Professor William Howell and Stanford Professor Terry Moe Discuss Presidential Power and Populism

Harris Public Policy Professor William Howell and Stanford Professor Terry Moe, coauthors of the new book Presidents, Populism, and the Crisis of Democracy, recently wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post arguing for presidential power and effective government to combat the forces of populism.

"If the United States wants to safeguard democratic principles and practices, it will need reforms that address the fear of presidential power by imposing new constraints on what presidents can do," they write. "Constraints alone, however, won’t build a more effective government. Our separation-of-powers system is inherently unwieldy. Addressing today’s challenges requires the kind of coherent, problem-solving leadership that presidents can offer."

Howell and Moe's op-ed is part of “Rethinking Our Democracy,” a series on institutional reforms to Congress and the presidency. The series is a joint initiative by the Center for Effective Government at Harris and Protect Democracy.

Full coverage available at the Washington Post. Other articles in the "Rethinking Our Democracy" series can be found here.