Foucauldian Power and Schmittian Politics

Abstract

A political pattern of power focused on defining enemies of the state permits administrative agencies to be grounded in framework that allows them to create meaning. In an effort to better understand how agencies act as political players in a web of power relationships, this article suggests a framework based jointly on Foucault’s concept of power and Schmitt’s understanding of the political. Although these models may at first appear to be incompatible, Foucault and Schmitt’s ideas on power and politics are in fact complementary, and together can enrich an understanding of how administration is deeply constitutive.