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Chapter 13

The Presidency

Roles of the President

Chief of State

Chief Executive

Chief Administrator

Chief Diplomat

Commander in Chief

Chief Legislator

Party Chief

Chief Citizen

Qualifications to be President

At least 35 Years Old

Natural Born Citizen

Live in the United States

for 14 Years

Presidential Terms 4 Year Term

May be elected to 2 Terms

May Serve up to 10 Years.

How can this be?

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Presidential Pay & Benefits $400,000 Salary

$50,000 Expense

Account

Live in White House

(132 Rooms)

Fleet of Automobiles

Air Force One

Other planes and

helicopters

Camp David

Finest Medical Care

Available

Other Fringe Benefits

Presidential

Succession

25th Amendment

Officially designated the VP to take over upon death or removal of the President

Presidential Succession Act

of 1947

- refer to the chart for the line of succession

Roles of the Vice President

President of the Senate

Can only vote to break a tie

Cannot debate on Senate

floor

Help decide the decision of

Presidential Disability

“Balance the Ticket” Presidential candidates

will choose a running mate who can strengthen his chance of being elected by virtue of certain ideological, geographic, racial, ethnic, gender or other characteristics Vice President Joe

Biden was selected for his foreign policy experience – a perceived weakness on the part of Barack Obama

Presidential Election

Why not a popular vote?

What is a Presidential Elector?

Who did the Framers intend the Electors to be?

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Election of 1800 & the 12th Amendment Presidential Primaries

Primary – an election in

which a party’s voters (1)

choose some or all of a

State’s party organization’s

delegates to their party’s

national convention and/or

(2) express a preference

among various contenders

for their party’s presidential

nomination

Presidential Primaries

Who holds the

first Presidential

Primary?

What is the

winner take all

primary?

What is

proportional

representation?

Caucus

Caucus – as a nominating device, a group of like minded people who meet to select the candidates they will support in an upcoming election.

Which state holds the first caucus?

National Convention

National Convention

Meeting in which

delegates vote to pick

their Presidential and VP

candidates

What are the three goals

of the National

Convention

Name party’s President

and VP candidates

Bring about party unity

Adopt Party Platform

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National Convention - Keynote Address

speech given by one of

the party’s most

accomplished orators,

glorifying the party’s

history, its leaders, and its

programs, blisters the

opposing party, and

predict a resounding

victory in November

Who gets nominated?

Incumbents, Electable, Governors, Senators,

Religion?

Presidential Election

Who do you really vote

for?

Why are Presidential

Electors called a “rubber

stamp”?

What happens if there is

a tie?

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Flaws in Electoral

System

Winner of popular vote could lose Presidency JQ Adams vs. Jackson (1824),

Hayes vs. Tilden (1876), Harrison vs. Cleveland (1888) Bush vs. Gore (2000)

Electors are not required to vote in accord w/ popular vote Has occurred 11 times

Never affected the outcome of an election

Any election may have to be decided by House of Representatives Thomas Jefferson tied Aaron

Burr (1800)

No candidate had an electoral majority, John Quincy Adams selected over Andrew Jackson (popular vote winner)

Reform Plans

District Plan

Proportional Plan

Direct Popular Election Plan

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Supporters of Electoral College

It is a known process

Any reform plans have

defects as well

It identifies winner

quickly and certainly

Chapter 14:

The Presidency in Action

What is meant by executive power?

Some have argued for a

weak president, subordinate

to Congress

Some have argued for a

stronger, independent, and

coequal President

Presidential Powers

Command armed forces

Make treaties

Approve or veto acts of Congress

Send and receive diplomatic representatives

Grant pardons and reprieves

Take care that laws be faithfully executed

Growth of Presidential Powers

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What really is the role of the President? Imperial Presidency

President ruling as an

emperor – taking strong

actions w/out the consulting

Congress or seeking approval

(sometimes acting in secrecy

to evade or even deceive

Congress)

Why might people fear an

imperial presidency?

Oath of Office Which laws is the President

responsible for carrying out?

All federal laws

Armed forces

Social security

Gun control

Minimum wage

Affirmative action

Environmental protection

Air traffic safety

Immigration

Housing

Taxes

Executive Orders

Directive, rule, or

regulation that has the

effect of law, without

Congressional approval

Where do these

ordinance powers come

from?

Who does the President appoint?

Ambassadors and other

diplomats

Cabinet members

Heads of independent

agencies (EPA, NASA)

All federal judges, US

marshals, and attorneys

All officers in the armed

forces

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Removal Powers

Who can the President

not remove?

What power did the

Supreme Court give

Congress in the process

of removing government

officials?

Treaty

What is a treaty?

Senate’s role?

What is an executive agreement?

How does the President acknowledge other countries

and its government?

What is persona non grata?

Commander in Chief

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War Powers Resolution of 1973 Act designed to place close limits on

the President’s war making powers –

provisions include:

President must report to Congress w/in

48 hours of committing American forces

abroad

Commitment of American forces to

combat must end w/in 60 days, unless

Congress agrees to a longer period (may

be extended for 30 days)

Congress may end the combat

commitment at any time, by passing a

concurrent resolution to that effect

Message Power

What four options does the President have in

dealing with presentations from Congress? What is a line item veto?

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Clemency

President may

grant leniency in

any federal cases.

Presidential Pardon

What is amnesty?