Presidential Perils
presidentialperils.bsky.social
Presidential Perils
@presidentialperils.bsky.social
Tweeting out quotes by political scientist Juan Linz on the "Perils of Presidentialism" –- one constitutional crisis at a time
"One of the positive characteristics attributed to presidentialism is accountability and identifiability. The voter in casting his ballot knows whom he or she is voting for and who will govern should this candidate win."

- Linz, The Failure of Presidential Democracy, 1994

nymag.com/intelligence...
Elon Musk May Have Your Social Security Number
The billionaire and his DOGE agents were reportedly granted full access to the Treasury’s federal payments system, and nobody knows to what end.
nymag.com
February 3, 2025 at 1:50 AM
"A presidential cabinet is less likely than its parliamentary counterpart to contain strong and independent-minded members."

-- Linz, The Perils of Presidentialism, 1990
Sean Duffy on Fox News Sunday suggests that "changing names from 'cockpit' to flightdeck'" undermined safety at the FAA
February 2, 2025 at 8:02 PM
"Given his unavoidable institutional situation, a president bids fair to become the focus for whatever exaggerated expectations his supporters may harbor."

- Juan Linz, The Perils of Presidentialism, 1990
February 2, 2025 at 7:22 PM
"The pace of politics is very different under a presidential, as opposed to a parliamentary, constitution."

- Juan Linz, The Perils of Presidentialism, 1990
On one hand, Trump is moving at breakneck speed to accomplish a project that is generational in scale, which the country didn’t ask for, doesn’t want, and which won’t solve any of its problems. On the other hand there’s no opposition so who’s to say
February 2, 2025 at 6:48 PM
"all [presidential] systems are based on dual democratic legitimacy: no democratic principle exists to resolve disputes between the executive and the legislature about which of the two actually represents the will of the people"

- Juan Linz, 1994

www.nytimes.com/2025/01/30/u...
Trump Kicks Congress to the Curb, With Little Protest From Republicans
The administration is showing it doesn’t view the House and Senate as equal partners. So far, Republicans, who hold both majorities, are accepting their new status.
www.nytimes.com
February 2, 2025 at 6:36 PM
"The conviction that he possesses independent authority and a popular mandate is likely to imbue a president with a sense of power and mission, even if the plurality that elected him is a slender one."

- Juan Linz, The Perils of Presidentialism, 1990

news.gallup.com/poll/655955/...
Trump's Inaugural Approval Rating Is Historically Low Again
Trump's initial job approval rating is similar to what it was at the start of his first term, reaffirming his position as the lowest-rated new president since 1953.
news.gallup.com
February 2, 2025 at 6:15 PM
"Nothing about the presidential system guarantees that the country's voters or political leaders would have selected the vice-president to wield the powers they were willing to give to the former president."

- Juan Linz, The Perils of Presidentialism, 1990
This is how vice presidents talk about people they disagree with now, I guess.
February 2, 2025 at 6:13 PM
Reposted by Presidential Perils
Maybe it turns out that Juan Linz was right all along
November 7, 2024 at 8:53 AM
Reposted by Presidential Perils
As it turns out, the Founders were very wrong & Juan Linz was very right. And here we are, watching exactly how & why.
February 1, 2025 at 3:59 AM
"The absence in presidential regimes of a monarch or a 'president of the republic' who can act symbolically as a moderating power deprives the system of flexibility and of a means of restraining power."

- Juan Linz, The Perils of Presidentialism, 1990
One thing that might help is something other than cowardly silence & absence from George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
February 2, 2025 at 6:06 PM
"The plebiscitarian component implicit in the president's authority is likely to make the obstacles and opposition he encounters seem particularly annoying."

- Juan Linz, The Perils of Presidentialism, 1990
February 2, 2025 at 6:01 PM
"Among the oft-cited advantages of presidentialism is its provision for the stability of the executive."

- Juan Linz, The Perils of Presidentialism, 1990

edition.cnn.com/2025/01/29/p...
White House rescinds memo on federal aid freeze that caused widespread confusion | CNN Politics
The White House Office of Management and Budget on Wednesday rescinded a memo that froze federal grants and loans and created widespread confusion this week.
edition.cnn.com
February 2, 2025 at 5:57 PM
"Indeed, the vast majority of the stable democracies in the world today are parliamentary regimes, where executive power is generated by legislative majorities and depends on such majorities for survival."
February 2, 2025 at 5:54 PM