The Executive Branch

The Executive Branch

Chapters 13 - 15

What does the Executive Branch do?

The President of the United States

Chapter 13 - Section 1

Formal Qualifications

1. What qualifications should a candidate for

the President of the United States have?

Formal Qualifications

Three formal qualifications:

1. a natural born citizen 2. 35 years old

3. 14 years residency within the U.S.

Is this enough? Should there be more added?

Informal Qualifications

What informal qualifications must a candidate

for president have?

President’s Term

The founders toyed with the idea of a single 6 year term for the President

● How might a single longer term be beneficial?

Founders settled on a four year term - with no term limits

● FDR was elected four times

● 1951 - 22nd Amendment

o two terms = 8 years

What if?

No president can serve

more than 10 years in

office

Pay and Benefits

Salary

● $400,000

● $50,000 a year

expense allowance

● Travel expenses

Perks

● White House

o 132 room mansion

o fleet of automobiles

o Air Force One

o Camp David

o Best healthcare

possible

What do these Presidents have in Common?

William Henry Harrison Zachary Taylor

Abraham Lincoln James Garfield William McKinley

Franklin D. Roosevelt John F. Kennedy

All died while in office

Presidential Succession

Chapter 359 Section 2

Presidential Succession

Presidential succession is the scheme by which a presidential vacancy is filled

● Originally, the constitution did not provide a line of succession

● President Succession Act of 1947:

Congressional law setting a line of

succession

Presidential Succession ^(reading)

1. Vice President : Joe Biden (D)

2. Speaker of the House: John Boehner (R) 3. President pro tempore: Patrick Leahy (D) 4. Secretary of State: John Kerry (D)

5. Secretary of Treasury: Jacob Lew

6. Secretary of Defense: Chuck Hagel (R) 7. Attorney General: Eric Holder (D)

8. Secretary of the Interior: Sally Jewell (D)

President Disability

What happens if the President has to go into surgery for 8 hours?

The 25th Amendment allows the Vice President to serve as acting President temporarily in the case that the President is ill or otherwise temporarily unable to fulfill his or her

official duties.

Example: July 13, 1985 - Vice President George H. W.

Bush serves as President for eight hours while then

President Ronald Reagan has surgery .

President Disability

1. What happens if the President is kidnapped?

The V.P. would take temporary control of country

2. What happens if the President has a stroke and cannot speak or communicate? ^{The V.P.}

would take temporary control of country – then 25 ^th

Amendment Section 4 (Congress 21 days-VP still in charge)

3. What if the president goes of his rocker?

Same as the above. The V.P. would take temporary control of

country – then 25th Amendment Section goes into effect

West Wing - 25

25th Amendment

What happens if the Presidents child is kidnapped? Do they take on the role of Parent or Commander in Chief? West Wing (go through explorer)

After the kidnapping of Zoe Bartlet, President Bartlet finds it difficult to

govern effectively and hence enforces the 25th Amendment. As there is no

vice president the speaker of the house is next in line. Season 4 Episode

23.

Running for

President of the United States

Chapter 13 - Sections 4 & 5

Process of being President

Step 1: Pre-Announcement Steps Step 2: Announcement

Step 3: Securing the Nomination

Step 4: Election

Step 1: Pre-Announcement Steps

● Tour the U.S. and speak at major events

o Iowa

o AFL

● Resign from major advisory boards

o Jeb Bush

o Mike Huckabee

● Make yourself visible to the media and people

o Interviews

o Commenting on national issues

Step 2: Announcement

● Anyone can declare their candidacy for President as long as you meet the

requirements

● Announce in a public way

o Obama 2008 o Mitt 2011

● Campaign

o Staff - manager, press spokesperson, pollster, financial advisor, political consultants

o Raise money - millions of dollars

Step 2: Announcement continued

● Campaign:

o Start polling on the candidate’s strengths and weaknesses:

▪ Topics: Obama 2008 - Strength: Economy

Weakness: Foreign Affairs

Step 3: Securing the Nomination

● Candidates start campaign across the country

o Primaries: election, through a secret ballot, in which people express their preference for a presidential

contender

▪ Open

▪ Closed

o Caucus: Meetings where party leaders and

supporters select candidates through discussions

and consensus.

