The American Presidency

1. The American Presidency The President of the United States is the leader of the United States and the free world, and the “most powerful person on earth.”

2. The American Presidency Students, this chapter is about my 43 predecessors and me. To start, what specific unitary powers of the presidency have I used? CinC: shift military attention from Iraq to Afghanistan Executive orders to reverse several Bush policies continued

3. The American Presidency Here are a few more examples. Ordered the Department of Transportation to allow states to impose emissions requirements that exceed federal standards Overturned the ban on government contributions to international organizations that offer family planning services that include abortion

4. The American Presidency Here are some interesting facts about the office of the president. Qualifications: 35 years of age Native born citizen U. S. resident for the last 14 years To date, all presidents have been white, male Christians. Most have been highly educated

5. The American Presidency Today the President presides over: Budget: $2.7 trillion Federal establishment: 2.7 million civilian employees Military: 1.5 million personnel (active) 10,000 deliverable nuclear warheads 2,600 of which are operational 313 million people $14 trillion GDP 3.8 million square miles of land mass

6. The American Presidency Bully!! The president’s term in office is 4-years and, since the ratification of the 22nd Amendment in 1951, he or she can run for re-election once. President’s salary: $400,000 per year plus a tax free $50,000 allowance for performing official duties

7. The American Presidency I am the third President, Thomas Jefferson. What is presidential succession and what is the current order? Presidential succession: who should fill the presi- dency and in what order Vice President; Speaker of House; Pres. Pro. Tem of Senate; Sec State; Sec Treasury; Sec Def.; Attorney Gen;

8. The American Presidency The Founders wanted a president of limited powers—above parties & factions, to conduct foreign policy & enforce laws

9. The American Presidency Several of my predecessors have helped define or have transformed the presidency. Let’s discuss some of them.

10. The American Presidency Washington—solidified the prestige of the presidency Affirmed primacy of president in foreign affairs Fashioned a domestic legislative program Jefferson: added territory through treaty

11. The American Presidency Jackson: helped transform the presidency into a popular institution Polk: exercised powers of CinC; war with Mexico and acquired land as a result of that war

12. The American Presidency Lincoln: used emergency powers based on broad interpretation of the Constitution; raised/spent money and deployed troops on own initiative; temporarily suspended habeas corpus; allowed citizens to be tried in military courts; unilaterally freed slaves

13. The American Presidency TR: vigorously pushed the prerogatives and enhanced the powers of the office of the presidency as no president since Lincoln; strong CinC and chief diplomat; strong domestic policies: broke trusts, established parks, regulated business and industry; “created the modern presidency” (Alan Brinkley)

14. The American Presidency Wilson: expanded the federal government beyond the scope of Theodore Roosevelt; Progressive domestic program, the New Freedom; regulated the economy with the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 and the Federal Trade Act of 1914; tremendous powers as CinC during World War I

15. The American Presidency FDR: most significant expansion of presidential functions and activities; changed American expectations about the presidency; New Deal; independent commissions to regulate business; social programs such as Social Security; showed leadership in reaching out to workers (Wagner Act); vast military powers

16. The American Presidency JFK: used modern technology (television) to enhance his presidency Reagan: conservative agenda; tax cuts, cut back regulations; cut domestic social programs; major military and foreign affairs initiatives; restored the people’s confidence in the presidency

17. The American Presidency I would like to be considered a President who transformed the presidency. What factors determine such a thing? Mixture of a president’s personal qualities (personality and character) and deeper structural factors (existence of crises) The presidency is the preeminent office in American government

18. The American Presidency Chief of State The president engages in diplomacy.

19. The American Presidency The Founders wanted to combine the roles of head of state (ceremonial) and chief executive of government

20. The American Presidency The president is the chief priority-setter of the United States government—he sets the legislative agenda, often through the submission of the budget each January

21. The American Presidency Chief Agenda Setter of the U. S. Government President Obama giving the State of the Union Address. What is the State of the Union Address?

22. The American Presidency State of the Union Address: A speech that the president gives each January before a joint session of Congress, which sets forth the programs, policies, and legislation that he or she wants Congress to enact. This speech coincides with the submission of the President’s Budget (Budget Act of 1921).

23. The American Presidency The President’s Roles The Chief Executive President G. H. W. Bush in Oval Office

24. The American Presidency Controls a huge executive branch of millions of people, but shares power with Congress

25. The American Presidency The president recruits the best people possible to serve in his cabinet—those people who run the executive agencies of the Federal Government.

26. The American Presidency Executive Powers include carrying out the laws and appointing officials One way the president enforces laws is through executive orders. What are they?

