"Many Americans are unsatisfied with politics. Simultaneously, we
are hesitant to question the basic soundness of our constitutional
system. In this refreshingly provocative book, David Orentlicher
explains why it is due time for us to reconsider dominant ideas
about the presidency, now arguably our most powerful political
institution. Challenging the conventional wisdom that the best
executive is necessarily a unitary executive, Orentlicher makes a
wonderful case for why 'two presidents are better than one.' Sure
to be of interest to political scientists, legal scholars, as well
as informed citizens justifiably worried about the fate of American
democracy, this fascinating book dares to challenge everything you
thought you knew about one of our favorite political institutions."
-William E. Scheuerman, Indiana University "Can Orentlicher be
serious in calling for a plural executive? The answer is yes, and
he presents thoughtful and challenging arguments responding to
likely criticisms. Any readers who are other than completely
complacent about the current state of American politics will have
to admire Orentlicher's distinctive audacity and to respond
themselves to his well-argued points." -Sanford Levinson, author of
Framed: America's 51 Constitutions and the Crisis of Governance
When talking heads and political pundits make their "What's Wrong
with America" lists, two concerns invariably rise to the top: the
growing presidential abuse of power and the toxic political
atmosphere in Washington. In Two Presidents Are Better Than One,
David Orentlicher shows how the "imperial presidency" and partisan
conflict are largely the result of a deeper problem-the
Constitution's placement of a single president atop the executive
branch. Accordingly, writes Orentlicher, we can fix our broken
political system by replacing the one person, one-party presidency
with a two-person, two-party executive branch. Orentlicher contends
that our founding fathers did not anticipate the extent to which
their checks and balances would fail to contain executive power and
partisan discord. They also did not foresee how the imperial
presidency would aggravate partisan conflict. As the stakes in
presidential elections have grown ever higher since the New Deal,
battles to capture the White House have greatly exacerbated
partisan differences. Had the framers been able to predict the
future, Orentlicher argues, they would have been far less enamored
with the idea of a single leader at the head of the executive
branch and far more receptive to the alternative proposals for a
plural executive that they rejected. Like their counterparts in
Europe, they might well have created an executive branch in which
power is shared among multiple persons from multiple political
parties. Analyzing the histories of other countries with a plural
executive branch and past examples of bipartisan cooperation within
Congress, Orentlicher shows us why and how to implement a
two-person, two-party presidency. Ultimately, Two Presidents Are
Better Than One demonstrates why we need constitutional reform to
rebalance power between the executive and legislative branches and
contain partisan conflict in Washington.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
