatives of both houses.
• An example of this is when on the 28th of September 2016 Obamas veto of the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act was overturned by Congress including a 97-1 vote in the Senate.

Question 5

Power of Veto - cant dominate - analysis

Answer 5

• Arguably, this shows that the executive branch does not dominate decision making as Congress retains significant power and can infact stop a Presidential veto on key issues such as Terrorism.

Question 6

Power of Veto - evaluation

Answer 6

In evaluation, it is clear that the executive branch cannot fully dominate government decision making as whilst the President can block a bill passed by Congress, Congress does have the ability to overturn the veto by reaching a majority vote allowing the political system to remain balanced.

Question 7

Power of Appointment- can dominate

Answer 7

• A second way the executive branch can dominate government decision making to an extent is through the Power of Appointment.
• This is when the president has the ability to nominate members of Senate, Ambassadors and Judges of the Supreme Court.
• An example of this is Donald Trump successfully nominated 3 members of the Senate across his first four year term.

Question 8

Power of Appointment- can dominate - analysis

Answer 8

• Arguably, this shows the Executive Branch can dominate government decision making as the President can nominate members who are likely to support their decisions to government positions as Donald Trump had the Presidential power to nominate three members to the Senate.

Question 9

Power of Appointment- cant dominate

Answer 9

• However, the Presidents power of appointment can be checked by Congress
• This is when Congress can approve or block the President’s nominated members to government positions.
• An example of this is Trump controversially nominated Sarah Pitlyk to a U.S. District Court in 2020 so Congress heavily debated this appointment, but it was passed by Congress 51-44.

Question 10

Power of Appointment- cant dominate - analysis

Answer 10

• Arguably, this shows the Executive branch does not dominate through the Power of Appointment as Congress still must approve their nominations and in the case of Pitlyk Congress did approve.

Question 11

Power of Appointment - evaluation

Answer 11

• In evaluation, government decision making can be dominated by the Executive Branch through the Power of Appointment but only to an extent. Whilst there is evidence of Presidents having the ability to nominate and elect whoever they wish to the senate, for example Donald Trump elected 3 members to Senate in 2016, there is evidence that Congress do get the final say and approval on these nominees as they can debate on nominees such as Pitlyk to decide if they think they are the right fit.

Question 12

Commander in chief - can dominate

Answer 12

• A third way the executive branch can dominate government decision making is to an extent through the role of Commander in Chief.
• This is when the President has responsibility for defending the USA as Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy and they can order troops overseas.
• An example of this is in January 2020, Donald Trump ordered an airstrike on Iraq killing Colonel Soleimani.

Question 13

Commander in chief - can dominate - analysis

Answer 13

• Arguably, this shows that the President can dominate decision making too much as they can decide on air and drone strikes without the consent of the Legislature as seen by Donald Trump ordering an air strike.

Question 14

Commander in chief - can’t dominate

Answer 14

• However, it could be argued that the President is limited as Commander in Chief as their power can be checked by Congress.
• This is when Congress has the power to check the Commander in Chief by limiting the Presidents power to initiate or execute military action abroad.
• An example of this is Congress upheld the War Powers Resolution Bill which called for “the President to terminate use of United States Armed Forces for hostilities against the Islamic Republic of Iran” according to CNN politics in 2020.

Question 15

Commander in chief - can’t dominate - analysis

Answer 15

• Arguably, this shows that the Executive Branch does not fully dominate decision making as Congress can counter the role of Commander in Chief as the President must consult with congress and reflect their feelings and cannot declare war without their consent.

Question 16

Commander in chief - evaluation

Answer 16

• In evaluation, there is evidence that the Executive Branch does not dominate Government decision making to an extent as despite the President having the power to issue drone strikes on other countries, Congress can check this power as the War Powers Resolution Bill limits the Executives power as it requires consultation with Congress in terms of foreign militant actions.

Question 17

Executive orders - can dominate

Answer 17

• A fourth way the Executive Branch can dominate Government decision making to an extent is through Executive Orders.
• This is when the President is allowed to pass bills without Congressional approval.
• An example of this is Joe Biden used his executive orders to pass an Economic Relief package related to COVID-19 in January 2021 to citizens of the US.

Question 18

Executive orders - can dominate - analysis

Answer 18

• Arguably, this shows the President has the ability to make immediate legislative changes without consulting other government branches as Biden was able to pass this legislation without approval from Congress.

Question 19

Executive orders - cant dominate

Answer 19

• However, Executive Powers can be checked by the Judicial Branch.
  -This is when the Supreme Court can deem Executive Orders as unconstitutional and can block the order.
• An example of this is when the Supreme Court blocked Donald Trumps travel ban from predominantly Muslim Countries, according to the BBC in 2016.

Question 20

Executive orders - cant dominate - analysis

Answer 20

• Arguably, this shows that the Executive Branch is not able to fully dominate government decision making as the Supreme Court has the ability to check the Presidents Power even when they bypass Congress such as when they blocked Donald Trumps proposed travel ban.

Question 21

Executive orders - evaluation

Answer 21

• In evaluation, while the President can dominant government decision making through Executive orders by bypassing Congress, they are still kept from dominating by checks from the Supreme Court who have the ability to overrule and block executive orders as seen in Trumps case.

Question 22

Conclusion

Answer 22

• In Conclusion, Government decision making is not dominated by one singular branch. While the Executive Branch has the ability to order drone strikes on other countries seen by Donald Trump in 2020, this power can be checked by Congress who can indirectly limit this power as seen in the upheld of the War Powers Resolution Bill.
• Further power is instilled in the President with Executive Orders, such as Joe Biden 2021 Economic Relief package, thus is checked by the Supreme Court who have the authority to block it if it is unjust, such as Trumps travel ban in 2016.
• Another power the President would exercise is the power of Veto which was used by Donald Trump to veto the Yemen War powers resolution bill however a presidential veto can be prevented by congress who can overrule a veto with a majority ruling such as Obamas veto of the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act. - The power which runs the risk of dominating Government policy is Power of Appointment which allows the President to vote in members to presidential positions who share the same views this can be seen when Donald Trump nominated 3 members of Senate in his four year term.
• However, the President is kept from complete dominance by Congress who can exercise the right to debate, block and approve nominees as seen in the 2020 Pitlyk case.
• Therefore, it is clear that the Executive Branch can dominate government decision making however overall, it is limited and can be checked by the other two branches.