Election of M.S. Gorbachev as President of the USSR at the Third Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR. Establishment of the post of President in the USSR
The introduction of the post of President of the USSR is now seen as a logical outcome of the political reform of the USSR, known at first under the name "democratization", but more gone down in history as Perestroika.
The decision to radically reform the political system of the USSR was proclaimed by the XIX All-Union Conference of the CPSU, which took place on June 28 - July 1, 1988. This forum itself, which assumed a free discussion of urgent problems of society, was deliberately opposed to formalized party congresses, although the decisions of the conference were not binding. It is still unknown whether M.S. Gorbachev is about to such a finale, that is, to become the President of the USSR. But already obvious was his desire to become a kind of nationwide democratic leader, independent of the party oligarchy. All his subsequent actions completely fit into this logic.
Important was the decision of the conference to separate the functions of party and Soviet bodies. True, at the same time it was recommended that the first secretaries of the territorial committees of the CPSU should necessarily hold the positions of chairmen of the executive committees of the respective Soviets. But at a time when the authority of the party could still seem high, this could be regarded as a way to give greater authority to the Soviets.
The most important recommendation of the conference was the beginning of the reform of the state authorities of the USSR. Its key moment was the creation of a new supreme body of power - the Congress of People's Deputies - on the basis (for the first time since 1918!) of competitive elections. True, it was not parties that competed, but individuals, and the top leadership of the CPSU was elected to the Congress on a separate list. But this was an extremely important innovation, the scale and consequences of which, probably, were not fully realized by the organizers themselves.
Now it was the Congress of People's Deputies that was put forward in first place in political life, instead of the congresses of the CPSU and the Central Committee of the CPSU. This was even more emphasized by the new structure of the governing bodies of the Congress. The former collective Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR was an official body for signing papers sent to it from the Politburo of the Central Committee. Now the sole post of Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR was being created, and this post at the First Congress, held in May-June 1989, was taken by Gorbachev himself.
At the same time, he continued to retain the functions of the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU, but he transferred the center of gravity of power to the newly established position. The chairman of the highest Soviet body for the first time in the history of the Soviet state (such a paradox!) became really higher than the leader of the party, although such a reshuffle has so far taken place within the framework of one and the same person. However, retrospectively evaluating, we are forced to admit that it was only thanks to this person that such a historical upheaval could take place.
But the functions of the Chairman of the Supreme Council contained many restrictions on the part of the Supreme Council and the Congress. In this post, Gorbachev had no more power than the General Secretary, and therefore he could (and continued) to put pressure on him in an undesirable direction by the conservative Politburo.
The situation for the further deprivation of the CPSU monopoly on power was more favorable than ever. At the First Congress, for the first time in the history of the USSR, a legal parliamentary opposition (Interregional Deputy Group - MDG) took shape, which launched an attack on this very monopoly. Gorbachev, repelling the attacks of the MDH, formally acted as a representative of the conservative majority. But since the former power of the Politburo had already been delegitimized (although the notorious 6th article of the Constitution was still in effect), this majority was ready to hand over to Gorbachev the entirety of the former power of the CPSU, but now as the head of state. It was a brilliant move within the framework of constitutional reformism and a unique, almost peaceful transformation of an authoritarian regime into a democratic one, played out in the traditions of British parliamentarianism, which is unusual for Russia.
The issue of introducing the post of President of the USSR was already decided at the II Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR, held in December 1989. And then the situation escalated in some republics (for example, the events in Baku in January 1990). Gorbachev convincingly signaled to the old partocrats that promptness in decision-making was needed to preserve the unity of the Union, and only he, as the plenipotentiary head of state, could ensure it.
The post of the President of the USSR, established in March 1990 at the III Congress, can be briefly described as follows: in the hands of the President, all the highest functions of power were officially concentrated, which until then was absolutely illegal, but actually used by the Politburo of the Central Committee of the CPSU. At the same time, the President of the USSR was to be elected by universal suffrage of the citizens of the USSR (although an exception was made for the First President - he was elected at the Congress), and the number of candidates for this post was not limited.
The historical significance of the constitutional revolution that took place then is emphasized by the fact that the same Congress reformulated the 6th article of the USSR Constitution in such a way that the CPSU was deprived of its “leading role”, and an opportunity opened up for the creation of legal political parties competing for power.
Now, still called the USSR, politically it was a completely different state than in all the years since 1922. It probably opened up here with forks with several historical paths. It seems that the country did not go the best way possible. But that's another story.
Few people in modern political history have been honored with such lifetime glory and at the same time have been subjected to such sharp attacks and ridicule as a man with a simple Russian surname Gorbachev - "Gorby", as he was somewhat familiarly, but with obvious sympathy, nicknamed in the West.
This man has enough titles and awards, his biographies in different languages occupy a whole shelf, and over time, no doubt, more than one feature film will be made about him - the zigzags of his political career are too contradictory. Not a single decision made by him during his years in power was unambiguous, whether it was an anti-alcohol legislative decision or he held a wide variety of positions, but if you choose the most “exclusive” of them, then it sounds like this: First President of the USSR. The uniqueness of this position is that it existed for a very short time, less than two years, and then disappeared into history along with the state itself, the Soviet Union.
