The Case for the Strong Executive via The Agonist
by Harvey Mansfield, Professsor of Government at Harvard
Under some circumstances, the rule of law must yield to the need for energy.
Now the rule of law has two defects, each of which suggests the need for one-man rule. The first is that law is always imperfect by being universal, thus an average solution even in the best case, that is inferior to the living intelligence of a wise man on the spot, who can judge particular circumstances. This defect is discussed by Aristotle in the well-known passage in his "Politics" where he considers "whether it is more advantageous to be ruled by the best man or the best laws."
