Evolution of the US Congress—President Relations Under President Nixon

This graduate paper is aimed to the studying the constitutional and legal aspects of relations between the US Congress and the President of the United States. The main objectives of the paper are: studying of constitutional framework, the historical and legal aspects of the functioning of the legislature and the US President; considering of the confrontation of the President in the 70s of the twentieth century. The paper consists of an introduction, two chapters, a conclusion and a bibliography. Chapter I consider specific characteristics of party conflict in the US Congress during the Nixon administration 1969-1974. Chapter II pays attention to the analysis of discrepancies between the US Congress and the President R. Nixon in conditions of divided government that were associated with a question of priorities and the amount of the expenditure of federal funds and prerogatives of the President in the military sphere. Based on this research the following conclusions were made: firstly, the conflict between the US Congress and the President was constitutionally predefined. The complex of historical and institutional factors, the abuse of the President R. Nixon in military and financial sectors led to the confrontation in executive-legislative relationship and restoration by the US Congress of its powers. This research advances our understanding of legislative actions of the Congress in foreign and domestic policy confirmed that President must act within the system of separation of powers. It is provided with the institutional framework of the Constitution, which gives the political system certain stiffness. But the President kept limits to personal discretion, for example, in the military sphere that could be said on the basis of the consideration of the War Powers Resolution (1973). Divided government played an important role in delaying the adoption or failure of the principal proposals of administration, intensified conflict in the interaction of powers.