Prerequisites: 1L Constitutional Law or Constitutional Law: Separation of Powers, Federalism, and Fourteenth Amendment

Exam Type: No Exam

This course covers the constitutional, legal, and societal measures to hold the President accountable to the rule of law. Presidents are vested with enormous powers and responsibilities under Article II of the Constitution. The Framers desired an energetic and effective presidency, but designed a system of checks and balances to diffuse power, preserve liberty, and ensure accountability. Over the Nation’s history, this constitutional framework has been tested time and again by aggressive assertions of presidential power.

This course will examine the various mechanisms deployed to check executive authority. These include the Supreme Court’s constitutional definition of the separation of powers; the use of independent and special counsels to investigate and prosecute crime; the force of internal checks within the executive branch from career and politically appointed lawyers; congressional checks through inquiries and impeachments; and the influence of the press, federalism, and judicial review. The class will seek to provide a holistic understanding of the web of constraints on presidential power. We will do this through class discussion of the readings and through hypotheticals and role-play exercises in which students will take on advocacy roles in simulations of proceedings that apply accountability norms.