The eleven-paper discussion on the nature of the Presidency continues in Federalist 70 with Hamilton pointing out that “Energy in the Executive is a leading character in the definition of good government.”1 Not everyone believed in the importance of an energetic presidency.
There was some concern that these new United States might go the way of the Romans where the chief executive, via what Hamilton calls an, “energetic presidency,” devolved into a dictator. Hamilton points out the difference in that, in our republican form of government, the Executive functions as the nation’s chief enforcer of the laws. He has no law-making ability and thus cannot impose his will unless that will were to match that of the Congress. If Congress declines to act, nothing happens.
Once again, we see the Founders setting something up as a feature that today is considered a bug. Inaction is the default position in the event of conflicting opinions on legislation. As the chief administrator, the President’s key role is “the protection of property against those irregular and high-handed combinations which sometimes interrupt the ordinary course of justice”, and the “security of liberty against the enterprises and assaults of ambition, of faction, and of anarchy.”
“A feeble Executive implies a feeble execution of the government.”
Hamilton defines energy as “first, unity; secondly, duration; thirdly, an adequate provision for its support; fourthly, competent powers.” He goes on to define unity as including “Decision, activity, secrecy, and dispatch” and points out that these generally are better performed by a single man “and in proportion as the number is increased, these qualities will be diminished.”
Anyone who has worked in team environments can attest to how adding people to teams inevitably leads to difficulty in these areas. Hamilton warns that, for the Chief Executive, dividing the power would necessarily result in diminishing this critical “unity.” In the legislature “promptitude of decision is oftener an evil than a benefit.” Debate and indecision are a feature of a properly run Congress. Better no law than a bad one, and anytime there is a unanimous vote, the wise man would do well to wonder why. But there are times when the Executive has to act with haste, and the founders wanted to enable ours to do so.
The second way to destroy this “unity” would be to subject the Executive to “the control and co-operation of others, in the capacity of counsellors to him.” This counsellor-type body was common for the Romans and severely hamstrung the power of the executive. Hamilton goes on here to discuss several examples of how Tribunes and Counsels caused difficulty in the Roman republics.
In addition, if two people are entrusted with decision making, one may oppose the other violating the principle of “unity”. And even if the party not getting its way has been consulted, he will likely oppose any result out of a sense of personal pride, a significant issue when it comes to emergency decision making.
But Hamilton’s most important reason for having a single Executive, an energetic presidency, is that of accountability. Plurality in the Executive branch “tends to conceal faults and destroy responsibility”, instead of focusing on the one person responsible, the President.
A President, in the face of being held accountable for a horrible decision might, according to Hamilton, say something like “I was overruled by my council. The council were so divided in their opinions that it was impossible to obtain any better resolution on the point.” This passing-the-buck is the sign of a weak leader and is made easier where there are councils or partner presidencies. Hamilton, and the Founders are having none of this. With an energetic presidency, hey expect that “every magistrate ought to be personally responsible for his behavior in office.”
Indeed.
Next: Federalist 71 Analysis
To read all of John Parillo’s work on the Federalist Papers, click here.
Footnotes
- Original quotes found here: https://federalist-papers.com/federalist-70/. ↩︎
Citation
This piece was originally published at American Free News Network and re-published with their permission.
