Lyndon B Johnson Presidential Power Essay

Lyndon B. Johnson’s Art of Persuasion.

Lili Leikam

America in the 60’s: Health, Politics, and Culture- Medicare & Medicaid Ryan Baxter-King May 13, 2024.

Introduction Lyndon B. Johnson, the 36th President of the United States, established his legacy by formulating an ambitious legislative agenda. The passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was an extraordinary example of equality and democracy aligning in perfect unity to achieve a common goal. This monumental feat was the result of favorable political conditions developed and exploited by President Johnson's mastery of Presidential power. Richard Neustadt’s novel, "Presidential Power," published in 1960, provides an insightful framework of a President's ability to gain influence

The Presidential approach of “going public” is a strategy to convince Congress by going straight to the American people, and gaining their support for a policy or initiative they want passed. Theodore Roosevelt was the first to utilize this method, which later became known as the “bully pulpit”. Instead of negotiating with Congress, going public requires poll data and public appearances to shape public opinion. Kernell describes this as “The President seeks the aid of a third party- the public-to force other politicians to accept his preferences.” (Kernell 2006, 3). This strategy aims to create public pressure on political actors to align with the President’s agenda. This coercion method uses public opinion as a tool to get what they want in the legislative process. Kernell believes that the power to persuade is outdated, and has become less effective over time. Although going public goes against the pluralist theory, Kernell argues it is more appealing in a state of individual pluralism rather than institutionalized pluralism. This is because Kernell believes politics have made a transition since Neustadt wrote his theory, in his own words he says, “A change from institutionalized to individualized pluralism appears to be occurring rapidly on every front from the takeover of bureaucracies by

Johnson’s presidency is a quintessential example of Richard Neustadt's theory of “Presidential power” and not Samuel Kernell's theory of “Going Public: New Strategies of Presidential Leadership.” Neustadt argues that a President’s enumerated powers are meaningless unless coupled with the art of persuasion. President Johnson continued to make numerous legislative achievements in his Great Society programs attributed to his mastery of persuasion. At its core, the interconnectedness of authority, status, bargaining, and building strong coalitions equate to success. This theme was explored in depth by reviewing the case study of Johnson and the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Observing his persistence in getting the bill to the floor of the senate, and afterwards bargaining with his opposition through manipulative flattery was notable. Furthermore, it proved Neustadt’s theory that a President’s only power is persuasion, because Johnson's enumerated powers alone did not ensure its enactment. His success was not because of his position in office; he was successful because he knew how to use his office to get ahead in the system. The result of his effective negotiation was the advancement of economic, educational, and individual opportunities of 22 million African Americans in the United States (For Lyndon B. Johnson 1964, 1). The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was the most impactful anti-discrimination employment law in U.S. history. The newfound prosperity