The Executive Branch Chapter 7 The President Official

The Executive Branch Chapter 7

The President Official Qualifications: § Must be 35 years old § Natural born citizen § Live in the USA for 14 years

The President Unofficial Qualifications: § Male § White (exception: Barack Obama) § Protestant (exception: JFK who was catholic) § Previous government experience § College education § Most were lawyers, businessmen or teachers § Came from states with large populations

The President Terms of Office: § 4 Year term, maximum 2 terms or 10 years total § Elected in every even year divisible by 4 § Elected by the Electoral college. There a total of 538 electoral votes with 270 needed to win. It is a winner take all system in each state. § Official winner is declared in December once the electoral votes are counted in each state capital § If no one wins a majority, the House decides the winner (happened in 1800 and 1824)

The President Salary and Benefits: § $400, 000 annual salary, a $50, 000 annual expense account, a $100, 000 nontaxable travel account and $19, 000 for entertainment § Use of the White House, all expenses paid, movie theater, pool, and full time staff of 80 people § Use of Camp David, a isolated resort Maryland § Full fleet of armored limos, helicopters and Air Force One for travel

The Vice President § Elected on the same ticket as the President § Same qualifications as the President § Only role in constitution is to decide a tie vote in the Senate

The Vice President § Their role is defined by the President they work for § Have use of the Vice Presidential mansion § 9 have become President at the death or resignation of a President

Presidential Succession § When William Henry Harrison died, no one was sure what to do § VP John Tyler set the precedent of taking on the role of the president § In 1947, Congress passed the Presidential Succession Act which official named a succession to the Presidency § The 25 th amendment finally ended all questions by setting a definite line and also setting provisions in case the President is unable for any reason to fulfill their duties (sickness or mental health)

Line of Succession 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8) 9) Vice President Speaker of the House President Pro Tempore Secretary of State Secretary of Treasury Secretary of Defense Attorney General Secretary of the Interior Secretary of Agriculture 10)Secretary of Commerce 11)Secretary of Labor 12)Secretary of Health and Human Services 13)Secretary of Housing and Urban development 14)Secretary of Transportation 15)Secretary of Energy 16)Secretary of Education 17)Secretary of Veterans Affairs 18)Secretary of Homeland security

Constitutional Powers of the President § § Execute all laws passed by Congress Veto or sign bills into law Call Congress into special sessions Serve as commander in chief of military

Constitutional Powers of the President § § Receive leaders and other officials of foreign nations Make treaties with other nations Appoint heads of executive agencies, federal court judges, ambassadors, and other top government officials pardon or reduce the sentences (commute) of people convicted of federal crimes

Roles of the President Chief Executive: § Most important role § In charge of 15 cabinet positions and approx: 3 million civilian workers in various agencies § May issue an executive order-rule or command that carries the force of law ex: President Truman issued an executive order to integrate the army

Roles of the President Judicial Leader: § Appoints judges to interpret laws § May grant the following § Pardons-declaration of forgiveness and freedom from punishment § Reprieves-order to delay a punishment § Amnesty-pardon to a group of people

Roles of the President Chief Diplomat: § In charge of foreign policy issues § May use war, treaties, and other tools

Roles of the President Commander in Chief: § In charge of the nation’s armed forces § Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard § Only Congress can declare war, President can order troops into battle § Led to War Powers Act of 1973, President must notify Congress in 48 hours of actions and can only send troops for 60 days unless Congress grants an extension

Roles of the President Legislative Leader: § President can give ideas to Congress § Works closely with members of their party to get their agendas through Congress § May make speeches to influence Congress § May appeal directly to American people to get legislation passed § May call members of Congress to White House to “talk” about legislation

Roles of the President Head of State: § President is the symbol of the nation § Meets visiting leaders of countries § Carries out ceremonial roles such as the annual lighting of the national Christmas tree and giving medals to soldiers § Attends funerals and other key events in foreign nations

Roles of the President Economic Leader: § Helps set policies on unemployment, taxes and inflation § Appoints key economic leaders and creates national budget

