Originally posted by Rosuav
Actually, I would describe the US as a presidential form of government. As I see it, the only real power a US citizen has is to cast a vote for one president or another ...
I think you're entirely forgetting about every member of congress and every senator, and every governor, and every mayor, and the state legislatures, and judges, and school boards, and so on.

So really, the only "real" form of power the citizens have is being able to elect - for fixed term lenghts - nearly every person who has legislative or administrative powers, and a large number of those that have judicial powers as well.

The United States has a presidential form of government rather than a parliamentary one, but is a democracy nonetheless.