Presidential Leadership and the Trump Presidency: Executive Power and Democratic Government PDF
Preview Presidential Leadership and the Trump Presidency: Executive Power and Democratic Government
THE EVOLVING AMERICAN PRESIDENCY Presidential Leadership and the Trump Presidency Executive Power and Democratic Government Edited by Charles M. Lamb Jacob R. Neiheisel The Evolving American Presidency Series Editors Michael A. Genovese Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA, USA Todd L. Belt Graduate School of Political Management George Washington University Washington, DC, USA This series is stimulated by the clash between the presidency as invented and the presidency as it has developed. Over time, the presidency has evolved and grown in power, expectations, responsibilities, and authority. Adding to the power of the presidency have been wars, crises, depressions, industrialization. The importance and power of the modern presidency makes understanding it so vital. How presidents resolve challenges and paradoxes of high expectations with limited constitutional resources is the central issue in modern governance and the central theme of this book series. More information about this series at http://www.palgrave.com/gp/series/14437 Charles M. Lamb • Jacob R. Neiheisel Editors Presidential Leadership and the Trump Presidency Executive Power and Democratic Government Editors Charles M. Lamb Jacob R. Neiheisel Department of Political Science Department of Political Science University at Buffalo University at Buffalo State University of New York State University of New York Buffalo, NY, USA Buffalo, NY, USA The Evolving American Presidency ISBN 978-3-030-18978-5 ISBN 978-3-030-18979-2 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-18979-2 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Cover illustration: © jeremy sutton-hibbert / Alamy Stock Photo This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland C ontents 1 On Studying the Trump Presidency 1 Charles M. Lamb and Jacob R. Neiheisel 2 The Lies of Donald Trump: A Taxonomy 17 James P. Pfiffner 3 Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Policies: The Risks of Executive Branch Lawmaking That Fails to “Take Care” 41 Nancy Kassop 4 President Donald J. Trump and the Clemency Power: Is Claiming “Unfair” Treatment for Pardon Recipients the New “Fake News”? 91 Jeffrey Crouch 5 How to Keep the Republic (Before It’s Too Late): Why a New Constitution Is Necessary to Strengthen Liberal Democracy in the United States 121 Chris Edelson v vi CONTENTS 6 Conclusion: The Five Rules of Trump 151 Robert J. Spitzer 7 Epilogue: Donald Trump’s Contribution to Research on Presidential Power 169 Jacob R. Neiheisel Index 179 L C ist of ontributors Jeffrey Crouch American University, Washington, DC, USA Chris Edelson Department of Government, School of Public Affairs, American University, Washington, DC, USA Nancy Kassop Department of Political Science and International Relations, State University of New York at New Paltz, New Paltz, NY, USA Charles M. Lamb Department of Political Science, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, Buffalo, NY, USA Jacob R. Neiheisel Department of Political Science, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, Buffalo, NY, USA James P. Pfiffner Schar School of Policy and Government, George Mason University, Arlington, VA, USA Robert J. Spitzer Department of Political Science, State University of New York College at Cortland, Cortland, NY, USA vii CHAPTER 1 On Studying the Trump Presidency Charles M. Lamb and Jacob R. Neiheisel A survey of members of the American Political Science Association’s Presidents and Executive Politics section conducted roughly a year after President Trump took office ranked him as the worst president in the nation’s history (Nussbaum 2018). Notably, this ranking placed Trump behind even James Buchanan—the chief executive whose quiescence in the face of significant controversy and lack of presidential leadership on the issue of slavery are often thought to have led directly to the outbreak of the American Civil War (Kwong 2018). Although the survey also asked respon- dents to grade presidents on several different dimensions (Guild 2018) in addition to providing a summary evaluation of each man (dimensions on which Trump also fared poorly according to the experts), ranking presi- dents has long been an endeavor fraught with difficulties (Nice 1984; Nichols 2012; Pfiffner 2003), not the least of which concerns the set of criteria upon which each chief administrator is to be judged (Pfiffner 2003) We thank Joshua Boston for his past research assistance. C. M. Lamb (*) • J. R. Neiheisel Department of Political Science, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, Buffalo, NY, USA e-mail: [email protected]; [email protected] © The Author(s) 2020 1 C. M. Lamb, J. R. Neiheisel (eds.), Presidential Leadership and the Trump Presidency, The Evolving American Presidency, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-18979-2_1 2 C. M. LAMB AND J. R. NEIHEISEL and the problems associated with making comparisons across vastly differ- ent time periods (Nice 1984). Nevertheless, such exercises can aid students of presidential leadership in identifying the criteria by which presidents ought to be judged (Pfiffner 2003). Much the same might very well be said for early appraisals of presidents and their leadership undertaken while they still occupy the White House. And even though most would agree with Hilliard, Lansford and Watson’s (2004) judgment—leveled in their own inquiry into George W. Bush early in his administration—that “evaluating presidents is a compelling and an important exercise,” there is still significant disagreement within the schol- arly community regarding not only how presidents should be evaluated but also when. Hindsight is often 20/20, and events that appeared to be of little import early in a particular presidency would later go on to define an entire administration. Greenstein (1983) notes that Truman’s Fair Deal and Johnson’s involvement in Vietnam would later characterize their respective periods in office, even as their import was not apparent while they were still serving as the nation’s chief executive. To this list one might add Clinton’s intimate involvement with a White House intern; although it was clear to all at the time that the scandal and resulting impeachment would almost certainly color later evaluations of his presidency, the public, for its part, seemed reluctant at the time to incorporate Clinton’s personal failings into their evaluation of his overall job performance (Zaller 1998). But Clinton’s ratings have declined in recent years—a drop that corre- sponds with the arrival of the “#MeToo” movement (Andelic 2018). Similarly, decisions or actions that were praised at one point in time might very well be decried at a later date with the benefit of greater historical perspective (Nice 1984). Why, then, embark upon such an early appraisal of a man who, at the time of this writing, is little over halfway through the term to which he was elected to serve? Political scientists and public administration scholars have engaged in such efforts since at least the Carter administration (Sundquist 1979; see also Burke 2009; Campbell and Rockman 1991, 1996; Greenstein 2003; Hilliard et al. 2004; Jacobson 2007; King and Riddlesperger 1996; Newland 1983).1 Few, however, have provided a rationale for assessing a president while he (or she) is still in office. 1 Indeed, the journal Presidential Studies Quarterly has, for some time, featured within its pages a regular segment on The Contemporary Presidency.
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