The first President of the USSR was elected in March 1990 at the third (I note, extraordinary!) Congress of People's Deputies, which at that time served as the highest body of state power. In the USSR, there has never been a political post called "president of the country". In this regard, it is curious to recall that the hierarchy of the Soviet state was strikingly different from the generally accepted system in the world, this created a lot of delicate problems in diplomatic communication. To whom, for example, should congratulations be addressed on the occasion of the main national holiday?
All over the world, the president of a state writes to the president of another country, the prime minister to his colleague, but what if it is clear that the most influential person in the USSR is not the chairman of the council of ministers at all, but the General Secretary, but this is a party, not a state fast...
With some stretch, the President of the country could be called the Chairman, that is, the head of the highest legislative body of the Soviet state. The first President of the USSR, Mikhail Sergeevich Gorbachev, held this position until his election to the post, which now allowed him to consider even the most implacable anti-communist, for example, the President of the United States of America, Ronald Reagan, as his colleague.
It is M. Gorbachev and R. Reagan who are considered the creators of the new world order, which forever ended the era. The last President of the USSR did not leave the pages of the most respectable newspapers and magazines, glorifying him as a politician who managed to make our planet safer for living. The Nobel Peace Prize is the most weighty proof of the recognition of M. Gorbachev's merits in this field.
However, the first, he is also the last President of the USSR in his country was more often honored with completely different epithets - such as a destroyer, traitor, defiler and others. Some of these accusations may be true, but for the most part they are not. In any case, the last word will remain with History, but for now, the name of Mikhail Sergeevich Gorbachev alone still acts on some not very smart people as the strongest irritant.
But he has long been accustomed to this and does not pay attention to the streams of accusations and direct slander - that's why he and Mikhail Gorbachev, the only one of its kind, the first President of the USSR!
Image copyright AP
On March 15, 1990, the Third Extraordinary Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR elected Mikhail Gorbachev as President of the country. He happened to work out only a third of the established five-year term.
The congress opened on March 12. In addition to establishing the post of president, he made another historic change to the constitution: he abolished Article 6 on the leading and guiding role of the CPSU.
17 deputies took part in the debate. Opinions ranged from "We see in the presidential power an important guarantee of the unity of our federation" (Nursultan Nazarbayev) and "Our country has raised a world-class leader, the author of new political thinking, a leader who advocates disarmament, for peace" (Fyodor Grigoriev) to "Perestroika will bog down presidency" (Nikolai Dzhiba).
Let's not play hide and seek, today we are talking about the election of a specific leader as the president of the country - Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev Alexander Yakovlev
"An attempt to hastily, here, at the congress, introduce the post of president is the grossest, gravest political mistake, which will greatly aggravate our difficulties, anxieties and fears," Yuri Afanasyev, co-chairman of the Interregional Deputy Group, said. Academician Vitaly Gol'danskii objected: "We cannot wait, we need resuscitation, not sanatorium treatment."
The proposal to ban the combination of the post of president and leader of a political party, supported by both radical democrats and orthodox communists, who dreamed of seeing Alexander Yakovlev and Yegor Ligachev or Ivan Polozkov in the role of general secretary, respectively, received 1,303 votes and would have passed if it had not been for a constitutional amendment which required a two-thirds majority.
On March 14, a plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU was held, which nominated Gorbachev as a presidential candidate. A number of congress deputies nominated Prime Minister Nikolai Ryzhkov and Interior Minister Vadim Bakatin, but they refused, and the elections turned out to be uncontested.
We were in a hurry to elect the President. But, perhaps, having elected, it was not worth immediately here, on the stage of the Kremlin Palace, to raise him to this post. It was necessary to postpone it for one day, announcing that the solemn action would take place, for example, in the Georgievsky Hall of the Kremlin. In the presence of deputies, the government, representatives of the working people of the capital, soldiers, diplomatic corps, and the press, the Pravda newspaper
Of the 2,245 deputies (five seats were vacant at that time), exactly two thousand participated in the congress. 1329 votes were cast for Gorbachev (59.2% of the total number of deputies). 495 voted against, 54 ballots were spoiled. 122 people did not vote.
At the suggestion of Anatoly Lukyanov, who replaced Gorbachev as chairman of the Supreme Council, the elected president immediately took the oath - going to the podium and putting his hand on the text of the constitution, he uttered a single phrase: "I solemnly swear to faithfully serve the peoples of our country, strictly follow the Constitution of the USSR, guarantee the rights and freedoms citizens, conscientiously fulfill the high duties of the President of the USSR entrusted to me.
Foreign reaction was purely optimistic.
"The Extraordinary Congress of People's Deputies of the Soviet Union made the greatest revolutionary transformations in the life of Soviet society, which have not been equaled in Russia since the 1917 revolution," Japanese television pointed out. "The decisions of the Extraordinary Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR consolidated perhaps the most important changes in the political and economic system of the USSR since the Bolshevik revolution in 1917," echoed the Washington Post.
At the pace of the military operation
Who owned the idea of introducing the post of president is unknown.
The topic has been discussed in the media since December 1989, but in the order of hypotheses and discussions.
Gorbachev's assistant Anatoly Chernyaev wrote in his memoirs that in January 1990, the "architect of perestroika" and secretary of the Central Committee, Alexander Yakovlev, told him in a terrible secret: once Gorbachev came into his office, upset, preoccupied, lonely. Like, what to do? Azerbaijan, Lithuania, economy, orthodoxies, radicals, people on the edge. Yakovlev said: "We must act. The most important obstacle to perestroika and your entire policy is the Politburo. It is necessary to convene a congress of people's deputies in the near future, let the congress elect you president." And Gorbachev agreed.
