Most Americans Misunderstand the Duties of the President

The 2024 presidential race has once again revealed a fundamental problem in the modern U.S. political discourse: Very few Americans seem to understand the proper role of the president.

From politicians to pundits, and even among voters, the president is portrayed as the ultimate savior of the country, a near-mythical figure who can single-handedly solve almost every problem, from lowering gas prices to “fixing” the economy, providing child care, and “creating” millions of jobs.

In short, far too many Americans perceive the president to be a genie whom they expect to grant them endless wishes.

This expansive view of the presidency is a far cry from what the Founding Fathers envisioned when they elucidated the powers of the president in the Constitution. The truth is that the job of the president is limited, constrained by checks and balances, and focused primarily on enforcing laws rather than creating them.

If Americans better understood this, we would have a very different political landscape.

The Constitution’s Limited View of Presidential Power

The president’s role is carefully defined in the U.S. Constitution, and those who believe the office is all-powerful would do well to familiarize themselves with it. The president’s powers, according to Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution, are quite limited.

According to the Constitution, the president:

• is commander-in-chief of the military
• can grant pardons and reprieves for federal offenses
• can negotiate treaties (subject to Senate approval)
• can nominate judges, ambassadors, and other high-ranking officials (again, subject to Senate approval)
• is responsible for faithfully executing the laws passed by Congress

That’s it.

The Constitution does not say the president is responsible for ensuring every American has a job, reducing the price of gas, or legislating from the Oval Office. The Founders deliberately left those tasks to Congress, the states, and ultimately, the people.

What the Founders Thought of Presidential Power

The Founding Fathers were clear about why they designed the presidency as they did. They feared centralized, unchecked power and sought to limit the president’s authority.

James Madison, in Federalist No. 47, warned of the dangers of combining legislative and executive powers, stating, “The accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary, in the same hands, whether of one, a few, or many… may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny.”

In Federalist No. 69, Alexander Hamilton contrasts the American presidency with a monarchy, emphasizing that the president’s powers are carefully limited, much weaker than those of a king, and focused on enforcing laws rather than making them.

It’s also clear from the actions of our early presidents that the executive branch was never intended to be a one-person solution to all of America’s problems.

The Problem with an Expansive View of the Presidency

The contemporary view of the president as a national savior has consequences.

It shifts personal responsibility away from individuals and the states. Instead of looking to local leaders or personal initiative to solve problems, we expect the federal government — particularly the president — to swoop in and save the day. This warped view has led to an unprecedented and downright dangerous expansion of executive power.

Consider the sheer size of the executive branch today.

George Washington’s Cabinet consisted of just four departments: State, Treasury, War, and the Attorney General. Fast-forward to today, and the executive branch has ballooned to include 15 federal departments, including everything from Education to Housing and Urban Development (hard to imagine which of the president’s powers those departments fall under). Each of these departments exercise considerable power and control over nearly all aspects of daily life, often with minimal oversight from Congress.

This expansion of executive power has been accompanied by the rise of executive orders, which presidents increasingly use to bypass Congress and enact their own agendas. What started as a tool for issuing administrative instructions has become, in many cases, a substitute for lawmaking. For example, President Joe Biden issued more than 60 executive orders in his first year alone, many aimed at reversing or bypassing policies from the previous administration.

Arguing the Wrong Point

We’ve strayed so far from the original intent of the presidency that it’s become almost unrecognizable from what the Founders envisioned. It’s like we started out building a dog house and then you look up, years later, to find that you’ve built something entirely different — an enormous, convoluted structure that no longer resembles the modest, functional design originally intended.

This is precisely what has happened with the role of the presidency. Instead of a restrained, constitutionally limited office, it has morphed into a position that is expected to solve all of society’s problems — from creating jobs to managing health care. And yet, we’ve never stopped to ask: Should we even be debating these things? Is it the president’s job to provide health care, child care, or jobs in the first place?

The Constitution is clear. The president’s role is narrow, with specific powers like enforcing laws, commanding the military, and negotiating treaties. The Founding Fathers intended the states and individuals to handle much of what we now expect the federal government to manage. So, before we get caught up in campaign promises of how much health care or child care the president will provide, we need to pause and ask if this is even within the scope of presidential power to begin with.

Know the Job Before You Vote

What can be done to reverse this trend?

The answer is simple but requires discipline. Educate yourself on the proper role of the president as outlined in the Constitution. Understand the difference between what the president can and cannot do. The next time you hear a politician or a fellow voter promise that the president will fix the economy, create jobs, or solve local issues, push back. The president is not a king, a dictator, or a genie.

If you don’t understand the job of the president, you shouldn’t be voting for one. It’s time to stop expecting magic and start demanding constitutional governance. Only then can we reclaim the republic our Founders intended.

Brady Smith is a fellow with the Freedom Rising Fellowship Program at the American Journey Experience and a policy advisor for The Heartland Institute.

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