Executive power and a divided congress

In my previous post I mentioned that I thought that a divided legislative branch would have the effect of strengthening President Bush. The president has shown an alarming capacity to ignore laws he doesn't like. That tendency, worrisome with a tamed Republican congress, is downright scary when Bush has an incentive to ignore his opponents.

A divided Congress would also produce legislative gridlock. If the House and Senate can't reach agreement, then the President will likely act without waiting for their decisions. Therefore, I'd expect that we would see an expansion of executive privelige over the next two years and not a slowdown of growth. This isn't what a lot of people, myself included, would like to see happen.

--Barry Caro