Challenge: American Parliament

Err...
What about
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Congress
?
I assume the challenge is to have that replaced with a Parliamentary system...

It doesn't get the bonus points, but I wonder if the US could decide to restructure the government after a successful Confederate secession.
 
I don't know how possible this:

If John Adams was successful in giving the VP a more important role in debates on the Senate floor, than you could see an evolution into something similar to Parliament. I read in McCullough's Biography of Adams (I could be wrong, its been awhile)that Adams saw the VP as sort of a legislative position and as such regularly joined debates, I think he was eventually told to basically shut up and it was written into Senate rules somewhere that the VP can't speak during Senate Session but if Adams is more successful at swaying people's opinion or just less of an insufferable know-it-all than the VP position could carry a more Prime Ministerial feel to it, and eventually the exec. departments would be filled by senators or congressmen who head the various commitees in Congress.

I think this is ASB because the constitution was designed to avoid having a merge of the Exec and Legislative branches, you would need a wholesale redesign of the Constitution, and as such a POD pre-1800. I just realized my scenario above requires the pre-1800 POD so take it or leave it that is the best bet in my humble opinion. your challenge requires a drastic rethinking of the VP and After all John Garner Nance said it best,"it ain't worth a warm bucket of spit"
 
How about the VP position as a united Congressional Liaison position, elected by the legislature? So you have the Speaker who leads the house, the Senate President or whatever, who leads the senate, and the VP who is responsible for welding those bodies into a hammer to beat down the power of the executive? (Since the farmers <3'd the leg. branch the most.) Since in this role he must conciliate both bodies it might require a more unitary style for Washington from the beginning. Since the VP would be one of the legislature, they wouldn't see it as a merging.

I agree though, you'd need a Constitutional Convention change.
 
Bonus Army Incident sparks off a Communist Revolution. The ensuing government uses a Parliamentary system.
 
I think this is ASB because the constitution was designed to avoid having a merge of the Exec and Legislative branches, you would need a wholesale redesign of the Constitution, and as such a POD pre-1800. I just realized my scenario above requires the pre-1800 POD so take it or leave it that is the best bet in my humble opinion.

Bonus points were offered for no Civil War. But giving up on these points, what about OTL Reconstruction?

19th century presidents were relatively weak against Congress. There WAS a wholesale redesign of Constitution - Amendments 13 to 15 passed in a quick succession and unconstitutionally. Johnson came within one vote of purely political impeachment.

Suppose a slightly more thorough reconstruction. Johnson duly impeached. Tenure of Office Act stands. And the radical republicans add 16th Amendment targeted specifically to weaken the office of President and make future presidents more effectively controlled by Congress.

How would the most plausible 16th for such goal read?
 
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