Framing the Accomplishment: How, and Why, Presidents use the Rhetorical Content in Signing Statements for Strategic Purposes, FDR-Carter Article

Evans, KA. (2014). Framing the Accomplishment: How, and Why, Presidents use the Rhetorical Content in Signing Statements for Strategic Purposes, FDR-Carter . CONGRESS & THE PRESIDENCY-A JOURNAL OF CAPITAL STUDIES, 41(1), 84-106. 10.1080/07343469.2013.861040

cited authors

  • Evans, KA

authors

abstract

  • How, and why, do presidents use the rhetorical content in signing statements for strategic purposes? The article analyzes the rhetorical content of the 985 signing statements from FDR through Carter and argues that the president's rhetoric is an effort to frame the accomplishment that has just occurred with an eye toward maximizing prospective power and building legacy. The article explores the impact of different political contexts (divided government and elections) on several important rhetorical characteristics found in signing statements. In addition, the study delves into three interesting cases related to presidential credit claiming and attribution. LBJ and Carter were the most likely to attribute credit to members of Congress, while Nixon was the most likely to claim credit for himself. The findings help illuminate the various motivations that presidents have to use signing statements for reasons beyond constitutional challenges. Successful political leaders do not necessarily do more than other leaders; successful leaders control the political definition of their actions, the terms in which their places in history are understood. The failures are those who, upon leaving office, look to some time in the distant future when people might begin to appreciate the wisdom of what they did. (Skowronek 1997, 17-18). © 2014 Copyright Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

publication date

  • January 1, 2014

published in

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

start page

  • 84

end page

  • 106

volume

  • 41

issue

  • 1