Does the POTUS RUN the country?

[Truth Warrior]

My answer is HELL NO, he doesn't and NEVER has.

Most of them haven't even been able manage to just run even the Executive branch US federal government right.<IMHO> :p :rolleyes:

Discuss ( or not )! :D

[Truth Warrior]

Only about a third of "We the People" ( so called ) vote. Of that MINORITY, there's now about a 50 / 50 split among them on just who should rule ( so called ) and govern ( so called ) ALL of us. :rolleyes:

What a ridiculous, bogus BS scam, racket and joke. :p

[noxagol]

Does he? To an extent. Should he? Of course not. Do they try really really hard to do so? Of course they do. Is he suppose to? Of course not.

[heavenlyboy34]

Constitutionally, no. Under the Articles Of Confederation, Hell no. In practice, it seems like he runs it sometimes! :mad::confused:

[Fox McCloud]

Nope; he's more of a figurehead than anything else. That said, people tend to elevate certain positions; especially if that position is held by a single person...so naturally people really do tend to think that a President "runs the country".

It's sad,but...perception means a lot in this country, sadly.

[HOLLYWOOD]

My answer is HELL NO, he doesn't and NEVER has.

Most of them haven't even been able manage to just run even the Executive branch US federal government right.<IMHO> :p :rolleyes:

Discuss ( or not )! :D

Abraham Lincoln thought it should be...


The American Sheeple just magnify and already, way to powerful position of the Presidency.

I should be a ceremonial position considering so many POTUS have screwed the People, The Country, and World. Politicians on the Supreme Court, District and Circuit Courts, State Dept, White House, it's all Screwed Up! No Ethics, No Morals, total Sociopaths!

Death becomes... when the President acts.

Remove the Powers Please

[dirknb@hotmail.com]

The POTUS is a puppet. I think you already knew my position on this issue though. :cool:

[KenInMontiMN]

We established 35 years ago that we weren't going to impeach over the constitution, we should have impeached 5 SCOTUS justices at that time but didn't, and the result is that today a president can simply say 'it's just a piece of paper.' And expect no consequences beyond some noise from certain quarters but no real threat of impeachment for violation.

From Roe v Wade forward the two parties have mutually agreed along with the Supreme Court that they can continue to trample the constitution in any way they please, and impeachment will not be an issue, politics over principle all the way.

Nobody ever mounts a serious attempt to amend the thing anymore because it's a lot of work that would be meaningless even if successful, since its treated as nothing more than a non-binding advice column.

That's where we went wrong, no more binding rules any more that everyone respects enough to change things properly when we want them changed- and everybody votes with stacking the SCOTUS their way in mind, along with other things, because the words contained within mean nothing in the face of politically motivated interpretations sometimes based on nothing. The Court is now the agent to amend the thing, at will and at whim- on any given day your constitutional protections are whatever they happen to decide they are.

None of this will never change unless and until we direct congress in near-unanimous fashion, left & right standing together- to go on an impeachment frenzy until no president dares turn a blind eye to the actual document, and no justice dares get very creative in interpretation. At that point the constitution will have regained its prominent stature and those who have issues with it will work towards changing it by the book rather than through subverting it.

As long as Americans want to fight over it in the political/justice arena seeking their own ends more than they want to respect it and apply it invariably like the result or not, there will effectively be no constitution, and a populace that values it so little as evidenced by that choice arguably doesn't deserve constitutional protection- as a matter of their own choosing.

Everybody needs to ask themselves that- is it more important to you to be able to twist/convolute/ignore the thing when that suits you, or are you fully prepared to apply it as written to all questions, even where you see past abuses as positive results (that must be overturned to restore integrity and consistency, no hope of getting most of us together on that without clear integrity and consistency)? Without universal resolve to apply it in straightforward fashion, overturn past abuses, change it the right way when we wish it changed, and most importantly stand together to impeach like madmen, unanimously, each and every time someone wants to stretch and bend the thing- there is absolutely no hope for change with regard to the present day treatment of the document.

If Americans aren't willing to be the guard dog biting off any hand that would abuse the thing, and immediately- then the constitution will have no champion that will be able to safeguard those provisions and rights against political winds.

Cliffnotes version to answer to question posed in thread title: Yes, at least and until we ever get around to coming together and putting the constitution first and foremost again.

