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The Obama Administration's Challenges After The 'War On Science': Reforming Staffing Practices And Protecting Scientific Integrity In The Executive Branch, Justin Vaughn, José Villalobos

José D. Villalobos

In this article, we examine the difficult leadership position President Barack Obama inherited as he took office with respect to science and technology policy making and implementation, particularly following the Bush administration and years of the so-called "war on science." We contend that the Obama administration's challenge is not only to take substantive policy action, but also to reform certain administrative practices, particularly in light of the previous administration's practice of the politics of strategic vacancies, a managerial technique that rearranges an agency's ideological inclinations not through the usual forms of active politicization (i.e., by filling the appointee ranks with …

"Partisan Balance - Why The American System Doesn't Fly Apart," At Princeton Lecture Series In Politics And Public Affairs, Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University, David R. Mayhew

David Mayhew

George W. Bush And The Partisan Presidency, Richard M. Skinner

Richard M. Skinner

No abstract provided.

Unitary, Executive, Or Both?, John C. Yoo

John C Yoo

This essay argues that the “unitary executive” of the American Constitution includes both a procedural component (the President may remove subordinate officers) and a substantive component (the President possesses unenumerated powers through Article II’s vesting of the executive power). It reviews The Unitary Executive, by Professors Steven Calabresi and Christopher Yoo, which maintains that no President has consented to limitations on his authority to direct and remove subordinate officials. It praises their comprehensive effort to examine each presidential administration, but finds that the survey should have focused more attention on moments, such as Franklin Roosevelt’s acceptance of the independence of …

The Managing Of The Presidency: Applying Theory-Driven Empirical Models To The Study Of White House Bureaucratic Performance, Justin S. Vaughn, José D. Villalobos

José D. Villalobos

We argue that scholars of the presidency should begin to apply their rich descriptive understanding of White House organization and personnel to questions of causality. To help guide this effort, we offer a theory-driven empirical model that explains organizational performance. Importing theory from the public management literature, we show how scholars can use the Meier-O'Toole (MO) model to explain performance outcomes and dynamics for key political and policy functions within the institutional presidency. We introduce the MO model and discuss its potential impact on the field of presidency studies.

Obama’S Empty Cupboard: Contending With Administrative Vacancies And The Threat To Neutral Competence, Justin S. Vaughn, José D. Villalobos

José D. Villalobos

In this essay, we focus on the public administration challenge concerning the rising number of politically motivated administrative vacancies resulting from George W. Bush's tenure in office with which President Barack Obama must now contend. We argue that the hyper-politicization of personnel decision-making during the presidency of George W. Bush left many parts of the federal bureaucracy understaffed, yet more densely populated by staffers chosen more for ideological and political congruence than administrative competence. For President Obama to achieve key aspects of his policy agenda, he must first attend to fixing these staffing problems and then to reforming the personnel …

Lincoln And Habeas: Of Merryman, Milligan, And Mccardle, John C. Yoo

John C Yoo

This essay examines the costs of judicial intervention in wartime policy through the lens of three Civil War cases - Ex parte Merryman, Ex parte Milligan, and Ex parte McCardle. In Merryman, Chief Justice Taney held that President Lincoln’s suspension of the writ of habeas corpus was unconstitutional. In Milligan, the Court held that military commissions had no jurisdiction over civilians in Northern states, where the courts were open and their process unobstructed. Although both opinions provide stirring rhetoric about the vitality of constitutional rights during wartime, they became largely irrelevant. President Lincoln refused to obey the Court and continued …