Primary and Caucus Comparison

Step 3: Securing the Nomination

● When voting in a primary, your vote goes to a delegate

o Delegates are usually local and state political VIPs

o Superdelegates - top party members

● The delegates then submit their vote for the

candidate at the party’s national convention

National Convention

● National Conventions: the meeting at which the delegates vote to pick their

presidential and vice-presidential candidates

o Use to be dramatic

o Today, a big party and the stamp of approval

o Keynote Speaker

▪ Rising Stars

●

Obama 2004

●

Christie Christy 2012

National Convention

● Three major goals of the National Convention for both parties:

o name the party’s presidential and vice-presidential candidates

o bringing the various factions and leaders together

o adopting a platform: its formal statement of basic

principles, stands on major policies

Summary Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_95I_1rZiIs

The President’s Job Description

Chief of State: Ceremonial head of gov’t

Chief Executive: most powerful office in world Chief Administrator: director executive branch Chief Diplomat: America’s spokesperson

Commander in Chief: head of the military

Chief Legislator: works w/Congress (policies) Chief of Party: leader of political party

Chief Citizen: the “face” of the nation

Presidential Power

Article II of the Constitution states, “The executive

Power shall be vested in a President of the United

States.”

• President power to:

• Command the military

• Make Treaties

• Approve or Veto acts of Congress

• Send/receive diplomatic representatives

• Grant Pardons and reprieves

• “Take care that the Laws

be faithfully executed”

How much Power?

Article II of the Constitution reads almost like an

outline! Why?

• Over the meaning of the Constitutional phrase,

“executive power”

specifically the extent of it.

• Two viewpoints on it

• Weaker Presidency one that is subordinate to

Congress

• Versus

• Stronger Presidency, one that is more independent a co-equal chief

executive.

Growth of Presidential Power

Presidential Power has grown since 1789, Why?

• Unity of Presidency

• The office and it’s

powers are held by one person. The President is the single, commanding chief executive

• In contrast, Congress has two houses and both must agree before anything gets done.

• Power has risen also due to need for immediate

response to crisis, and

ever changing social and

economic needs of U.S.

Presidential Power-Executive

As chief executive, the President executes

(enforces, administers,

carries out) the provisions of federal law.

• Article II, Section 1, Clause 8 reads as

follows: President is the single, commanding

chief executive

• “I _____ do solemnly

swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United, States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve,

protect and defend the

Constitution of the United States, so help me God.”

• President Clinton President Kennedy

Presidential Power-Executive

The President can issue an

“executive order” which is a directive, rule, or regulation that has the effective of

law. The power to issue them comes from the Constitution and acts of Congress (Ordinance Power)

• Appointment Power: w/Senate consent, President names most of the top ranking officers of the Federal Gov’t

• Ambassadors/other diplomats

• Cabinet members & top aides

• Heads of independent agencies (EPA and NASA)

• All federal judges, U.S.marshals, and attorneys, All officers in the armed forces

• When President makes a nomination it

is sent to the Senate for confirmation

Presidential Power- Diplomatic/Military

President is Chief Diplomat and Commander in Chief these powers are extensive

• Power to make treaties

• Executive agreements with other countries

(these don’t require Senate consent)

• The Power of Recognition (recognizing other nations

& their leaders)

• Commander in Chief (8 occasions since WWII

Congress has authorized the President to meet

international crisis with

military force)

Presidential Power- Legislative/Judicial

Article II, Section 3 of the Constitution says that the President

“shall from time to time give to the Congress Information on the State of the Union, and recommend their

Consideration such

Measures as he shall judge necessary and

expedient…”

• This provision gives the President “message

power”

• Gives three major

messages to Capital Hill each year

• State of Union, President’s budget message and

annual Economic Report

Presidential Power- Legislative/Judicial

• Veto Power over bills

• Only the President can call Congress into special session Article II, Section 3 of the Constitution.

• Constitution gives power to Pardon (legal forgiveness of a crime) and reprieve (postponement of the

execution of a sentence).

• The Powers of clemency (mercy or leniency) can only be used in federal offenses.

President Ford pardoned former

President Nixon for offenses

against the United States