AP United States Government and Politics Exam

AP United States Government and

Politics ExamReview --Day SIX

Edwards Chapters 13 and 15 (Unit 6 from our course)

Chapter 9 (pages 97 - 101 and 106 - 113) in the review book

The Presidency and The Federal Bureaucracy

The Presidency

• The president of the United is the most powerful individual in all of American politics

• The presidency as a government institution has changed dramatically since the writing of the Constitution

• (At that time) the president had few powers and, because he was chosen directly by the Electoral College without a popular vote, was far removed from the populace

The Presidency• (Today) the president is elected by the

people-via electors-after a long and expensive campaign

• Presidential powers have increased in the last few decades, as, thanks to television, the president has become a more public figure

• Questions on the AP U.S. Government & Politics Exam will test your knowledge of the power of the president ad the relationship between the president and other governmental institutions

The Presidents: How They Got There

• Presidents can reach the Oval Office in different ways:

• Most are former governors or members of Congress who after being nominated by their party, campaign and with the election

• Some presidents were vice presidents and took over after the death of the president– Twenty-fifth Amendment establishes the

procedures for filling vacancies in both the offices of president and vice president

• also makes the provisions for presidential disability

The Presidents: How They Got There

• Constitution sets forth process of impeachment of a president who has abused powers or committed a “high crime of misdemeanor” worthy of removal from office– The House may vote for the impeachment of the

president by a simple majority– The Senate conducts the impeachment trial and

the chief justice of tee Supreme Court presides over the trial

– It takes a two-thirds vote in the Senate to remove the president from office

– Only two presidents have been impeached, though neither were removed from office• Andrew Johnson was tried by not convicted in

1868• William Clinton was acquitted by the Senate in

1999

Presidential Powers• Constitution grants president fairly limited

powers that were designed to prevent him or her from gaining too much authority and thus to maintain the balance of power among government institutions

• partial list of the president’s powers appears below – Veto proposed bills– Report to Congress in the State of the Union

address– Nominate cabinet level government officials,

Supreme Court justices, and all other federal judges

– Grant pardons for certain offenses– Act as commander in chief of the armed forces– Make treaties– Serve as diplomatic representative for the

United States

Presidential Powers• partial list of the president’s powers appears

below – Oversee the departments and agencies that make

up the executive branch• This last power is one of the more overlooked

responsibilities of the president• As the bureaucracy has grown, it has become

nearly impossible for the president alone to execute and enforce all laws

• (Instead) president now appoints numerous administrative officials, including cabinet members and department heads

Running the Government• Vice presidents traditionally have few

responsibilities and little political prominence – They are second in line to assume the presidency if

the president is unable to fulfill the duties of office – They are the president (chief presiding officer) of

the Senate and cast a vote whenever there is a tie • (Today) vice presidents assume more

responsibilities, depending on how the president they are serving entrusts functions to them– may serve as diplomats representing the president,

take part in important policy meetings, or help raise funds for their party

Running the Government• The cabinet is a group of officials who act as

advisors to the president• The cabinet is not mentioned in the

Constitution, but it quickly became an institution that has accompanied every presidency

• The modern cabinet is composed of the attorney general and the heads, or secretaries, of the 15 executive departments

• Each cabinet member heads a department that deals with a different policy area– The departments (created by Congress) carry out

all the administrative work necessary to enforce laws or assist the president in the executive duties

– president has the power to appoint all of these officials, but each appointment must be confirmed by the Senate

The Executive Office of the President (E.O.P.)

• This is another collection of administrative and advisory bodies which assist the president in overseeing policy

• National Security Council coordinates matters of national security across agencies, including the State Department, the Department of Defense, the Treasury Department, and the intelligence agencies

The Executive Office of the President (E.O.P.)

• Council of Economic Advisors advises the president on economic issues

• Office of Management and Budget reviews the budgetary implications of federal programs and legislation

• White House Office includes important personal and political advisors to the president such as the legal counsel to the president, the president’s personal secretary, and the chief of staff– this office takes care of the president’s

political needs and manages the press

Presidential Leadership of Congress: The Politics of

Shared Powers• Though not a member of the legislative branch,

presidents do have a role to play in the legislative process

1) Acting as a chief legislator• The power to veto legislation can be an effective tool

of intimidation, – veto rejects a bill in its entirety, the president can

have a good deal of influence over the shaping of each specific provision

– if president does veto a bill, it goes back to Congress, which, by a two-thirds vote, can override the veto (rarely happens)

– president also has the power to reject any legislation submitted at the end of the congressional session without the possibility of his veto being overruled

– If he does not sign a bill submitted by Congress within 10 days of its adjourning, the bill is automatically rejected• pocket veto


Shared Powers2) Relying on party support: To influence

policy, presidents must work closely with Congress– specifically, they rely on close ties with

members of Congress who are members of their political party

– political parties help bridge the gap between the legislative and executive branches


Shared Powers2) Relying on party support: To influence policy,

presidents must work closely with Congress– Members of Congress who support the president’s

legislative agenda are likely to receive support for some of their projects and initiatives in return• close relationship with a popular president can

also be beneficial to members of Congress during reelection (presidential coattails)

– president must rely on members of Congress to introduce legislation for him or her and to win support for it during the legislative process

– president must work closely with party leaders to convince representatives to vote the party line

– even if a president’s party is the majority party in either or both houses, he / she may not necessarily have the full support of representatives, who may not even vote with the party line


Shared Powers3)Public support: Public support for the

president factors heavily in his congressional support– Representatives are much more likely to

vote in favor of the initiatives of a president who is popular with the electorate, and presidents are well aware that public opinion is an incredibly powerful tool of persuasion.