The decision on the presidency matured so urgently that they decided to go to the convocation of an extraordinary congress. I did not understand such urgency, since after the Second Congress of People's Deputies, where this issue was not even discussed, only two and a half months had passed Nikolai Ryzhkov
Be that as it may, on February 14, unexpectedly for everyone, Gorbachev voiced the idea at a session of the Supreme Council, and on February 27, the parliament decided to convene an extraordinary congress. There was not enough time for preparation and public discussion, to be honest.
The haste caused criticism from both the left and the right, who suspected some kind of trick and persistently, but unsuccessfully, tried to get a clear explanation from Gorbachev why he needed it.
The official version set out in the draft law on the establishment of the post of president and the introduction of appropriate additions to the constitution: "In order to ensure the further development of the deep political and economic transformations being carried out in the country, strengthen the constitutional order, the rights, freedoms and security of citizens, improve interaction between the highest bodies of state power and management of the USSR" did not satisfy anyone. One might think that Gorbachev did not have enough power before!
According to historians, the leading reason lay on the surface: the leader wanted, while remaining the Secretary General of the CPSU, to weaken his dependence on the Central Committee, which could at any moment convene a non-plenum and deal with him, as he once did with Khrushchev.
After Gorbachev was elected president and Article 6 was abolished, he no longer needed the party for his own legitimacy, but the party in him.
Using the powers of the General Secretary, Gorbachev just strengthens the power of the Communist Party. Including her power over the Secretary General himself. The two ideas - the abolition of Article 6 and the introduction of the presidency - are closely related. Only having received the fullness of state, and not party power, Gorbachev can carry out the abolition of the party monopoly. Otherwise, he will simply lose power Anatoly Sobchak
Since the CPSU had lost official authority, the vacuum needed to be filled.
After the events in Tbilisi and Baku, it turned out to be difficult to find out who made the decisions to use the army, and talks about the need for "a person who is responsible for everything" intensified. However, the presidency did not prevent Gorbachev from avoiding responsibility for the Vilnius drama.
There was another practical consideration.
According to the tradition laid down by Leonid Brezhnev, the Secretary General simultaneously headed the highest representative body. But, starting from the spring of 1989, the Supreme Council switched to work in a permanent mode. Gorbachev, who presided over it, had to spend a lot of time at meetings. Other members of the leadership did the same, always copying the behavior of the first person.
I call for voting for the presidency and I believe that under this condition there will be social justice, national security, including the Russian people Deputy Ivan Polozkov, an orthodox communist
Naturally, this made it difficult to govern the country. And in society, the question arose: who is doing business while the debate is going on?
Meanwhile, the opinion was expressed that Gorbachev, by his nature, was more suitable for the role of the speaker than the head of state. He knew how to manipulate a large heterogeneous audience and achieve the voting results he needed.
Anatoly Sobchak in his book "Journey to Power" noted that in personal communication, the magic of Gorbachev's influence was irresistible. "Succumb to this charm, and you will begin to act as if under hypnosis," he wrote.
Main riddle
The main question that researchers still puzzle over is why Gorbachev did not go to the national elections? Moreover, this was provided for by the law on the introduction of the post of president, and only for the first case did they make a special reservation.
Many consider this a fatal mistake. As Boris Yeltsin later proved, it is very difficult to legally remove a popularly elected president from power.
Image copyright RIA Novosti Image caption According to a number of historians, Gorbachev did not want to directly measure his popularity with Yeltsin.Election not by citizens, but by deputies made Gorbachev's status insufficiently convincing, since the legitimacy of the congress itself was tarnished. He was elected under the 6th article, in the absence of an organized opposition everywhere, except for Moscow, Leningrad, Sverdlovsk and the Baltic states, a third of the deputies were representatives of public organizations.
Some historians suggest that Gorbachev, even with an objective advantage, experienced a mystical fear of Yeltsin, who somehow succeeded. Others say that he followed the lead of the nomenclature environment, which in principle did not like direct democracy and was afraid that the election campaign would give the reformers an additional opportunity to propagate their views.
In conditions of political and economic instability, once again tempting fate and going to popular elections is a risk, and Anatoly Sobchak
In public speeches, Mikhail Sergeevich mainly stressed that the situation was complicated, and the country would not get along without a president for an extra day.
"They [the deputies-interregionals] also spoke in favor of the presidency, but they conditioned it with such reservations and such approaches that it is possible to slow down for a long time, if not to bury this process. Serious decisions cannot be postponed in the current situation. The introduction of the institute of presidency is necessary for the country today," he declared at the session of the Supreme Council on February 27.
Position of the Democrats
Considering in principle the institution of the presidency to be progressive in comparison with the current form of government, the question of the President of the USSR and the procedure for his election cannot be resolved hastily, without the participation of the new Supreme Soviets of the republics, without a developed multi-party system in the country, without a free press, without strengthening the current Supreme Soviet . This question must be linked with the constitutions of the republics, with the new Union Treaty. Without these indispensable conditions, the adoption of a decision on the presidency will undoubtedly lead to a new aggravation of relations between the Center and the republics, to limiting the independence of local Soviets and self-government, to the threat of restoring a dictatorial regime in the country From a statement by the Interregional Deputy Group
Supporters of perestroika and renewal split on the issue of Gorbachev's presidency.
