Comment by avar
2 years ago
To add a bit to this, the common American misimpression that a parliamentary model is somehow going to result in mythical German efficiency of government authority is comical.
Try telling that to Belgium, which took just short of a year to even form a government, or to Liz Truss in the UK, if we're going to compare it with another country with a FPTP election system.
It actually tends to result in the opposite of that, the executive is relatively neutered, because they know they can be dismissed at the pleasure and whims of parliament.
The American executive gets to be comparatively authoritarian, as once you elect a president they're guaranteed to be able to enact their executive agenda for the next 4 years (the theoretical threat of impeachment being a non-issue in practice).
> The American executive gets to be comparatively authoritarian, as once you elect a president they're guaranteed to be able to enact their executive agenda for the next 4 years (the theoretical threat of impeachment being a non-issue in practice).
Exactly. A far greater proportion of countries that elect a President based on the American democratic model have devolved into dictatorships, than have countries with parliamentary systems.