The Greatest Presidential Power and Limitation
The office of the president is currently considered the most powerful in most countries in the world. However, there are always protestations from other offices to limit the presidential powers. With the increased activities in the modern states, the powers of the president have been growing day by day both in the domestic and foreign affairs. Many people believe that the presidents have become highly powerful and hence their powers should be shared with the Congress and the judicial system. The greatest power that the president is vested with that stirs various debates is that of commander-in-chief (Kleiner 372). The powers of the president are however regulated by the constitution resulting in equally potent limitations. The greatest limitation of the president is the inability to exercise unlimited powers as most of his powers require consent from the Congress.
Being the commander-in-chief, the president exercises full power over the armed forces: the Navy, Airforce, Army and other militia in the states (Kleiner 374). The president advice on the locations where the troops ought to be sent, stationed and how they shall use their weapons. He gives orders that all generals must take. The president also decides on the best time to rage war and calls out to the troops to end a war. A president has the inherent power to act in response to a crisis.
The constitution exerts limits on the presidential powers through constant balances and checks by the Congress and the judiciary (Bahar 549). Most of the powers given to the president are either guarded or enacted with the consent of a certain arm. For instance, presidential vetoes can be overruled by the Congress. This is the greatest limitation to the presidential power. Simply signing the veto acts does not always mean that the rule will prevail as the Congress can override it through a two-thirds vote (Bahar 612). Essentially, the powers of the president are constitutionally defined and limited.
Works Cited
Bahar, Michael. “The Presidential Intervention Principle: The Domestic Use of the Military and the Power of the Several States.” Harvard National Security Journal 5 (2014): 537-630.
Kleiner, Samuel. “The Commander-in-Chief and the United Nations: Why the President Can Use the United Nations Security Council as the Constitutional Basis for Military Operations Short of War.” Yale Journal of International Law 39.2 (2014): 359-389.