Conservatives and the Presidency

As if in response to my questions yesterday about where all the authoritarians and Great Leader worshippers came from, the libertarian Cato Institute has posted an article by Gene Healy about the history of the conservative pursuit of an imperial presidency. Shorter version: it developed out of the Cold War and the downfall of Nixon. Money quote (from Russell Kirk): "It is characteristic of the radical that he thinks of power as a force for good -- so long as the power falls into his hands ... "

Interesting that the downfall of Nixon was a big trigger, because it seems that the impeachment of Clinton was one of the major causes of the new liberal revolution, wherever the hell it's leading. Back to a powerful Congress?

Via Yglesias.