Some continued to see him as the only chance and believed that Gorbachev should be supported in everything, because he knows what he is doing, and because otherwise it will be even worse. The point of view of these people was expressed in a remark from a place at the congress by a deputy who did not introduce himself: “Is it really that we have no food?
Some were simply impressed by the word "president": here, we will have it, as in civilized countries!
Others pointed out that this term is associated not only with America and France, but also with Latin American and Asian dictators, and most importantly, they demanded popular alternative elections.
"I believe that only the people can make an appropriate decision," Alexander Shchelkanov, a member of the Interregional Group, said in a debate at the congress.
On the opening day of the congress, Shuvalov, a resident of Zelenograd, went on a hunger strike on Theater Square "in protest against the election of the president only by deputies."
Anatoly Sobchak was a supporter of Gorbachev's presidency on the terms put forward by him, and Yuri Afanasiev and Yuri Chernichenko were opponents. The latter, in particular, was afraid that "we will again let ourselves be fooled; if the deputies cannot really control the actions of the chairman of the Supreme Council, then it will be even more impossible to keep track of the president."
Image copyright RIA Novosti Image caption One of the main opponents of Gorbachev at the congress was deputy Yuri AfanasievBoris Yeltsin, as far as is known, did not speak publicly on this issue.
Sobchak wrote in his memoirs that shortly before the death of Andrei Sakharov, he tried to discuss with him the prospects for Gorbachev's presidency, but the academician did not show interest in the topic, considering the issue insignificant compared to the development of a new constitution.
Not a new idea
We need to cast aside fears and despondency, gain faith in our strengths and capabilities. And they are huge. The Russian people and all the peoples who have united with them in a great multinational state will be able to revive their common homeland. And they will certainly achieve this on the paths of perestroika and socialist renewal From Mikhail Gorbachev's speech at the congress after his election
The idea of establishing the post of a popularly elected president in the USSR was seriously discussed in the past: during the preparation of the "Stalinist" constitution of 1936, in the last years of Nikita Khrushchev's rule, and at the dawn of perestroika.
Why Stalin rejected it is not entirely clear. Already, 99.99% of the votes were guaranteed to him, and the nationwide expression of support for the "beloved leader" could be turned into a powerful educational and propaganda event.
Khrushchev, according to researchers, simply did not have enough time, and his successors were guided by their deep conservatism and dislike for innovation.
According to the testimonies of people who knew him, Leonid Brezhnev liked the address "Mr. President" during his foreign visits, but he did not legitimize the title.
Third try
In 1985, the "architect of perestroika" Alexander Yakovlev suggested that Gorbachev begin political reform with the party and put forward a detailed plan: to arrange an all-party discussion, to divide the CPSU into two parties - the reformist people's democratic and the conservative socialist parties - to hold elections to the Supreme Soviet and instruct the winners government formation.
Now, as I observe, Gorbachev presses on the gas and at the same time presses on the brake. The motor roars to the whole world - this is our publicity. And the car stands still Olzhas Suleimenov, deputy, Kazakh poet
According to Yakovlev's plan, both parties were to declare their adherence to the basic values of socialism, join an alliance called the Union of Communists, delegate an equal number of members to its Central Council, and nominate the chairman of the council as a joint candidate for the presidency of the USSR.
A political construction in which two parties competing with each other in the elections simultaneously enter into a certain coalition with a single leader would show the world another "Russian miracle." At the same time, some researchers believe that the implementation of the "Yakovlev plan" would have allowed a smooth transition to a multi-party democracy and avoid the collapse of the USSR.
Then Gorbachev did not support the idea. Five years later, it was too late.
Pyrrhic victory
Gorbachev rushed about in search of alternatives, compromises, the optimal combination of old and new methods of leadership. There were mistakes, miscalculations, delays, simply absurdities. But they are not the reason for the beginning of the disintegration of society and the state. It was inevitable by the very nature of the transition of a society, unique in world history, notorious and corrupted by a long dictatorship, to freedom Anatoly Chernyaev, Gorbachev's assistant
Historians consider the First Congress of People's Deputies in May 1989 to be the peak of Gorbachev's political career, and his election as president was the beginning of its end. Soon, the leader's rating rapidly and irreversibly went down.
That was the last credit of trust issued by society.
The conservatives hoped that Gorbachev needed presidential powers to "restore order", the democrats - for bold reformist steps. When neither one nor the other happened, although he got everything he wanted, the disappointment turned out to be universal and deadly.
The prediction made at the congress by deputy Teimuraz Avaliani came true: "You will rush back and forth, and at that time what we have now will happen."
After 660 days, Gorbachev resigned (more precisely, was forced to resign).
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev He was elected President of the USSR on March 15, 1990 at the Third Extraordinary Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR.
On December 25, 1991, in connection with the termination of the existence of the USSR as a state entity, M.S. Gorbachev announced his resignation from the post of President and signed a Decree on the transfer of control of strategic nuclear weapons to Russian President Yeltsin.
On December 25, after Gorbachev's resignation, the red state flag of the USSR was lowered in the Kremlin and the flag of the RSFSR was raised. The first and last President of the USSR left the Kremlin forever.
The first president of Russia, then still the RSFSR, Boris Nikolaevich Yeltsin was elected on June 12, 1991 by popular vote. B.N. Yeltsin won in the first round (57.3% of the vote).
