ower. The British Prime Minister, as shown by past examples, usually holds substantial po!
             wer over the party machine from which their power originates, and position depends on. The absence of a clear separation of powers in the British system gives the British Prime Minister the position of, head of the majority party in parliament. Due to such a strong link between the Prime Minister and his party he can often expect loyalty as a matter of course when forwarding legislation. The President can not though, expect such favorable treatment from his party, as no direct link exists between he and his party colleagues in Congress, a situation created by the 'separation of powers', a primary intention of the Founding Fathers when writing the Constitution to prevent executive dominance. The British Prime Minister also has, at his disposal, a powerful Whip system to maintain party loyalty. British MPs are faced with the threat of losing career prospects within government, temporary suspension, the enmity of their colleagues, failure to be selected by their constituency part!
             y, and the ultimate sanction of expulsion from the party. Such weapons make the Whips a vital tool to the Prime Minister in maintaining party loyalty. It may be true that both Senators and Representatives of the same party as the President face similar threats when voting on Presidential legislation, but they also face numerous other pressures which they take into account when voting, most notably, their own personal convictions, lobbyist and financial backer's views, and pressure from constituents upon whom they rely for reelection. This is particularly true of Representatives who stand for election every two years and are thus 'fighting a permanent election battle'. For such reasons, members of Congress, especially Representatives, are usually more independent when it comes to voting. Despite the success of presidents such as FDR in maintaining strong party loyalty in...