Does America need a President?

Here is the former Fed Governor Alan Greenspan's answer to a question made to him about the American Presidential Election in 2008.

Interviewer: "Who would you like to win next year?"

Greenspan: "Is one of the choices leaving the office open? "

I immediately thought 'what a Capital idea'

We all know the damage that has been done to America and the World by one President in the last few years and I am sure it will take a few more years for another President to set things right, provided he even realises that things have gone awry and takes the responsibility to address them.

But the reality of American Presidential Election rules out that possibility.

There are so many interest and influence groups from Right and Left and Centre and Outer Space (God may be) that it would be nearly impossible for a President as an individual to make up his own mind as to what needs to be done.

And we have seen the quality of the Candidates; not very inspiring at all. The same old Politicians in different style and form, mouthing same old platitudes.

To think that the next American President may be elected based on whether he is pro or anti-life , pro or anti-God, pro or anti-Oil, pro or anti-World is very depressing. Added to that is the complication of how a Woman or Black candidate in a leading position may threaten established interests and how the people will really vote in face of such candidates. The heart may play a larger part in the decision-making than the mind. Is it for good?

May be this is the right time for America to realise the limitations of giving unlimited power to a single individual and consider changing their Government system to a Parliamentary model?

I know a few Parliamentary Democracies are thinking of the opposite, but the largest Democracy of all, India, seems to have considered the options and decided that the present Parliamentay system is working well.

The framers of American Constitution devised many checks and balances between the Legislative and Executive branches, but George Bush has shown that it is easy for one to dominate the other, even overrun the other, especially when when the Legislative branch is week and blind to the realities. So the balance may tip and the check may disappear, as proved by the events of last few years. How to restore the balance?

May be abolising the post of President altogether is the right way to go.

Or as Greenspan has implied, 'Give it a rest and let the post be vacant for a few years to see whether a President is really necessary'

The World and Americans really need a Break.