27. The American Presidency Executive orders are detailed instructions, regulations, and rules that state how to carry out and enforce legislation. They have the force of law. In 1957, I signed an executive order that sent federal troops to Little Rock, Arkansas to enforce desegregation of Central High School.

28. The American Presidency Students, both my daddy and I served as president. I revived a long-dormant constitutional theory known as the unitary executive. What is that? Based on Article II of the Constitution: “The executive Power shall be vested in a President. . .” and “The President shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed.”

29. The American Presidency Under the unitary executive doctrine, the president has thesole authority to do certain things, such as direct the actions of the CIA and the NSA and the armed forces in defense of the nation. He alone can interpret, in his signing statements, the meaning of laws passed by Congress for executive branch personnel. He alone can determine the degree to which departmental and agency personnel cooperate with Congress. Not broadly accepted by scholars

30. The American Presidency Presidents usually provide Congress with information that body requests. But sometimes, presidents refuse to do so, as Richard M. Nixon did in 1973. In that case, Nixon invoked executive privilege. Executive privilege: the president’s right not to hand over documents or to testify regarding matters that he or she believes are his/her confidential business

31. The American Presidency Judicial Powers In addition to nominating federal judges, including Supreme Court justices, presidents can issue reprieves, pardons and commutations. What do each of those terms mean?

32. The American Presidency Reprieve: postpones the carrying out of a person’s sentence in order to gather more evidence or to appeal for a new trial. Before I left office, I issued many pardons: forgiveness to a convicted criminal. It frees that person from serving out his or her sentence. Commutations lessen the severity of a convicted person’s sentence

33. The American Presidency Foreign policy leader: our plans for dealing with other countries. The goals of U. S. foreign policy are to promote trade and friendship with other countries while maintaining the security of the United States.

34. The American Presidency Diplomacy: the art of conducting negotiations with foreign countries.

35. The American Presidency The president’s foreign policy role includes making treaties that include peace agreements, trade agreements and forming alliances. Alliances: agreements between 2 or more countries to help each other for defense, economic, scientific or other reasons

36. The American Presidency Presidents, such as Lyndon B. Johnson, right, also can make executive agreements. What are they? More informative understandings between an American president and the leader of a foreign government

37. The American Presidency Presidents can also establish diplomatic recognition. Determining whether or not the U. S. officially recognizes a government as the proper representative of a country’s people.

38. The American Presidency Commander-in-Chief of Armed Forces Article II, Section 2 of Constitution

39. The American Presidency With the help of the “football,” the president controls a massive nuclear arsenal With the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, commands the U. S. military

40. The American Presidency A key part of the president’s job as Commander-in-Chief is crisis management. This photo shows the Kennedy Administration’s meetings during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis

41. The American Presidency It is crucial that during times of crisis the president appear to be a confident, take-charge leader

42. The American Presidency Military powers: Committing troops—such as when President Bush committed troops to Fight in Iraq. Rule of thumb: Congress—offensive; President--defensive Limited by the War Powers Act of 1973 soldiers sent abroad by the president must be brought back within 60 days unless Congress approves the action (Congress approved the war against Iraq)

43. The American Presidency Party Leader Aids candidates, raises money, campaigns

44. The American Presidency Representative of the Nation President Bush represents the American people at World Trade Center Ruins

45. The American Presidency The president should be a person who builds the morale of the nation through inspirational actions and symbolic functions

46. The Executive Branch At Work Well hi you Columbians. Elle here with, of course, my best friend Bruiser. I’m going to help my good friend, Mr. Simoncini, tell you about how theExecutive Branchof our government works. HOOAH!!

47. The Executive Branch At Work The Office of the Presidentis made up of several separate organizations. Here are some of them. Today, theWhite House Officeserves as the president’s personal staff and close advisers. Because they are considered the president’s personal staff, they can be appointed by the president without Senate confirmationbeing necessary.

48. The Executive Branch At Work Here are some of the key members of the president’s personal staff. The Chief of Staff manages all of the White House staff and controls access to the president. President Obama’s Chief of Staffis Jack Lew TheWhite House Press Office, led by the Press Secretary, provides key information to the media and conducts press briefings. President Obama’sPress Secretary is Jay Carney.

49. The Executive Branch At Work The president’spersonal staff also includes speech writers, pollsters, schedulers, and advance people. Mrs. Simoncini is sooo lucky ‘cause her husband is hecka HOT! Psssst. A second important office in the Executive Office of the President is theNational Security Council.

50. The Executive Branch At Work The National Security Act of 1947 established the National Security Council (NSC)to improve coordination among the government departments that deal with national security issues. The NSC includes the Director of Central Intelligence (from the CIA) and the Secretaries of State and Defense.The NSC staff is headed by the National Security Advisor, appointed by the president.President Bush’s National Security Advisor is Thomas Donilon.