Roles of the President Party Leader: § Helps get other party members elected (coat tails) § Sets policies for party across the nation § Works with governors and mayors to benefit people throughout the nation

Goals of Foreign Policy 1) secure national security 2) promote beneficial international trade 3) promote world peace 4) promote democracy

Tools of Foreign Policy 1) § § § Creating treaties and executive orders: to promote the defense of our nation and our allies must be approved by the senate executive agreements are informal arrangements with countries on small matters that only last during the term of the President that created it

Tools of Foreign Policy 2) Appointing ambassadors: § official representatives to foreign countries § about 150 serve around the world § only sent to countries that we recognize § handles daily good will in other countries to improve America’s image

Tools of Foreign Policy 3) Foreign aid: § money. food, and military assistance to other countries § builds goodwill and cooperation with other countries

Tools of Foreign Policy 4) § § § International trade: Presidents can use the economy to get other goals met use several techniques to achieve goals trade sanctions-imposing trade barriers embargo-agreements with allies not to trade with a target nation tariffs- use of taxes on imports to protect American businesses

Tools of Foreign Policy 5) Military force: § threaten others to follow our lead § remove leaders who threaten us or endanger allies § fight terrorism against the United States and our allies

The President’s Administration § § created in 1939 currently has about 2, 000 employees has a budget of over $100 million they are there to help the President do his job (write reports, check on other agencies, write and send bills to congress)

The Executive Office of the President (EOP) 1) § § White House office 500 people work directly for the President Chief of staff: closest advisor to the President, manages his time and schedule, and public appearances § Also includes the assistant for domestic affairs, White house legal counsel (lawyer), and the press secretary § these people screen the flow of information and people that have access to the president

The Executive Office of the President (EOP) 2) Office of Management and Budget (OMB) § helps prepare the federal budget § monitors government spending § sets policy goals based on financial resources

The Executive Office of the President (EOP) 3) National Security Council (NSC) § helps coordinate military and foreign policy § includes the V. P. , Secretaries of Defense and State, and the joint chiefs of Staff (top military leaders) § also includes the CIA

The Executive Office of the President (EOP) 4) § § Office of Administration (OA) takes care of all paperwork gives information to the public 5) Council of Economic Advisors (CEA) § advise the President on employment, taxes, inflation, and foreign trade § Only has 3 members that are approved by the senate

The Cabinet § § Created to advise the President Not part of the Constitution They are the leaders of the 15 executive departments All are called secretaries except the Attorney general who heads the Justice department

The Cabinet § Are specialists in key areas that the President deals with on a daily basis § Started by George Washington with 4 position (secretary of state, secretary of war, secretary of the treasury, and the attorney general) § Only meet when the President calls for them § Each secretary coordinates their department based on directives from the President

Federal Bureaucracy § Handles the day to day running of the government § About 3 million workers § Workers are called civil servants § They rank below the cabinet

Federal Bureaucracy Consist of several parts: Executive Departments: § develop specific rules and procedures to put laws into practice § day to day operations such as mail delivery, tax collection, border patrols § regulate various activities such as banks, labor unions, airlines and power plants

Federal Bureaucracy Executive Agencies: § deal with specialized areas of government ex: NASA Government Corporations: § run like a business to solve problems quickly § charge fees for services but are not run for profit ex: Post Office

Federal Bureaucracy Regulatory Boards and Commissions: § protect the public § appointed by the President for long terms and are only removed by congress-EX: Federal communications commission

Civil Service § Made up of all government employees not directly appointed by the President § Broad range of jobs from security guards to doctors § Originally all jobs were appointed by the President § Led to the spoils system-jobs based on loyalty to the President, not on ability § New employees came in with every administration, most were inept or corrupt

Civil Service § Led to the Pendleton Act of 1883 which placed limits on the number of jobs the president could appoint § Today all jobs have set standards and you must pass a test to get these jobs § The highest scores get the jobs first § Appointments are not based on the current Presidential administration § Today the testing is run by the Office of Personnel Management and it is called the merit system