Presidential decrees in Russia: a comparative perspective

Abstract

Presidential decrees in Russia: a comparative perspective, by Thomas F. Remington, New York, Cambridge University Press, 2014, xii + 174 pp., US$88.95 (hbk), ISBN 978-1-107-04079-3In presidential systems, a decree can enable a chief executive to act upon a temporary quasi-legal decision that takes effect until parliament passes a law to supersede it. Countries vary considerably in the extent to which presidents can use these kinds of powers. Russian President Boris El'tsin relied on decrees as part of his ongoing struggle with parliament, especially in the aftermath of the October 1993 crisis, when El'tsin dissolved the Supreme Soviet. With the adoption of the Constitution in December 1993, decree powers became considered one of the key levers of presidential power in Russia, and were often perceived as a means for the president to overrule the legislature. However, as Remington points out, from 1994 onwards, presidential decrees were generally used in a more nuanced manner than they had been during the early post-communist transition. The president issued decrees variously to nudge the Duma to move forward on a particular topic, to propose a compromise on a legislative matter, or simply to advance a plan for government action. The author's analysis suggests that when looking at presidential power, we need to look not only at how often a president relies on decrees, but how they are used.The author's discussion of President Vladimir Putin's use of his decree powers is a major contribution to our understanding of Russian politics. Remington examines the evidence in order to illustrate the similarities and differences between Putin and his predecessor, El'tsin. For example, where Putin has used decrees, it has often been with respect to state property: nationalizations, privatizations, and devolutions. This is a fascinating subject, and it would have been interesting if the author had elaborated more on the theme of property as an instrument of power.At the same time, Putin has been less likely than El'tsin to invoke decrees in order to gain the upper hand in disputes in the legislature; this is largely because Putin's authority over the Russian parliament (the Federal Assembly) has been firmly established since 2003. Yet, even before that date, the author argues that Putin's relationships with the legislature were more co-operative than the one his predecessor enjoyed, with decree powers used in a way to persuade and finesse parliamentarians rather than to provoke them. We leant from this study that like El'tsin, Dmitrii Medvedev attempted to use presidential decrees in order to accomplish substantive reforms. …