WHAT TRUMP CAN AND CAN’T DO

The powers of US presidents are relatively constrained, legally, compared to leaders in many other democracies.

The constitutionally enshrined separation of powers endows the legislative and judicial branches of the US government with their own co-equal authority. Federalism, which preserves the authority of the states in many matters, further limits the chief executive. The president does not have the power to formally declare war,which is the responsibility of the US Congress. However the president may send troupes to foreign countries, if necessary, for the security of the United States. Under law, he must then ask Congress to approve such actions within 90 days.

The president is commanderin-chief of the US armed forces. He alone holds the nuclear launch codes — a series of steps required to use nuclear weapons. However, under certain circumstances the defence secretary and the chairman of the Pentagon’s Joint Chiefs of Staff can prevent him

doing so. The US president cannot introduce legislation but can usually find a member of Congress to sponsor his proposals. He can adopt presidential decrees, called executive orders, which have the force of law in some cases. He can veto any bill passed by Congress. However, his veto can be overridden by a two-thirds majority vote each chamber, the 435-member House of Representatives and the100member Senate. If a dispute arises with Congress, the president has no power to dissolve the legislature, as in a parliamentary system, and to call for new elections. Trump will have majorities of his own centreright conservative party in both the House and Senate, but each member is elected independently

and not subject to party discipline. The US president appoints members of the US Supreme Court and all appellate and trial courts in the federal system. The nine judges are appointed for life, with the approval of the Senate. The president’s appointments come only after a vacancy on the court arises through a resignation or death of a justice. The president can pardon or grant clemency to prisoners, and spare them from execution if they have been sentenced to death.