The Law: The Promises and Pathologies of Presidential Federalism

State and local politics have dominated the first year of Donald Trump's presidency. Despite promises to reinvigorate states' rights both before and after his campaign, Trump has used the administrative powers of the modern presidency to pursue his policy agenda at the subnational level. F...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Presidential studies quarterly 2018-09, Vol.48 (3), p.552-569
Main Authors: Jacobs, Nicholas F., Ewing, Connor M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
administrative politics
federalism
intergovernmental relations
state and local government
Trump
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:State and local politics have dominated the first year of Donald Trump's presidency. Despite promises to reinvigorate states' rights both before and after his campaign, Trump has used the administrative powers of the modern presidency to pursue his policy agenda at the subnational level. From waiving certain provisions of federal programs, to filing lawsuits against states and localities, Trump has taken advantage of the opportunities crafted by his predecessors to use subnational politics for the presidency's own ends. We place these nascent developments in historical and theoretical context to suggest that “presidential federalism” at once signifies the continued strength and relevance of subnational governance, while providing occasions for further administrative aggrandizement. Trump, despite remaining highly unconventional in a number of ways, might further reinforce the presidency's centrality to modern American federalism.
ISSN:0360-4918
1741-5705
DOI:10.1111/psq.12480