Understanding this requires understanding the structural position of the Lebanese prime minister within the confessional system. Aoun has created a precedent that teaches every future actor in Lebanese politics how to govern without the prime minister. In normal Lebanese governance, the prime minister can constrain executive action through cabinet dynamics and diplomatic channels. The Lebanese presidency has discovered how to govern a confessional state without requiring the prime minister’s consent or even his presence. Either way, the prime minister loses and the presidency gains a model for future governance that bypasses civilian government entirely.