THE
AMERICAN PRESIDENCY
Presidents Bush
and Obama in the Oval Office
Unit
Overview
It is almost impossible not to come into contact
with the executive branch of the federal government on a daily basis. The President’s press conferences,
interviews, hobbies and family life are reported and analyzed around the world
by all forms of media. However, it
consists of much more than just the President and the Vice President. The Cabinet, a number of agencies and
assorted staff members are also part of this division. The authors of the Constitution wanted to
ensure that the office did not become too powerful. Even though the authority of the
President has expanded in the last
century, the Constitution provides a number of checks on the power of the
office. This sometimes brings the chief
executive into conflict with the legislative and judicial branches. Let’s see how it all works.
Seal of the President of the United States
Who Can Be President?
Article II of the Constitution lists the formal
qualifications for presidential and vice-presidential candidates as follows:
Ø at
least thirty-five years of age
Ø a
natural born citizen
Ø a
resident of the United States for the previous fourteen years
Presidents are elected to four-year terms. Originally, the Constitution did not specify
the number of terms the chief could serve.
George Washington set a precedent by stepping down at the end of his
second term in office. Franklin
Roosevelt broke with tradition and was elected to four consecutive
periods. Amendment XXII now limits
Presidents to two consecutive terms of ten years if it is necessary to complete
the term of a President who has died or has resigned.
A total of eight Presidents have died in office with
the most recent being John F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1963. In 1974, Richard Nixon became the only
President to resign. Article 2 of the
Constitution notes that the Vice
President assumes the role of chief executive in these situations. Congress has clarified the line of
presidential succession with several laws to ensure a smooth and stable
transition of power.
Go to Questions 1-3.
Candidate Mitt
Romney on the Campaign Trail
How Are Presidents Really Elected?
The delegates at the Constitutional Convention spent
a great deal of time debating the process for presidential elections. Some argued that a decision made by a simple
one-person, one-vote system could result in mob rule controlled by an
uninformed electorate; others argued that the choice should be left solely to
the popular vote of the citizenry. The
result of these discussions is the Electoral College system. It is a unique and controversial way of
choosing a President.
The plan gives each state the right to choose electors
equal to its number of Senators and Representatives. This guarantees each state at least three
electoral votes. In addition to the 535
electors divided among the states, the District of Columbia has three votes;
this brings the total number of electoral votes to 538. Each state, with the exceptions of Maine and
Nebraska, awards its electors on a winner-take-all basis. This means that the presidential candidate,
who receives the most votes, wins the entire slate of electors for that
state. As with the number of
Representatives, a state’s total electoral votes may change every ten years to
reflect the results of the U.S. Census. The magic number for any presidential
candidate is 270. Once a candidate
claims this figure, he or she has a majority and wins the Presidency. If no candidate acquires 270 electoral votes,
the election is decided by the House of Representatives. The map below shows the electoral votes each
state has following the 2010 Census.
Electors as a Result of the 2010 Census
The Electoral College is one of the most
controversial facets of American government.
The electoral system is criticized because it violates the principle of
popular sovereignty and diminishes the significance of individual voters. Citizens in small states seem overrepresented
while those living in large states seem underrepresented. On the other hand, some political experts
insist that the system gives the larger states too much influence since the
President could be elected by carrying merely eleven populous states. There are several instances in United States
history when a candidate won the electoral vote but lost the popular vote. In 2000, Democratic candidate Al Gore won the
popular vote; George W. Bush, however, won a majority in the Electoral College
and became President. To learn more
about the Electoral College, click on the link below.
The Electoral College and Qualifications for
President (02:26)
Go to Questions 4 to 9.
What Does the Job Pay?
The President’s salary is set by Congress; it cannot
be increased or decreased during his term.
The current presidential compensation is $400,000. In addition, the President also receives a
number of fringe benefits. During his
term, the President lives in the White House and has the use its facilities,
such as a gym, a bowling alley and a swimming pool. A team of medical doctors and other health
experts are readily available along with a large staff ranging from chefs to
electricians. Camp David, a vacation
estate in Maryland, serves as a retreat for the presidential family. A jet known as Air Force One is at the disposal
of the chief executive as well as several helicopters. The Executive Office of the President (EOP)
employees a staff of over 1700 people, who work directly for the
President. He also has a retirement
package and Secret Service protection when he leaves office.
Go to Question 10.
The Powers of the Presidency
The basic
purpose of the executive branch is to enforce the laws. While the Constitution is very specific about
the powers of Congress, it is rather vague concerning those of the
Presidency. Article II Section 2 sets
the parameters of the executive branch with the following list:
Throughout the last century, the United States has
provided an increasing number of services to its growing population and has
expanded its international influence. This
has also placed more demands on presidential leadership. To put it simply, the President has become
“chief” of almost everything.
Ø Commander-in-Chief: Even though he may not have served in the
armed forces, the President is the nation’s top military officer and has the
power to overrule decisions that he believes may not be in the best interest of
the country. For example, General
Douglas McArthur commanded the United Nations troops sent to help South Korea
resist a takeover by North Korea. Since
the Chinese were assisting North Korea, McArthur demanded an attack on China. President Truman did not want to expand the
war. When McArthur continued to press
for a military strike on China, Truman removed McArthur from command.
