parliament or may not be nominated by the party in the subsequent election. Similarly, opposition parties theoretically want to maximize their power in a system dominated by the majority by voting as a block and squelching internal dissent. Opposition party discipline is more likely if the party or parties perceive that they can eventually gain the majority. Consequently, for both majority and minority parties in parliament, important policy decisions are made within party structures, such as party caucuses, rather than within the legislature itself. Obviously it is not possible for the legislature and executive to be controlled by different parties in a parliamentary system.The presidential system and the parliamentary system each possess unique strengths and weaknesses. The first key difference mentioned from before between the two systems of government was the extent to which the powers of government are separated functionally between branches of government. In the presidential system, political and administrative powers are divided between the executive, legislative and judicial branches. This division of powers causes a lack of direct connection between the legislative and executive departments of the federal government. In this system of government, the President and his cabinet officers cannot visit and participate in the proceedings of Congress and can only deal with the legislative body in an indirect way by appearing before committees, by sending communications or by trying to influence Congress through the press or by patronage and other roundabout methods. This lack of direct connection between the branches creates a lack of unity in action and execution rendering the American processes of government invisible and making the lines of responsibility indirect and covert. In a parliamentary system, Parliament is sovereign and executive authority (exercised by the Prime Minister and Cabinet) is derived from the legislature. Th...