[Truth Warrior]

Abraham Lincoln thought it should be...


The American Sheeple just magnify and already, way to powerful position of the Presidency.

I should be a ceremonial position considering so many POTUS have screwed the People, The Country, and World. Politicians on the Supreme Court, District and Circuit Courts, State Dept, White House, it's all Screwed Up! No Ethics, No Morals, total Sociopaths!

Death becomes... when the President acts.

Remove the Powers Please
;) I agree with you. Voters merely transfer part orf their individual power to the sociopaths through their votes, support and servile obedience.<IMHO>

"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." -- Lord Acton

[Truth Warrior]

The POTUS is a puppet. I think you already knew my position on this issue though. :cool:

"The real rulers in Washington are invisible and exercise power from behind the scenes." -- Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter,1952

[Pete]

The President is to run the government on behalf of the People on a day-to-day basis and act as figurehead when necessary, but his focus and direction should be from Congress, also as representatives of the People and of the States (pre-17th amendment). They are the board of directors, if you will. The President should be the whipping boy of Congress.

Congressmen are the people we need to lean on. Hard.

[Truth Warrior]

The President is to run the government on behalf of the People on a day-to-day basis and act as figurehead when necessary, but his focus and direction should be from Congress, also as representatives of the People and of the States (pre-17th amendment). They are the board of directors, if you will. The President should be the whipping boy of Congress.

Congressmen are the people we need to lean on. Hard. Our understanding of the INTENTION of the Constitution is different. My reading of it is that the POTUS is merely the top official of the Executive branch. ;)

I see NO mention of running the country in the Constitution, ANYWHERE.

[Pete]

Our understanding of the INTENTION of the Constitution is different. My reading of it is that the POTUS is merely the top official of the Executive branch. ;)

I see NO mention of running the country in the Constitution, ANYWHERE.

Hmm, very good point and, geez, am I brainwashed. The Officers (department heads) are free to run their own shows, though certainly they can be lapdogs of the President if they want, and I'd bet that the Founders assumed they often would be. Relevant text below:

Article II, Section 2:


The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States; he may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices, and he shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.

He shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by Law: but the Congress may by Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments.

[Truth Warrior]

Hmm, very good point and, geez, am I brainwashed. The Officers (department heads) are free to run their own shows, though certainly they can be lapdogs of the President if they want, and I'd bet that the Founders assumed they often would be. Relevant text below:

Article II, Section 2: The Executive branch merely "executes" the "laws" ( so called ) that the Legislative branch ( Congress [ law factory :p ] ) passes and that are signed into "law" ( so called ). It gets a bit more complicated, but that's the main gist of it.<IMHO> ;)

"Government expands to meet the needs of expanding government."

"Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly and applying the wrong remedies." -- Groucho Marx

[Pete]

TW, I think we basically agree. One thing is certain, and that is that the President should not be such a big stick that the public hangs on his daily whims. His actions should be an expression of the rulings of Congress. People should be more concerned about how their representatives are voting.

[mconder]

The only thing the executive is supposed to do is enforce Federal law, not make it.

[Deborah K]

Last I heard we set up the government via the Constitution by creating a balance of power between the three branches.

[dannno]

Kennedy was the last one to try and go against his puppet masters.

The ones that go with their puppet masters sure do a lot to direct the country, but I guess then it is a question of who is actually running things??

[Truth Warrior]

TW, I think we basically agree. One thing is certain, and that is that the President should not be such a big stick that the public hangs on his daily whims. His actions should be an expression of the rulings of Congress. People should be more concerned about how their representatives are voting. A probable difference is, I fired ALL of the lying D.C. clowns that falsely claimed to represent me 30 some years ago. I've not hired ANYMORE since. ;) There are NO plans for me EVER hiring ANY again.

Thanks! :)

[RonPaulR3VOLUTION]

The position of President will inevitably turn into the position of King. It's a terrible idea. Whatever good supposedly comes out of having a president is far outweighed by all of the bad. If there is ever a chance to improve this government, for a change, abolish that position.

All that said, I do not believe the President has much of a say in anything. It sure serves, intentional or not, to divert attention away from those in government who are really behind our problems.

Remove the President and the root of almost every single problem still remains, but if there were no President perhaps people would focus more on who is actually to blame.