Quote:
Originally Posted by classicman
Czars are a means to avoid the appointment process, accountability and oversight ... the checks and balances. IIRC we can thank the R's.
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They're single-issue advisors. I'm not sure why the Senate should get a veto on who gives advice to the President.
The extent of their power is that, as the President's point-person on a particular issue, the people with statutory powers will probably take their suggestions seriously, on the assumption that if they don't then the President will tell them to do so anyway. And, of course, if their statutory powers are such that they don't have to do what the President says on that particular point, then there's not even that.
Of course, the term has no legal meaning and is usually assigned by the press, and some people have been called "Czars" who actually have statutory power. But as far as I know, they're confirmed by the Senate, so that complaint doesn't apply.