US President

January 25, 2008, 1:52 AM

The US president is commonly described as the most powerful man in the world, yet is this true?

The US system of government was designed so no one section could be more powerful then the other. but it seems that the executive branch has become more powerful, with cheney claiming he isnt really part of the executive branch.

but how much power does any US president really have?
their actions have to be ratified by congress, who are possible of saying no, and also congress can impeach the US President.

and there are other people in the world who are perhaps equally/more/less powerful then the US President, ie President of China, Bill Gates ect,

so what i mean really is being the leader of arguably the most powerful country in the world equate to being the most powerful person in the world?
discuss?

January 25, 2008, 1:55 AM

I don't know much about America, but I do know that the US government is a complete troublemaker.
America and its citizens scare me, like that new forum member who's patriotic to America...well...I'm just really scared of him now...he creeps me out...
But the US government, oh, they gotta go down to the bottom of the pile!

January 25, 2008, 2:04 AM

Yes, the Leader of America pretty much rules the world, partly so because he has tie ins with every other country in the world, Britain, France, China, Australia (not as strong with Aussie because we just got a new PM) and also that America has a lot of exports, and he controls them. Alas, that is all I know

January 25, 2008, 2:14 AM

Complete troublemaker? Don't generalize like that, 'cause that's not entirely true. If they were, then they wouldn't care about...anything. They're not exactly a group of warmongers causing trouble just because they want to or because they feel like doing it, but because they have to.

Why does the U.S. government intervene in everything then?

Because the U.S. has economic and political interest in those parts of the world that they're involved in. Although they do tend to cause trouble, they're not the direct source of trouble in the country either. In other words, the trouble was already there before the U.S. intervened. Well, can you say that if the U.S. government never intervened in say, Iraq, would you be willing to trade-off human lives under the dictatorship of Hussein and be willing to accept rising oil prices at the same time? Would you feel safe that there are terrorists in that part of the world running unchecked and could attack anytime anywhere because no one intervened?

Okay, so the war really hasn't been all that popular, but stats show terrorists and terrorism have dropped since 9/11, so there is at least some progress.

Complete troublemakers too, when they provide monetary support to keep other countries afloat? It's not like they're supporting big bad dictatorships and leave genocide unchecked, but don't you think it's a good thing that other nations are kept economically afloat by U.S. government funding?

And last, thing. Patriotism. Everyone has it, not many can deny it. Why exactly do American citizens scare you, Amelia? What have they done?

In response to TYK's post:

I think the U.S. president is the most powerful man in the world simply because he controls the *arguably* most powerful and influential nation in the world. Foreign and domestic affairs are two different things, but you're right, he can get checked by the legislative branch in Congress. But, remember that presidents can override, as is the case with Abraham Lincoln. If you know, he suspended habeas corpus during the Civil War in 1861-65 over the voiced antagonism of Congress. Of course, the war justified his action because it prevented Southern sympathizers from debilitating the northern war effort.
So he does have the power to. All presidents, that is. It's not preferred, but sometimes it's necessary, but just by the fact that it's there means that the President really does have a lot of power, maybe more so than anyone else in the world.

Case in point in the difference between domestic power and foreign power in relation to leaders:
Dictators may have more power per se than the President of the United States at home, or domestically, but they aren't as powerful when it comes to the world stage. If they can't field an army or navy as powerful as the Western World, i.e. specifically the U.S., can you say that he is more powerful than the U.S. President?

January 25, 2008, 2:17 AM

The US President may be the Chief Executive ot the Executive Branch. But remember, it is a temporary position. The max a person can be a US President is 8 years, two terms, That was done after FDR died, who was President the longest. I believe he was President for 12 years. Truman did most of his 4th term.

So I would say the US maybe the most powerful country in the world. But the President's power is limited primarily because it is a temporary postion. I think the Congress actually have more power, that is if the dopes actually use their power. Right now, the Democratic Congress are a bunch of wimps. That is another thing, which is different than a government like Britain. The US may not always have one party in primary power. You could have a Republican House, Democratic Senate and Republican President. Which I believe is how President Bush started his Presidency. Now he has a total Democratic Congress. So if the Congress were not a bunch of wimps, they could check his power pretty well.

January 25, 2008, 2:19 AM

I have to post this: Max for a president is 10 years, not 8.

Oh yeah, Bush also had a Republican Congress during the majority of his term, so since they were in his party, they had no choice but the obey their party. Now that Congress is dominated by Democrats, expect much more rebuke from them about presidential decisions.

January 25, 2008, 2:23 AM

Z, a President's term is 4 years. They are allowed 2 terms, which is 8 years. I know because I have been voting for several years.

January 25, 2008, 2:28 AM

No, I know that. I just pointed out that the actual max in years in office is 10. When the president dies within 2 years of being elected, the vice president ascends, and he gets the 2 years remaining on the ex-president's term plus 2 terms he's entitled to if he runs for re-election.

January 25, 2008, 2:37 AM

Thats true, Z. I forgot about that. Since fortunately it does not happen very often. I stand corrected.

January 25, 2008, 2:42 AM

But does that affect whether a president is more powerful or not? Staying an extra two years? I mean, his power will certainly be longer, but more powerful?

I actually think FDR waned in power when his 4th term rolled along. But since he is, as you said, the only president to remain in office for more than a decade, that's probably not a good benchmark.