 With Brezhnev's position consolidated in the early 1970s, he used Podgorny to weaken Kosygin's position as Chairman of the Council of Ministers by giving the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet some executive powers. With the help from Brezhnev Podgorny managed to make the Council of Ministers subordinate to the Presidium. However, these changes threatened Brezhnev, and Brezhnev would later order Konstantin Chernenko to take a look at the 1936 Soviet Constitution to find a way to weaken Podgorny's position. As it turned out there were none, Podgorny's position as head of state meant that he could in fact block any measures taken by Brezhnev to circumscribe his powers. Chernenko did come up with a solution, to make it law that the Party leader would also become the leader of the Government apparatus. The 1977 Soviet Constitution was drafted to weaken the position of Podgorny by making it law that the Party leader was in fact also leader of the Government. The draft which dealt with the leading role of the Party, and its clear supremacy, in Soviet society was approved by the Soviet leadership. The approval of the 1977 Soviet Constitution is considered Podgorny's death knell.
