At the Constitutional Convention, the specter of monarchy cast a long shadow over the discussion of the presidency.
The failures of the Articles of Confederation notwithstanding, everyone still remembered King George, and a unified executive power left a foul taste in many mouths. Reasonable voices could point out that while a body of disparate interests might fight amongst itself, a unified power is in an ideal position to grasp even more power — a president can act quickly and decisively during a crisis, and then refuse to relinquish those powers once the emergency had passed.
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