In connection with the expiration of the term of office of the President of Russia, Boris N. Yeltsin, and in accordance with the transitional provisions of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the election of the President of Russia was scheduled for June 16, 1996. It was the only presidential election in Russia where it took two rounds to determine the winner. The elections were held on June 16 - July 3 and were distinguished by the sharpness of the competitive struggle between the candidates. The main competitors were the acting President of Russia B. N. Yeltsin and the leader of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation G. A. Zyuganov. According to the election results, B.N. Yeltsin received 40.2 million votes (53.82 percent), well ahead of G. A. Zyuganov, who received 30.1 million votes (40.31 percent). 3.6 million Russians (4.82%) voted against both candidates .
December 31, 1999 at 12:00 Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin voluntarily ceased to exercise the powers of the President of the Russian Federation and transferred the powers of the President to Prime Minister Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin. On April 5, 2000, the first President of Russia, Boris Yeltsin, was presented with certificates of a pensioner and labor veteran.
December 31, 1999 Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin became acting president.
In accordance with the Constitution, the Federation Council of the Russian Federation has set March 26, 2000 as the date for the early presidential elections.
On March 26, 2000, 68.74 percent of the voters included in the voting lists, or 75,181,071 people, took part in the elections. Vladimir Putin received 39,740,434 votes, which amounted to 52.94 percent, that is, more than half of the votes. On April 5, 2000, the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation decided to recognize the elections of the President of the Russian Federation as valid and valid, to consider Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich elected to the post of President of Russia.
President of the USSR- position of the head of state. Introduced in the USSR on March 15, 1990 by the Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR, which made appropriate amendments to the Constitution of the USSR. Prior to that, the highest official in the USSR was the Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.
The post of President of the USSR ceased to exist on December 25, 1991 with the resignation of M. S. Gorbachev. According to the Constitution of the USSR, the President of the USSR was to be elected by the citizens of the USSR by direct and secret ballot. As an exception, the first elections of the President of the USSR were held by the Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR. In connection with the collapse of the USSR, the national elections of the President of the USSR never took place. Mikhail Sergeevich Gorbachev was the first and only President of the USSR. In the first half of 1990, almost all union republics declared their state sovereignty (RSFSR - June 12, 1990).
From 1992 to the present, M.S. Gorbachev is president of the International Foundation for Socio-Economic and Political Science Research (Gorbachev Foundation). In the summer of 1991, a new union treaty was prepared for signing. The attempted coup d'état in August 1991 not only crossed out the prospect of its signing, but also gave a powerful impetus to the disintegration of the state that had begun. In 1991, on December 8, in Belovezhskaya Pushcha (Belarus), a meeting was held between the leaders of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, during which a document was signed on the liquidation of the USSR and the creation of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). December 25, 1991 Gorbachev announced the resignation of the President of the USSR.
The analysis of the institute of Presidential power in the system of state authorities of the Russian Federation is undoubtedly one of the topical areas in modern state and legal research. The range of problems relating to the political and legal status of the President of the Russian Federation is very wide and varied. In practice, it affects all sides and aspects of the institution of presidential power in the country: firstly, its very essence, purpose, place and role in the system of other state bodies; secondly, the preconditions and necessity of its establishment; thirdly, the legal powers and functions of the President of the Russian Federation;
fourthly, general and special requirements for candidates for the presidency; fifth, socio-political status; sixth, the boundaries of presidential power, the mechanism for its implementation, and many others. It is safe to state the fact that in our society there is no unambiguous understanding of the constitutional and legal status of the President of the Russian Federation.
However, initially, among these problems, it is necessary to consider the reasons for the establishment of the post of President in the Russian Federation in the early 90s.
According to Part 1 of Art. 80 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation of 1993 - "The President of the Russian Federation is the head of state." In domestic constitutional law, the head of state is traditionally understood as an official (or body) formally occupying the highest place in the hierarchy of state institutions and positions, exercising the supreme representation of the country in domestic political activities and in relations with other states.
The institute of the head of state owes its existence in the modern world to a late feudal institution - absolute monarchy. At the time of the formation of bourgeois statehood, the thinking of the new ruling class was limited by the historical framework of a particular era. This manifested itself, first of all, in the fact that the bourgeoisie found many institutions and institutions of the feudal state attractive to itself. Therefore, she borrowed the institution of the head of state, which in essence was a purely feudal institution.
That is why, introducing even the most progressive, in this historical period, form of government - the republic, it retained, in principle, this feudal institution - the institution of the head of state.
The practice of constitutional construction of modern states shows that the head of state can be both an official and a special body. In a number of countries, there is or has been in the past the organization of the institution of the head of state in the form of the highest collegial body: the Federal Council in Switzerland, consisting of 7 members; the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of up to 170 members; State Council of the Assembly of People's Power in Cuba of 31 members, etc., which, along with the highest bodies of popular representation, are the highest collegial bodies of state power. Headed, as a rule, by the Chairman, who independently exercises only those powers of the head of state that cannot be exercised collectively (for example, to accept recall and credentials of ambassadors and other representatives of foreign states accredited in the country). At the same time, the place of these Councils (Presidiums, etc.) in the system of state bodies was determined by the fact that they were accountable in all their activities to the highest bodies of popular representation that elected them.
Thus, the accountability of the Presidium to the People's (National) Assembly was expressed in the fact that it could hear a report on its activities, if necessary, change some of the members of the Presidium by electing others instead, or even completely re-elect the Presidium before the expiration of its term of office.
