Rubber stamp (politics)

A rubber stamp, as a political metaphor, is a person or institution with considerable de jure power but little de facto power — one that rarely or never disagrees with more powerful organizations. Historian Edward S. Ellis called this type of legislature a toy parliament. In situations where this superior official's signature may frequently be required for routine paperwork, a literal rubber stamp is used, with a likeness of their hand-written signature. In essence, the term is meant to convey an endorsement without careful thought or personal investment in the outcome, especially since it is usually expected as the stamper's duty to do so. In the situation where a dictator's legislature is a "rubber stamp", the orders they are meant to endorse are formalities they are expected to legitimize, and are usually done to create the superficial appearance of legislative and dictatorial harmony rather than because they have actual power. In a constitutional monarchy or parliamentary republic, heads of state are typically "rubber stamps" (or figureheads) to an elected parliament, even if they legally possess considerable reserve powers or disagree with the parliament's decisions. Rubber-stamp legislatures may occur even in democratic countries if the institutional arrangement allows for it. Historian Edward S. Ellis described Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid II's General Assembly of the Ottoman Empire as a toy parliament. It was created in 1876 with the sole purpose of appeasing the European powers. One of the most famous examples of a rubber stamp institution is the Reichstag of Nazi Germany, which unanimously confirmed all decisions already made by Adolf Hitler and the highest-ranking members of the Nazi Party. Many legislatures of authoritarian and totalitarian countries are considered as rubber stamps, such as communist parliaments like the Chinese National People's Congress, or the Italian Chamber of Fasces and Corporations during the Fascist regime. In many instances, the refusal of a constitutional monarch to rubber stamp laws passed by parliament can set off a constitutional crisis.