The Unitary Executive Presidential Power from Washington to Bush [Paperback]

This book is the first to undertake a detailed historical and legal examination of presidential power and the theory of the unitary executive. This theory—that the Constitution gives the president the power to remove and control all policy-making subordinates in the executive branch—has been the subject of heated debate since the Reagan years. To determine whether the Constitution creates a strongly unitary executive, Steven G. Calabresi and Christopher S. Yoo look at the actual practice of all forty-three presidential administrations, from George Washington to George W. Bush. They argue that all presidents have been committed proponents of the theory of the unitary executive, and they explore the meaning and implications of this finding.

This book is a detailed legal and historical examination of presidential power. The authors look at the theory of the unitary executive as practiced in every administration from Washington to Bush. Discovering consistent patterns in presidential practices, the book has important implications for todays debates over the extent of executive power.