Compare and contrast the position of the US President and the UK Prime Minister.

 There are similarities and differences between the position of the President and the Prime Minister. The biggest restriction on the powers of the President is the constitution which was written with the restriction of the president in mind. The founding fathers did not intend for the presidency to be a major source of leadership. However over the years the powers and duties of the president have steadily grown.

Despite the congressional checks that are imposed up on the president they have specific resources which can be used to pursue their agenda. Although presidents are restricted in domestic affairs they prove to be the most powerful in the area of foreign affairs. In foreign policy the President remains dominant especially in crisis situations. The power of the president in the area of foreign policy has expanded since 1945, in theory congress has the power to declare war yet in practice it is usually the president who commits to the act of war. This is an area of presidential power which is significant as it has been exercised over 150 times

Both the president and the Prime minister are leaders of political parties this is a shared position of the two leaders. However the Prime minister can enjoy a strong party system, in which the party dominates commons and the leadership of the majority party, is the government. Votes from back benchers (on the Prime Ministers side) ensure that he can effectively govern. The president on the other hand has to work with a relatively weak party system, in which the congressmen and women vote exactly how they wish. An important point is that the president and the members of congress are elected separately; the president has a fixed term of four years and congress members every two years. Electing these separately means that the president does not owe his position due to a majority in congress nor do the members of congress come as part of a general package in which they must stand on the same platform. This can be seen as a crucial reason why there are so many divisions within the government. This is poles apart from the Prime Minister in the UK who ensures that everyone toes the party line, by using the whip system. Tony Blair especially insists that his party is singing from the same hymn sheet. The idea of a collective responsibility also shows the position of the Prime Minister to be concluding, whether a cabinet minister agrees with what the Prime Minister or not they must resign if they are not going to unite with him in the public eye.

The President has to work with the legislative bodies in order to achieve what he wants however the Prime Minister dominates the legislative bodies of the government. How well the president works with congress can depend on his success as president.