The Executive Branch of Government
 

  1. Duties of the President:
     
    1. Presidents have enormous power and responsibility in government.
    2. Presidents nake sure the national laws are fully executed; serve as commander in chief of the armed forces; appoint top officials, federal judges, and ambassadors; and meet with heads of foreign governments.
     
  2. President's Term and Salary:
     
    1. The Twenty-second Ammendment to the Constitution limited presidents to two terms.
    2. Congress determines the president's salary; in addition, many benefits are provided for presidents while in office and in retirement.
     
  3. Presidential Qualifications:
     
    1. Experience is government is an unwritten but important qualification.
    2. The Constitution sets several requirements for the president:
      • Must be a natural-born citizen.
      • Must be at least 35 years old.
      • Must be a resident of the United States for 14 years.
    3. Candidates for office must have access to sources for raising large amounts of money in the presidential election campaign.
    4. Successful presidential candidates usually hold moderate political beliefs.
    5. Most presidents have shared similar backgrounds - ethnic, economic, racial, and gender.
    6. Being president underscores personal strengths and weaknesses.
     
  4. Presidential Succession:
     
    1. The Twenty-fifth Amendment to the Constitution establishes the order of succession to the presidency - Vice President, Speaker of the House, president pro tempore of the Senate, Secretary of State, other cabinet members - and spells out what happens when the vice presidency is vacant.
    2. The Twenty-fifth Amendment also sets forth rules to be followed if a president becomes disabled.
     
  5. The Vice President's Role:
     
    1. The Vice President's work depends on what jobs, if any, the president assigns.
    2. Although presidents before Eisenhower generally ignored their vice presidents, presidents since then have tried to give their vice presidents more responsibility.
    3. The Vice President presides over the Senate, but can only vote on legislation in the event of a tie.
     
  6. Electing the President:
     
    1. The Original System
      • Article II, Section I of the Constitution provided that the candidate receiving the majority of the electoral votes became president.
      • The candidate with the second highest number of votes became vice president.
      • To prevent a tie vote for president in the Electoral College, the Twelfth Amendment, added to the Constitution in 1804 after a tie in the 1800 election, provided that electors must cast separate ballots for president and vice president.
       
    2. The Electoral College System Today
      • The Electoral College is still used to choose the president and vice president.
      • Political parties nominate a presidential candidate, who then selects a vice presidential running mate.
      • The College uses a winner-take-all system. All of a states' (except Maine and Nebraska) electoral votes go the the candidate receiving the largest popular vote.
      • The Electoral College vote is cast in December - after the general election in November.
       
    3. Electoral College Issues:
      • Critics say that the Electoral College's winner-take-all system is unfair.
      • The system also makes it possible for a candidate who loses the total popular vote to win the electoral vote.
      • A third-part candidate could win enough electoral votes to prevent either major party candidate from receiving a majority in the Electoral College.
        • This would force the House of Representatives to decide the election. This could lead to serious problems.
      • Some critics of the electoral system have offered suggestions to improve it - while others believe it should be replaced with direct election of the president and vice president by the popular vote.
     
  7. Inauguration of the President:
     
    1. The new president is sworn into office in an inauguration ceremony in January.
    2. All leading officials from the three branches of government attend.
     
  8. The Executive Cabinet:
     
    1. Selection of the Cabinet
      • The president must consider many factors in selecting members of the cabinet:
        • Does their background suit their cabinet post?
        • Do they bring geographical balance to the cabinet?
        • Do they satisfy interest groups?
        • Do they have a high level of administrative skills?
        • Do they include ethnic and racial minorites and women?
      • Cabinet members today usually are college graduates and leaders in various professional fields.
      • The Senate must approve cabinet appointees, and usually does so out of courtesy to the president.
       
    2. The Role of the Cabinet
      • Cabinet members are heads of the executive departments.
      • The cabinet's role has always been determined by the president.
      • Modern presidents usually have not depended on the cabinet or advice in decision-making but have turned to White House staff and close friends as their advisors.
      • Certain cabinet members - the secretaries of state, defense, and treasury, plus the attorney general - form the "inner cabinet" and influence the president's decisions on matters related to their departments' areas of interest.
       
    3. Factors Limiting the Cabinet's Role
      • The president does not command the full loyalty of cabinet members, even though he appoints them.
      • Cabinet members are pressured by career officials in their departments, interest groups, and members of Congress. This pressure may result in disagreements within the cabinet over the president's policies and plans.
      • With 14 cabinet members, it is difficult to maintain secrecy in matters the president considers sensitive.
      • The president may not know and trust all the members of the cabinet because the president must weigh so many factors in appointing them.
     
