What are the critiques of using the personal approach to studying the American presidency, and how might the institutional approach be better?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The ideal answer should:
a. Define the personal presidency as a focus on the distinctive features of the person who holds the office.
b. Define the institutional presidency as an approachto studying executivepolitics that focuseson the design of thepresidency and itsattendant powers,resources, andincentives.
c. Explain the critique of the personal approach to the presidency, including how:
1. The personal approach does not account for basic facts.
2. The structures of the executive branch define the information available to presidents.
3. The personal approach gives insufficient attention to the judicial and legislative checks that all presidents face on assuming the office.
4. The personal approach downplays the ways that public opinion constrains and informs what any president is able to accomplish in office.
d. Discuss how the focus of the institutional approach on presidential action allows scholars to:
1. Explain the institutional transformations of the presidency over time.
2. Identify how institutions shape presidential behavior.
3. Examine how institutions both constrain and inform the presidency.