Democracy's chief executive interpreting the constitution and defining the future of the presidency / Peter M. Shane.

Author/creator Shane, Peter M.
Format Electronic
Publication InfoOakland, California : University of California Press, [2022]
Description1 online resource
Supplemental ContentFull text available from Ebook Central - Academic Complete
Subjects

Contents Prologue : towards a pro-democracy constitutional presidency -- From the "unitary" to the "entitled" presidency -- The "chief prosecutor" myth -- Politicizing the "deep state" : presidents and the bureaucracy -- The originalist mirage of presidential power -- Interpreting democracy's constitution -- Democracy's presidency -- Breaking the grip of presidentialism.
Abstract "In the eyes of modern-day presidentialists, the United States Constitution's vesting of "executive power" means today what it meant in 1787. For them, what it meant in 1787 was the creation of a largely unilateral presidency, and in their view, a unilateral presidency still best serves our national interest. Democracy's Chief Executive challenges each of these premises, while showing how their influence on constitutional interpretation for more than forty years has set the stage for a presidency ripe for authoritarianism. Democracy's Chief Executive explains how dogmatic ideas about expansive executive authority can create within the government a psychology of presidential entitlement that threatens American democracy and the rule of law. Tracing today's aggressive presidentialism to a steady consolidation of White House power aided primarily by right-wing lawyers and judges since 1981, Peter M. Shane argues that this is a dangerously authoritarian form of constitutional interpretation that is not even well supported by an originalist perspective. Offering instead a fresh approach to balancing presidential powers, Shane develops an interpretative model of adaptive constitutionalism, rooted in the values of deliberative democracy. Democracy's Chief Executive demonstrates that justifying outcomes explicitly based on core democratic values is more, not less, constraining for judicial decision making--and presents a model that Americans across the political spectrum should embrace"-- Provided by publisher.
Bibliography noteIncludes bibliographical references and index.
Access restrictionAvailable only to authorized users.
Technical detailsMode of access: World Wide Web
Source of descriptionDescription based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher.
Issued in other formPrint version: Shane, Peter M. Democracy's chief executive Oakland, California : University of California Press, [2022] 9780520380905
Genre/formElectronic books.
LCCN 2021047027
ISBN9780520380912 (epub)
ISBN(cloth)

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