Word: gorbachev
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Under the pending resolution, the President would gain authority to issue orders on everything from wage hikes to property ownership. Though his pronouncements would be subject to a veto by the 542-member parliament, that body is so indecisive that Gorbachev would have plenty of leeway...
Whether he would take advantage of it is another issue. Gorbachev has said that private property should play "only a rather limited role in society as a whole" -- hardly an endorsement of a principle many economists believe is critical to curing the economy. What's more, Gorbachev has been reluctant to use the special powers he already has. Granted by the parliament earlier this year, they enable him to issue mandates with binding force on practically any subject...
...however, the pressure on Gorbachev to do something dramatic is greater than ever. In parliament, Abel Aganbegyan, one of Gorbachev's favorite economists, asserted that "the economic situation in the country is catastrophic." The leading scapegoat for the troubles is Prime Minister Nikolai Ryzhkov, whose own proposed remedy is a go-slow package that preserves much of the center's control over the economy. Led by Moscow Mayor Gavril Popov, some 40,000 demonstrators marched in the capital last week demanding Ryzhkov's resignation. The parliament of the Russian Republic, which accounts for half the Soviet Union's population, seconded...
...interview with TIME, Ryzhkov was remarkably frank about the possibility that he might resign. "To resign today," he said, "would mean that we have to choose a whole new government. Does the country really need that right now?" Asked his opinion about a proposal to let Gorbachev rule the country with his Cabinet of ministers, Ryzhkov replied, "Maybe someday we will adopt an American system of government, but it is too early for this...
While distancing himself from Ryzhkov, Gorbachev has refused to sack him. At one point, Ryzhkov threatened to resign if parliament approved a proposal he could not "believe in." Later the Prime Minister endorsed the idea of giving Gorbachev almost single-handed control of the economy, though that would seriously undermine his own authority...