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Presidential Perils

@presidentialperils.bsky.social
141 followers 23 following 17 posts

Tweeting out quotes by political scientist Juan Linz on the "Perils of Presidentialism" –- one constitutional crisis at a time

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Presidential Perils @presidentialperils.bsky.social · 03/02/2025
"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...
nymag.com
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.
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Presidential Perils @presidentialperils.bsky.social · 02/02/2025
"A presidential cabinet is less likely than its parliamentary counterpart to contain strong and independent-minded members." -- Linz, The Perils of Presidentialism, 1990
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Presidential Perils @presidentialperils.bsky.social · 02/02/2025
"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
The Problem of Dual Legitimacy
Given his unavoidable institutional situation, a president bids fair to
become the focus for whatever exaggerated expectations his supporters
may harbor. They are prone to think that he has more power than he
really has or should have and may sometimes be politically mobilized
against any adversaries who bar his way. The interaction between a
popular president and the crowd acclaiming him can generate fear among
his opponents and a tense political climate. Something similar might be
said about a president with a military background or close military
ties-which are facilitated by the absence of the prominent defense
minister one usually finds under cabinet government
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Presidential Perils @presidentialperils.bsky.social · 02/02/2025
"The pace of politics is very different under a presidential, as opposed to a parliamentary, constitution." - Juan Linz, The Perils of Presidentialism, 1990
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Presidential Perils @presidentialperils.bsky.social · 02/02/2025
"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...
nytimes.com
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.
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Presidential Perils @presidentialperils.bsky.social · 02/02/2025
"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/...
news.gallup.com
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.
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Presidential Perils @presidentialperils.bsky.social · 02/02/2025
"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
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Reposted by Presidential Perils
Alexander Clarkson @aphclarkson.bsky.social · 07/11/2024
Maybe it turns out that Juan Linz was right all along
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Reposted by Presidential Perils
Mark Copelovitch @mcopelov.bsky.social · 01/02/2025
As it turns out, the Founders were very wrong & Juan Linz was very right. And here we are, watching exactly how & why.
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Presidential Perils @presidentialperils.bsky.social · 02/02/2025
"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
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Presidential Perils @presidentialperils.bsky.social · 02/02/2025
"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
Screenshot of post by Trump on Truth Social dated 2/2/25. Text reads:

The “Tariff Lobby,” headed by the Globalist, and always wrong, Wall Street Journal, is working hard to justify Countries like Canada, Mexico, China, and too many others to name, continue the decades long RIPOFF OF AMERICA, both with regard to TRADE, CRIME, AND POISONOUS DRUGS that are allowed to so freely flow into AMERICA. THOSE DAYS ARE OVER! The USA has major deficits with Canada, Mexico, and China (and almost all countries!), owes 36 Trillion Dollars, and we’re not going to be the “Stupid Country” any longer. MAKE YOUR PRODUCT IN THE USA AND THERE ARE NO TARIFFS! Why should the United States lose TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN SUBSIDIZING OTHER COUNTRIES, and why should these other countries pay a small fraction of the cost of what USA citizens pay for Drugs and Pharmaceuticals, as an example? THIS WILL BE THE GOLDEN AGE OF AMERICA! WILL THERE BE SOME PAIN? YES, MAYBE (AND MAYBE NOT!). BUT WE WILL MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, AND IT WILL ALL BE WORTH THE PRICE THAT MUST BE PAID. WE ARE A COUNTRY THAT IS NOW BEING RUN WITH COMMON SENSE — AND THE RESULTS WILL BE SPECTACULAR!!!
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Presidential Perils @presidentialperils.bsky.social · 02/02/2025
"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...
edition.cnn.com
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.
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Presidential Perils @presidentialperils.bsky.social · 02/02/2025
"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."
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