After the collapse of communism, some thirty countries scrambled to craft democratic constitutions. Surprisingly, the constitutional model they most often chose was neither the pure parliamentary ...model found in most of Western Europe at the time, nor the presidential model of the Americas. Rather, it was semi-presidentialism--a rare model known more generally as the "French type." This constitutional model melded elements of pure presidentialism with those of pure parliamentarism. Specifically, semi-presidentialism combined a popularly elected head of state with a head of government responsible to a legislature.
Describes & evaluates semipresidentialism, an under-theorized constitutional type that is becoming increasingly popular with new democracies around the world. Semipresidentialism differs from both ...American-style presidentialism & the constrained parliamentary model by combining a popularly elected head of state with a head of government who is accountable to a popularly elected legislature. Distinctions between the three constitutional types are pointed out, along with circumstances in which semipresidentialism can be problematic in relation to democracy, constitutionalism, & the protection of basic civil liberties & political rights. Insights from various disciplines are drawn upon to trace & compare constitutional & political developments in three historical cases of semipresidentialism: the French Fifth Republic, Weimar Germany, & postcommunist Russia. The comparison suggests that, without institutionalized political parties, semipresidentialism provides direct benefits to those in power, may be difficult to amend, & has the potential to impose various costs on both citizens & a democracy's development. Emphasis is placed on the need for constitutional scholars to engage in more comparative historical analyses. Tables.
This article reviews arguments in favour of a formal, written constitution for Europe, and concludes with a better suggestion ‐ a Basic European Law. The article also criticizes the wholehearted ...embrace of ‘popular constitution‐making”. It does so by drawing on comparative evidence from constitution‐making processes in various historical time periods and world regions. It poses three essential questions to organize the debate. First, why a European constitution? Second, what kind of European constitution? Third, how a European constitution?
A fundamental political-institutional question that has only recently received serious scholarly attention concerns the impact of different constitutional frameworks on democratic consolidation. ...Little systematic cross-regional evidence has been brought to bear on this question. This article reports the findings of the analysis of numerous different sources of data, all of which point in the direction of a much stronger correlation between democratic consolidation and the constitutional framework of pure parliamentarianism than between consolidation and pure presidentialism. The systematic analysis of these data leads the authors to conclude that parliamentarianism is a more supportive constitutional framework due to the following theoretically predictable and empirically observable tendencies: its greater propensity for governments to have majorities to implement their programs, its greater ability to rule in a multiparty setting, its lower propensity for executives to rule at the edge of the constitution and its greater facility in removing a chief executive if he or she does so, its lower susceptibility to a military coup, and its greater tendency to provide long party-government careers, which add loyalty and experience to political society. In contrast, the analytically separable propensities of presidentialism also form a highly interactive system, but they work to impede democratic consolidation by reducing politicians' degrees of freedom.
THE RUSSIAN PREDICAMENT Colton, Timothy J; Skach, Cindy
Journal of democracy,
07/2005, Volume:
16, Issue:
3
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Colton and Skach express that at the end of the Cold War, semipresidentialism became the modal constitution of the postcommunist world. In Russia and other post-Soviet states, however, this system of ...government has impeded consolidation. Combining a popularly elected head of state with a prime minister responsible to the legislature, this framework seemed to promise the best of all constitutional worlds.
A FUNDAMENTAL POLITICAL-INSTITUTIONAL QUESTION THAT HAS ONLY RECENTLY RECEIVED SERIOUS SCHOLARLY ATTENTION CONCERNS THE IMPACT OF DIFFERENT CONSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORKS ON DEMOCRATIC CONSOLIDATION. ...LITTLE SYSTEMATIC CROSS-REGIONAL EVIDENCE HAS BEEN BROUGHT TO BEAR ON THIS QUESTION. THIS ARTICLE REPORTS THE FINDINGS OF THE ANALYSIS OF NUMEROUS DIFFERENT SOURCES OF DATA, ALL OF WHICH POINT IN Q?JS"39RR???B? S???P???R?@?IPS???9 ?)D?H* ?!!D?? ?*H$??*?$ ?(( ?$?** JJD D?IIHI ?*?!D?? JJ *H$?IIJJ * FOLLOWING THEORETICALLY PREDICTABLE AND EMPIRICALLY OBSERVABLE TENDENCIES: ITS GREATER PROPENSITY FOR GOVERNMENTS TO HAVE MAJORITIES TO IMPLEMENT THEIR PROGRAMS, ITS GREATER ABILITY TO RULE IN A MULTIPARTY SETTING, ITS LOWER PROPENSITY FOR EXECUTIVES TO RULE AT THE EDGE OF THE CONSTITUTION AND ITS GREATER FACILITY IN REMOVING A CHIEF EXECUTIVE IF HE OR SHE DOES SO, ITS LOWER SUSCEPTIBILITY TO A MILITARY COUP, AND ITS GREATER TENDENCY TO PROVIDE LONG PARTY-GOVERNMENT CAREERS, WHICH ADD LOYALTY AND EXPERIENCE TO POLITICAL SOCIETY. IN CONTRAST, THE ANALYTICALLY SEPARABLE PROPENSITIES OF PRESIDENTIALISM ALSO FORM A HIGHLY INTERACTIVE SYSTEM, BUT THEY WORK TO IMPEDE DEMOCRATIC CONSOLIDATION BY REDUCING POLITICIANS' DEGREES OF FREEDOM.
Highlights • We investigate the expression of neuropeptide W (NPW) in postnatal mouse brain. • NPW is co-expressed in NPY neurons in postnatal hypothalamus. • We generated NPW-iCre knock-in mouse ...line. • Adult neurons, matured from NPW-positive postnatal neurons, are sensitive to leptin.
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