In the Soviet period of national history, for about seventy years in our country there was precisely a collegial head of state - the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, consisting of the last Constitution of the USSR of 1977. of 39 members (art. 120). At the same time, in order to identify the reasons for the radical renewal of the institution of the head of state, it must be taken into account that all this began during the existence of the USSR. First, in March 1990, the post of President of the USSR was introduced, and then - in many union republics, including in March 1991. and in the RSFSR. Since the main reasons for the emergence of the institution of presidential power in our country are common, before considering the Russian Federation, it is necessary to analyze some general points.
The institute of presidential power has a relatively short history in the development of domestic statehood, since such an institution was organically alien to the Soviet republic. The sovereignty of the Soviets, the combination of legislative and executive power in them were organically incompatible with the principle of separation of powers, one of the expressions of which is the presence in the system of government bodies - the post of president. Therefore, the idea of establishing the post of President, originally, as already noted, originated in the former USSR, met with considerable resistance from some people's deputies, supporters of the preservation of Soviet power, who quite reasonably saw in it a violation of the principle of the sovereignty of the Soviets.
However, the processes of democratization, which were gaining momentum, and the renewal of the entire state system, prevailed, and the post of President of the USSR in March 1990. was established, which led to significant changes in the Constitution of the USSR in 1977. March 14, 1990 The Law of the USSR "On the establishment of the post of President of the USSR and the introduction of amendments and additions to the Constitution (Basic Law) of the USSR" was adopted. According to the amended Constitution (Art. 127), the President of the USSR became the head of the Soviet state. They could be elected a citizen of the USSR not younger than 35 and not older than 65 years. The same person could not be the President of the USSR for more than two terms in a row. The President of the USSR was supposed to ensure the interaction of state authorities and administration. The Soviet constitution provided for elections
President of the USSR by citizens, i.e. direct elections. However, the election of the first President of the USSR (who turned out to be the last, as practice has shown) in accordance with the law of March 14, 1990. happened at the Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR. Soon after that, a similar process of establishing the institution of presidential power began in the Union republics, where decisions on this were made by the relevant Supreme Soviets.
Considering the question of the appointment and reasons for the emergence of the institution of presidential power precisely at the perestroika stage, it should be noted that the constitutional legislation largely reflected and, as it were, summarized those numerous and sometimes very contradictory views and proposals that were expressed by legal scholars, people's deputies and journalists at the the stage of preparation and discussion of draft normative legal acts and issues related to the general legal status and appointment of the institution of presidency in the country. When introducing the post of President at the level of the USSR, a number of explanations followed, interpreting the reasons for the emergence of the institution of presidential power in our country, which cannot be ignored in relation to the Russian Federation either.
First, it is the delimitation of the functions of the party and the state. Previously, all the main issues of domestic and foreign policy were decided by party bodies and, thus, the main link in the development of a strategy for state life was outside the state system. Now it was necessary to strengthen that link of state power, whose functions were previously replaced by party decisions. Secondly, after the separation of powers, it became necessary to coordinate the activities of the legislative and executive bodies. Thirdly, there was an urgent need to stabilize the situation and quickly resolve emergencies. The existing structures turned out to be unsuitable for this. Of these circumstances, only the latter was more or less clear, since it is often necessary to quickly respond to a situation and make quick decisions that one person will do better than a collegium. Then there was the post of the Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, but the Chairman led the work of the Supreme Council and the Congress of People's Deputies (if there were meetings) and performed the functions of the head of state, and at the same time, he was often not independent, which limited his possibilities.
Other factors were somewhat uncertain. For example, if functions were transferred from party bodies to state ones, then, in the end, they could partially pass to the parliament, partially to the government. It is also not clear why it was the separation of powers that caused the need for a body coordinating them. After all, the separation of powers presupposes their mutual influence, and not the increased capabilities of one body in relation to others. Ultimately, it would be possible to strengthen the functions of the Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR or make him the person coordinating the activities of the central bodies.
World practice shows that the relevant state can go for the concentration in the hands of one person of functions and tasks that are dispersed in other countries. Such tasks and functions are related to the representation and welfare of the state, its citizens and society as a whole, and are more effective when carried out by one person than by a collegium. This person: firstly, is a symbol of a particular state, its unity, represents the highest state interests both within the country and in the world community; secondly, it represents the entire people of a given country, its interests and acts on behalf of the people, stands above social, party, national and other unilinear interests, and even more so disagreements, coordinates society, cements socio-political and state life; thirdly, bears personal responsibility for the state of affairs in the country, ensures the stability of the said situation, takes prompt measures and decisions to ensure order and security, to fulfill the international obligations of the state; fourthly, he stands at the head of the executive branch of the state apparatus, or above it, directs its activities; fifthly, he is declared the supreme commander of the armed forces of the country and thereby influences the defense of the state and the passage of military service by citizens; sixthly, he makes appointments to the highest positions in the apparatus of executive power, and not rarely - to all positions of judges, that is, in this sense, this is, as it were, the highest official of the country, "the chief state official"; seventh, it is the supreme defender of the interests of the “common man”, resolves issues of citizenship, awards and pardons citizens of the state, considers their complaints, etc. Naturally, this is a general theoretical view, but in practice the application of these provisions can take place in their various combinations. Thus, a person who is the head of state can be either a monarch or a president.
