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The presidency and the agencies of the executive branch are deeply interwoven with other core institutions of American government and politics. While the framers of the Constitution granted power to the president, they likewise imbued the legislative and judicial branches of government withthe powers necessary to hold the executive in check. The Executive Branch, edited by Joel D. Aberbach and Mark A. Peterson, examines the delicate and shifting balance among the three branches of government, which is constantly renegotiated as political leaders contend with the public's paradoxicalsentiments-yearning for strong executive leadership yet fearing too much executive power, and welcoming the benefits of public programs yet uneasy about, and indeed often distrusting, big government. The Executive Branch, a collection of essays by some of the nation's leading political scientists and public policy scholars, examines the historical emergence and contemporary performance of the presidency and bureaucracy, as well as their respective relationships with the Congress, the courts,political parties, and American federalism. Presidential elections are defining moments for the nation's democracy-by linking citizens directly to their government, elections serve as a mechanism for exercising collective public choice. After the election, however, the work of government begins andinvolves elected and appointed political leaders at all levels of government, career civil servants, government contractors, interest organizations, the media, and engaged citizens. The essays in this volume delve deeply into the organizations and politics that make the executive branch such acomplex and fascinating part of American government. The volume provides an assessment from the past to the present of the role and development of the presidency and executive branch agencies, including analysis of the favorable and problematic strategies, and personal attributes, that presidents have brought to the challenge of leadership. Itexamines the presidency and the executive agencies both separately and together as they influence-or are influenced by-other major institutions of American government and politics, with close attention to how they relate to civic participation and democracy.

This volume gives students, professors, and the general public a single, comprehensive source on the key themes in the historical development of the presidency from America's founding era through the presidency of George W. Bush.

This volume in ABC-CLIO's About Federal Government set looks at the history and daily operations of the federal judiciary, from district courts, to courts of appeal, to the Supreme Court. * Provides a detailed timeline of the legislative history of the federal courts, from the Supreme Court to the district courts by state * Primary sources include Article III of the U.S. Constitution, the Judiciary Acts of 1789 and 1801, the Evarts Act of 1891 (creation of Circuit Courts of Appeals), the Judiciary Act of 1911 (disbanding the old Circuit Courts), landmark cases such as Marbury v. Madison (judicial review) and a complete listing of all who served as federal judges by name and by the court they served in

Primary source documents and interpretations introduce leaders, ideas, and legal principals of the judicial branch of the federal government.

This volume focuses on the U.S. Congress, its history, constitutional powers, daily workings, and the politics that affect its operation.

Primary source documents and interpretations introduce leaders, ideas, and legal principals of the legislative branch of the federal government.

The checks and balances provided by the three branches of federal government are essential to nurturing and maintaining American democracy. With the guidance of coeditors Paul J. Quirk and Sarah A. Binder, this collection of essays examines the role of the Legislature in American democracy andthe dynamic between the other branches of government, and discusses possible measures for reform. The volume addresses questions such as: How does Congress serve the values of democracy and American constitutional principles? Which conceptions of those values does it implement, and which does it overlook or fail to realize? What are Congress's strengths and weaknesses in performing the tasks ofdemocratic governance? What reforms, if any, are necessary to ensure the health and success of Congress as an institution of democracy in the future?