  9. Executive Office Agencies:
     
    1. The Executive Office of the President (EOP) was created in 1939 by Congress.
      • The EOP has grown rapidly for three reasons:
        • Presidents keep adding new agencies to it.
        • Presidents want experts nearby to advise them about issues.
        • Huge federal programs require agencies to coordinate efforts of the executive departments and agencies in working together.
      • The Office of Management and Budget (OMG) is the largest agency in the EOP and prepares the national budget that the president submits to Congress each year.
      • The National SEcurity Council advises the president and helps coordinate the nation's military and foreign policy.
      • The Council of Economic Advisers helps the president frmulate the nations's economic policy.
      • Presidents add and sometimes eliminate agencies to the EOP to help carry out policy.
       
    2. The White House Office
      • The president appoints White House staff without Senate confirmation.
      • The White House Office has become the most important part of the Executive Office of the President.
      • The White House staff perform whatever duties the president assigns them:
        • Gathering information and providing advice on key issues.
        • Ensuring that executive departments and agencies carry out key directives from the president.
        • Presenting the president's views to the outside world.
        • Deciding who and what information gets through to the president.
     
  10. Presidential Powers:
     
    1. Constitutional Powers
      • The Founders recognized the need for a strong executive branch to overcome the weaknesses of the Confederation government and to hold the legislative branch in check.
      • Article II of the Constitution grants the president broad but vaguely described powers. He heads the executive branch, is commander in chief, conducts foreign policy, and has judicial powers.
       
    2. Informal Sources of Power
      • Presidents have added to their powers by their actions; for example, Theodore Roosevelt declared his intent to do anything the needs of the nation required if such action was not expressly forbidden by the Constitution.
      • During national crises, presidents like Abraham Lincoln and Franklin D. Roosevelt greatly expanded the powers of the presidency as the federal government dealt with dangers facing the United States.
      • Modern presidents claim their ideas and policies represent a mandate from the people, and they use television and other media to build support for their ideas.
       
    3. Limits On Presidential Power
      • The Constitution gives Congress the power to limit presidential authority by overriding a veto and impeaching and removing the president from office for clear abuse of power.
      • The federal courst also limit the president's power. The Supreme Court can overturn presidential actions, as it did President Truman in Youngstown Sheet and Tube v. Sawyer.
      • The federal bureaucracy sometimes limits presidential power by obstructing programs or failing to carry them out properly, especially when key bueraucrats work closely with powerful congressional leaders to carry out their own programs rather than the president's.
      • Public opinion can limit the president's actions, as it did with President Lyndon Johnsoon's policies in Vietnam and President Clinton's proposed national health care program.
     
  11. Roles of the President:
     
    1. As head of state, the president:
      • Represents the nation at ceremonial functions.
      • Is considered more than a politician, but rather a symbol of the entire United States.
    2. As chief executive, the president:
      • Heads the 2 million person executive branch.
      • Influences how laws are executed through executive orders, presidential appointments, removal of appointed officials, and impoundment.
      • Grants pardons, reprieves, or amnesty.
    3. As chief legislator, the president:
      • Proposes legislation to Congress, usually in the State of the Union Address.
      • Must work harder for congressional support when Congress is controlled by the opposition party.
      • May use political favors to gain congressional support.
      • Has the threat of the veto to influence Congress (recently the line-item veto increased this power).
    4. As economic planner, the president:
      • Has gained important economic powers since the New Deal.
      • Promotes high employment, production, and purchasing power.
      • Is required to prepare the federal budget each year.
    5. As party leader, the president:
      • Helps raise party funds and plan campaign strategies.
      • uses political patronage to appoint party members to government jobs.
    6. As chief diplomat, the president:
      • Directs foreign policy and oversees foreign affairs information agencies.
      • Has sole power to make treaties, with Senate approval.
      • May make, without congressional approval, executive agreements having the force of treaties with foreign nations.
      • Has the sole power to recognize foreign governments.
    7. As commander in chief, the president:
      • Shares with Congress power to wage war.
      • Makes key military policy decisions.
      • Supports war efforts on the home front during wars.
      • May use the armed forces to end disorders or give aid in natural disasters.

 
 

Chapter 4 Judicial Branch