Monarchies in most cases have gone from strong power to its sharp weakening and leaving the head of state with mainly representative functions (the only exceptions today are some Middle Eastern kings and sheikhs). Presidents can also officially stand at the head of the state, but the possibilities of their real participation in governance are significantly limited in favor of the government. However, there are also models in which, on the contrary, the key figure is legally the President. There are also situations when it is legally limited, for example, parliamentary control over its activities is proclaimed, but in practice it is completely independent.
All this had to be taken into account when introducing the post of president in our country. At the same time, some purely domestic circumstances cannot be discounted. So, for example, with I.V. Stalin, and in a number of respects even later, our country learned what personal power is, what negative consequences it leads to. Therefore, in connection with the introduction of the post of president, the question immediately arose: would this not mean the restoration of the regime of personal power? At one time, in order to prevent another cult of personality, the Central Committee of the CPSU proclaimed the principle of collective leadership. But even then the power of the general secretaries of the Central Committee of the CPSU was indisputable both in the party and in the state. The question arose of what would happen if now one person, according to the country's constitution, that is, legally, received all the threads of the country's leadership in his own hands! Then the question arose of whether there is a sufficient “niche” for presidential affairs, because representative functions can be entrusted to the Chairman of Parliament, and the tasks of operational management of the country to the Chairman of the Government.
In view of the foregoing, the following reasons for the introduction of the post of President of the USSR in our country are revealed: firstly, the democratization of the processes of governing the country quickly demonstrated that the Parliament and the Government, which was fond of discussions, were really unable to make operational decisions and quickly implement them, so it was necessary to have one leader the state, which would be responsible hourly for current affairs; secondly, in the conditions of the formation of the system of separation of powers, in this historical period, the Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR and especially the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, which worked on the basis of permanence, took on a huge number of cases and appropriated an almost peremptory right to resolve any issues. The presidency of the USSR in this case would become a counterbalance to the extremes of domestic parliamentarism; thirdly, in the absence of a parliamentary majority of one party, or an alliance of several parties in Parliament (or in its lower house), the President will objectively be forced to take on the function of forming the Government and directing its work, since conflicting parties could simply paralyze the functioning of the supreme body executive power; fourthly, in the process of developing ideological pluralism and rejecting political monism, the post of General Secretary of the CPSU meant little, and the leadership of the CPSU did not want to limit its powers, while the introduction of the post of President of the USSR was considered by a significant part of party functionaries as a way to preserve the influence of the party in the changed social political and socio-economic conditions of the life of the country; fifthly, the objective desire of M.S. Gorbachev to be freed from the guardianship of the "native party". Since the leader aimed at reforms had to check his every step with the Politburo and the Central Committee of the CPSU and at the same time be afraid that he would not only be overthrown from the party Olympus, but also from the post of Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, since members of the CPSU among other people's deputies of the USSR constituted the vast majority. Thus, the presidency provided an opportunity for former party leaders at the level of the Union and the union (and also in reality in the autonomous republics) republics not only to maintain themselves in power, but also to fight against the omnipotence of the party, and where they saw the communist party as a constant threat to their power , as, for example, in the RSFSR, generally ban it. The latter circumstance is, as it were, a domestic, including Russian, manifestation of a playful tendency to introduce strong presidential regimes, namely, where intrastate contradictions, pressure from various forces, including supporters of persons who have come to the presidency, encourage the respective individuals to fight for the presidency with tangible powers of the so-called super presidency.
The stated reasons for the introduction of the presidency have become well understood today, after a number of years. Immediately upon the establishment of the post of President of the USSR, they preferred to emphasize that it contributes to the orderliness of affairs in the country, that the power of the President of the USSR will not be authoritarian, and even that there is no question of any attempt on the role of the highest representative body of power of the USSR; on the contrary, he controls the activities of the President, can cancel the decrees of the latter and early release him from office in case he violates the Constitution and laws of the USSR.
In fact, the President of the USSR was initially a strong political figure, which was ensured both by the Constitution of the USSR and by the personal authority of M.S. Gorbachev. Subsequently, a number of constitutional novels appeared, testifying to consistent attempts to strengthen the position of the President of the USSR. So, for example, initially he had little influence on the formation of the Government and its leadership. But already with the changes and additions to the Constitution of the USSR on December 26, 1990. It was fixed that the President of the USSR heads the system of state administration bodies, that the Government is subordinate to the President, that the latter forms the Cabinet of Ministers in agreement with the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. Thus, during this period, the model of the institute of presidential power in the country was in dynamics. Consequently, there was no complete clarity on the question of what the President of the RSFSR should be like at the time of the establishment of this post. Obviously, there was only one thing: Russia needed the President - as, in other matters, any other union republic at that time - as the highest person who would take care of strengthening the independence of the state, representing and protecting its interests.
