Constitutional Conflicts between Congress and the President

Over three decades after its initial publication, Louis Fisher’s durable classic remains at the head of its class—a book that Congressional Quarterly called “as close to being indispensable as anything published in this field.” This newly revised sixth edition emphatically reinforces that sterling reputation.

Fisher dissects the crucial constitutional disputes between the executive and legislative branches of government from the Constitutional Convention through President Clinton’s impeachment battles to the recent controversies over President Bush’s conduct as commander in chief. He ventures beyond traditional discussions of Supreme Court decisions to examine the day-to-day working relationships between the president and Congress.

By analyzing a mixture of judicial pronouncements, executive acts, and legislative debates, Fisher pinpoints the critical areas of legislative-executive tension: appointment powers, investigatory powers, legislative and executive vetoes, the budgetary process, and war powers. He then examines these areas of tension within a concrete political and historical context.

To scholars, this book offers a comprehensive examination of the institutions and issues of public law. For practitioners, general readers, and students of American government, it demonstrates how constitutional issues shape and define current events.

The new edition covers for the first time:

* Obama’s military decisions in Afghanistan and Iraq

* Military operations against Libya in 2011

* Threatened attacks on Syria in 2013

* Efforts to close Guantánamo

* Obama’s recess appointments during a pro forma session

* “Fast and Furious” scandal: Holder’s contempt and Obama’s executive privilege

* The growth of presidential “czars”

* Executive branch secrecy and lack of accountability

* State Secrets Privilege after 9/11

* Distinguishing between “implied” powers (constitutional) and “inherent” powers (not constitutional)

* Pocket vetoes and the growth of “hybrid vetoes”

* New developments in the President’s removal power