Presidential
Staff during the Osama bin Laden Mission
Ø Chief of State: The President serves as a living symbol of
the United States. He takes part in many
ceremonies and traditions from pardoning a Thanksgiving turkey to entertaining
foreign leaders at White House dinners.
This role also includes recognizing American citizens for their military
service and other outstanding accomplishments.
Ø Chief Executive: As chief executive, the President carries out
his basic task of enforcing the laws and appointing officials such as Supreme
Court justices. He is also responsible
for coordinating the work of over 150 departments and agencies. A group of thirteen department heads,
referred to as the Cabinet, and the
Executive Office Staff, are also under his jurisdiction.
President
Reagan Meeting with Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
Ø Chief Diplomat: It is the responsibility of the President to
guide U.S. foreign policy and to make treaties with other countries. Ambassadors, appointed by the President, and
other Foreign Service officers serve in embassies and consulates around the
world. They act as the President’s
representatives and help to safeguard American interests. In this capacity, the President may also
choose to recognize or to not recognize other governments. For example, in 1979, President Carter broke
off diplomatic relations with Iran when Americans were taken as hostages by
demonstrators supported by the government.
Ø Chief Legislator: Although making laws is the responsibility of
Congress, the President also plays a strong role. He is required by law to deliver three formal
messages to Congress annually: the State
of the Union Address, the Economic Report and the Budget Message. These three reports provide the President
with opportunities to make his lawmaking agenda known to Congress. Bills do not become laws until they cross the
President’s desk. If he signs them, they
become laws on January 1 of the following year.
The President can also choose to veto
the bill and return it to Congress. The pocket veto is another option open to
the President. If he ignores the bill
for ten days, it automatically becomes law.
However, if Congress adjourns within that ten-day period, the bill is
killed by the President’s failure to act and does not become law. Working with Congress to achieve the goals of
his Presidency demands that the chief executive be a skillful negotiator,
compromiser and consensus builder.
President George
Bush Signing the Americans with Disabilities Act
Ø Chief Guardian of the Economy: Although the President does not control the
economy, he is expected to help it run smoothly and efficiently. Knowledge of economic trends, unemployment
statistics, inflation and tax codes are necessary to make recommendations for
Congress to consider. Congress also
grants the President some emergency funds to spend in the event of a national
disaster. In the summer of 1993,
flooding along the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers caused destruction and
hardship. President Clinton declared
areas in the affected states disaster areas.
Flood victims could then apply for federal aid.
Ø Chief of the Party:
The President is also considered the
leader of his political party. He
campaigns, raises funds and promotes legislation important to the organization. Political patronage gives the President the
opportunity to reward his supporters with jobs and contracts.
Go to Questions 11 through 15.
Checking the President’s Power
The Founding Fathers feared that a chief executive
could become too powerful and took steps to prevent this. As a result, the Constitution offers several
ways to limit the President’s control of the government. One of the most significant powers of the
American President is the authority to make appointments. This includes heads of Cabinet departments,
Supreme Court Justices, federal judges and ambassadors. The President chooses people that have earned
his confidence and trust. This enables
him to be surrounded by individuals who understand and promote the polices of
his administration. Because Presidents
may also use this power to reward friends and party members, these appointments
must be approved by a majority of Senators.
The power of the executive branch to make treaties is also controlled,
since these agreements must be approved by a two-thirds vote in the
Senate. The presidential veto (from
Latin meaning I forbid) is another powerful tool of the executive branch. However, Congress can override this with a
two-thirds vote in each house.
According to the Constitution, any federal official,
including the President, can be removed from office for bribery, treason or
other forms of serious misconduct. The
process of bringing formal charges against a public official is referred to as
impeachment and is the responsibility of the House of Representatives. Once charged by a majority vote in the House,
the case then goes to the Senate for trial with the Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court presiding. A two-thirds
vote of the Senate is required for removal from office. In 1998, William Clinton was impeached by the
House of Representatives on charges of lying under oath and obstructing
justice. When his case was heard in the
Senate, President Clinton was acquitted and completed his term in office.
Tickets for President Clinton's Impeachment Trial
Click on the icon below to view a detailed
explanation of the impeachment process.
Impeachment and the Presidential Succession
Act of 1947 (02:05)
Some powers claimed by the executive branch are not
mentioned in the Constitution but have developed by precedent over time. These,
too, are held in check by the other branches of government. Executive privilege, the right to withhold
information from the courts or Congress, is one example. Presidents have argued that this is covered
under the principle of the separation of powers and necessary to maintain
national security, but it has also been used to hide or cover questionable
activities. The most famous challenge to
executive privilege came in 1974.
President Nixon refused to turn over secret White House tape recordings
to be used as evidence in the Watergate investigation. The Supreme Court ruled that executive
privilege could not be used to withhold evidence in a criminal case; therefore,
Richard Nixon had to submit the tapes.
Go to Questions 16 through 19.
What’s Next?
Presidents do not exist in a vacuum. Their terms of office are shaped by economic
conditions, international crises, time constraints and public opinion. Sometimes their decisions are ultimately
tested by the courts. It is the responsibility
of the judicial branch to interpret the law and to define what it means in
actual practice. How does the federal
court system work? How have the
decisions of the court impacted the other two branches of government? What procedures must the government follow
when carrying out the law? Our study of
the judicial branch will consider all of these questions. Before moving on to tackle this, take a few
minutes to review the information concerning the executive branch.
Go to Questions 20-29.
Below are additional educational resources and activities for this unit.