In Russia, the issue of establishing the post of President was no less difficult to resolve. Initially, the Congress of People's Deputies of the RSFSR spoke out against its introduction, then, on the initiative of a third of the deputies, it was appointed for March 17, 1991. All-Russian referendum, in accordance with the results of which the specified post was established. After the referendum, this issue no longer caused such a lively debate and political confrontation, which had previously taken place when discussing all the “for” and “against” the introduction of the post of the Union President. According to L.A. Okounkov, probably, the majority of deputies shared the opinion about the future priority of the Parliament in relations with the President. Since even with such a serious change in the system of higher bodies of Russia, the main role still remained with the Congress and the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR. Since, firstly, all the powers of the President were determined by the Parliament itself; secondly, the power of the budget, the power of money, all the programs of the President, his administration, all the executive power would be financed by the Parliament; thirdly, the Parliament reserves the right to cancel any decree of the President; fourthly, while the President must issue decrees only on the basis of the Constitution and laws, that is, by-laws; and fifthly, Parliament reserves the right to dismiss the President of the Russian Federation. Apparently, therefore, out of 898 people's deputies who took part in the vote, 690 voted for the establishment of the Law "On the President of the RSFSR." As a result of the referendum, the laws of the RSFSR "On the President of the RSFSR", "On the election of the President of the RSFSR" of April 24, 1991 were adopted. and "On taking office of the President of the RSFSR" dated June 27, 1991. Law of the RSFSR of May 24, 1991 No. Appropriate changes and additions were made to the Constitution of the RSFSR of 1978, in which a special chapter appeared. On the basis of these legislative changes, the first President of Russia was elected by universal, direct, equal elections by secret ballot on June 12, 1991. They became B.N. Yeltsin, who previously held the position of Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR.
Thus, the introduction of the post of President of the RSFSR was the result of those difficult, but on the whole very progressive, democratic processes that have taken place and are taking place in Russian society and in its political system since the early 1990s. It reflected the objective process of transformation of political power from the system of party bodies and organizations into the system of state bodies and organizations, including the institution of the President and the Soviets. This seems to be the main, main, but not exhaustive explanation of the structural and functional changes that have taken place in the mechanism of the country's political power. At the same time, it should be borne in mind that there are many other objective and subjective reasons that are inextricably linked with the above, which also need separate special consideration. These include: firstly, the desire to fill, with the introduction of the post of President of the RSFSR, a kind of "vacuum" of power that arose in the country in the process of economic and political reforms, as a result of the implementation of radical, but not always consistent and not always predictable in their consequences transformations. A situation has arisen that was correctly noted at the Congress of People's Deputies by the former secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU V.A. Medvedev, when “the old system, in which the party was the supreme governing body, has become obsolete and is being dismantled. The processes of formation and development of a new parliamentary democratic system are unfolding. But these processes turned out to be unsupported to the proper extent by the creation of strong mutually balancing and mutually controlling structures in the state system, the role of which was previously performed by the party. Secondly, the need to change federal ties in order to see the institution of the president, established in such a complex multinational country as Russia, as a kind of supreme arbiter elected by all peoples. The President of the RSFSR was supposed to act primarily as a coordinator in relations between sovereign republics. Thirdly, the need to have an integrating force not only in the political system of society and in the system of separation of powers, but also in society itself. Fourth, the need to strengthen the executive power and improve management efficiency. The point lies, among other things, in the fact that the establishment of the post of President of the RSFSR was associated to a certain extent with the need to neutralize the negative consequences caused by the slowness in the activity and decision-making of representative bodies, their well-known inertia, inefficiency of collegiate leadership, especially when it was necessary make quick decisions on current issues requiring prompt intervention.
The subjective reasons should not be underestimated either. Among them in the first place: firstly, the obvious reception of this post by the all-union leadership, this was expressed, first of all, in the fact that the Russian political elite found it attractive for themselves. Secondly, the desire of the then Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR B.N. Yeltsin to strengthen his status in the system of state authorities, in order to carry out urgent socio-political and socio-economic reforms. Despite the obvious need, due to these reasons, to introduce the post of President of the RSFSR, the serious question remained open, which model of presidential power to choose. World experience offered several options. Firstly, the president is the head of state, with purely representative functions, he does not interfere in anything, but exercises only representative powers (grants awards and titles, opens official events, receives foreign delegations, etc.), while all serious The work of governing the country is carried out by the Prime Minister. Secondly, the president is the same head of state, but not for the entourage, i.e. the ruler of the country, who himself makes or predetermines everything. Thirdly, the president is the head of state and the head of the executive branch, i.е. both the leader of the country and the head of the state apparatus. This model would strongly orientate the president towards coordinating functions in relation to state bodies belonging to other branches of government. Fourth, the President is the head of the executive branch and the highest official. This model focuses the president on the leadership of the state administration apparatus. Such a model can have various manifestations: the president is not the head of government, but leads it up to presiding over its meetings; the president is officially the head of the government, who forms its composition, except for the prime minister, whose candidacy is agreed with parliament, etc. Naturally, because of the first option, it did not make sense to start introducing the post of president in Russia at all. Since, it was about strengthening the state itself, and the president was supposed to serve the named goal. The state needed a strong figure to strengthen and defend its interests. The use of the second model in establishing the post of president was hardly realistic, since the authoritarianism of this position was strong, which could have buried the idea of the presidency altogether. Such a model can be introduced only as the authority of the already functioning president grows (as was the case in France in 1958. ), but not from the beginning of this constitutional institution. For the same reasons, it is initially difficult to use the third model. Therefore, objectively remained the fourth option. It was reflected in the normative acts of the RSFSR.
In discussions on the issue of introducing the post of President of Russia, negative arguments were also expressed, in which thoughts were expressed that the approval of this post with a strong, almost uncontrolled power could create preconditions for the growth of authoritarian tendencies in the country, for the resurrection of the regime of personal power, for the usurpation her by one person or his environment.