cover image: How Congress Lost, Part IV: Washington, Foreign Policy, and the Emergence of Presidential Governance

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How Congress Lost, Part IV: Washington, Foreign Policy, and the Emergence of Presidential Governance

29 Aug 2024

The political battles over public credit in 1790–92 demonstrated the potential for strong presidential leadership over domestic affairs. The foreign policy crises of 1793–96 likewise strengthened presidential leadership. When Britain and France went to war in 1793, Americans disagreed about how the United States should maintain neutrality. The pro-British faction ultimately triumphed because of institutional advantages inherent to the executive branch. Partial to Alexander Hamilton’s pro-British sensibilities, George Washington used the executive branch’s unitary power to set the political agenda in ways that empowered Hamilton. James Madison and his allies in the House failed to stop these initiatives, indicating that by 1796, the executive branch was the most dominant one.
executive power constitution congress founding fathers electoral college us presidency

Authors

Jay Cost

Pages
8
Published in
United States of America

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