Poll Shows True Public Feelings On Limits Of Presidential Power

While visions of an imperial presidency may dance in the heads of hardened partisans on the left and right, the broader public isn’t too keen on the idea of presidents wielding untrammeled power.

That’s a major takeaway form an AP-NORC poll that overall, roughly 48 percent of respondents said it would be a “bad thing” if presidents acted without approval or support from the other branches of government.

Perhaps not surprisingly, more Republicans (26 percent) than Democrats (21 percent) believe there’s nothing wrong with an unaccountable executive.

Ideally, those numbers should be at or near zero – and the percentage of those who think an unaccountable president is a bad idea would be nearly unanimous. 

But other data from the poll may indicate why the old, small “r” republican belief in limited government is so out of favor. According to the poll, most people don’t think the checks and balances system is working well these days (53 percent overall).

More troubling: majorities of respondents think that when the other party’s officials are in charge, they have too much power:

With Democratic control of the White House, 46% of Republicans think the president holds too much power, while only 16% of Democrats agree. Most Republicans think federal agencies have too much power along with only a fifth of Democrats.

With a majority of justices appointed by Republican presidents, 58% of Democrats think the Supreme Court has too much power while only a quarter of Republicans agree. When asked about Congress where Republicans hold a majority in the House and Democrats control the Senate, about 4 in 10 of both Democrats and Republicans think Congress holds too much power.

Of course partisans are going to think this way. It’s what motivates them to do what they do (which is usually to make matters even worse).

Stepping back and looking at the numbers from a different angle…each partisan team is wary of concentrated power – when the other team has it. That skepticism of state power needs to be liberated, shared, and cultivated across the partisan divide.

Regrettably, most voters prefer to act through their elected officials to use state power to punish the other side. That’s a key ingredient in the creation of a strongman form of government – and one that far too many politicians (they know who they are) seem eager to create.

For the time being, the balance of opinion is against such a thing. We’ll see how long it lasts.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.

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Norman Leahy

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Norman Leahy has written about national and Virginia politics for more than 30 years with outlets ranging from The Washington Post to BearingDrift.com. A consulting writer, editor, recovering think tank executive and campaign operative, Norman lives in Virginia.

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