– Public approval gives a president more leeway in pursuing policy goals, because representatives are more likely to vote in favor of the initiatives of a president who is popular with the electorate that has confidence in him

– Public support lends a president a greater degree of legitimacy


Shared Powers3)Public support: Public support for the

president factors heavily in his congressional support– policies of a president who is perceived as

weak are more likely to be cast into doubt by Congress, making it harder for the president to garner legislative support

– Congress is more likely to respond to the will of the president who was elected by a large margin, especially on legislation proposed early in his term


Shared Powers4)Legislative skills: Presidents may also exert

their influence over the political agenda by employing specific strategies at key times in the legislative process– To strengthen a presidential coalition,

presidents often bargain with representatives by offering support on a piece of legislation in exchange for receiving it on another

– Members of Congress may also receive certain presidential favors, such as joint public appearances during campaigns


Shared Powers4)Legislative skills: Presidents may also exert

their influence over the political agenda by employing specific strategies at key times in the legislative process– Presidents present many proposals to

Congress soon after their election during what is called the “honeymoon period”, when there is a fresh sense of community in Washington

– Presidents work hard to focus the attention of Congress on their own specific agendas• by setting priorities, they are able to

concentrate their resources to push through a few key policy objectives

The President and National Security Policy

• President is both the commander-in-chief of the armed forces and the chief diplomat

• Diplomatic powers of the president include the following: – Establishing formal recognition of other

governments– Negotiating treaties– Formulating executive agreements with

other foreign leaders, which, unlike treaties, do not require congressional approval; most executive agreements are administrative in nature

– Using U.S. influence to arbitrate conflicts between other nations

The President and National Security Policy

• Military powers include the following: – decision to use weapons of mass

destruction– authorizing military actions during war– sending troops into specific areas of

conflict• War Powers Resolution, passed in 1973,

intended to limit this power by requiring that these troops be withdrawn within 60 days unless Congress declares war or issues an extension

Power from the People: The Public Presidency

• Presidents know that public approval works enormously in their favor, they work hard to sell their agenda to the public

• voter approval of the president is determined by several factors– whether the voter identifies with the political party

of the president– how the president responds to economic shifts or

handles other current issues– how effective a public speaker the president is, and

his appearance in front of the cameras– whether the president appeals to the public

directly, in which case the public usually responds positively

Power from the People: The Public Presidency

• Presidents know that public approval works enormously in their favor, they work hard to sell their agenda to the public

• voter approval of the president is determined by several factors– How the media interprets the actions of

the president (the narrative)

• The efforts of the White House to influence public opinion are not always successful

• Public tends to be fickle in its approval and the media often mislead the public by oversimplifying political and economic issues

The Federal Bureaucracy

Chapter 15 (Edwards)

The Federal Bureaucracy

• The federal bureaucracy is composed of all of the agencies, departments, offices, and bureaus in the executive branch

• these bodies are primarily responsible for implementing and enforcing laws

The Bureaucrats• Bureaucrats are hired in one of two ways:

1. Through the civil service system– Entrance exam– Promoted by merit rather than

patronage (Pendleton Civil Service Act)

• must be politically impartial and treated as such (Hatch Act)

• Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 created the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), which recruits and recommends individuals and oversees promotions and other employee issues

The Bureaucrats• Bureaucrats are hired in one of two ways:

2. Presidential recruitment– Each new administration fills about 3,000

top posts– President chooses people who will support

the administration’s policies• Cabinet department heads are presidential

nominees who must be approved by the Senate

• Department of Defense has the largest number of civil employees, followed by the U.S. Postal Service

• (Overall) federal civilian employment has not increased in decades, indicating that the federal bureaucracy is not actually growing

• Bureaucrats are not easily removed from office

How Bureaucracies are Organized

1. Cabinet departments– Fifteen cabinet departments oversee and

administer various policy areas– Each is supervised by a secretary (with the

exception of the Justice Department, headed by the Attorney General)

– Each has its own staff and budget


2. Regulatory agencies– oversee a particular aspect of the economy– create regulations that protect people– can enforce regulations by judging disputes– usually headed by a commission (confirmed by

Congress) rather than a secretary– closely involved with interest groups that want to

influence regulation


3. Government corporations– perform services for a fee, like a private business– U.S. Postal Service is the largest; other examples

include Amtrak and the Tennessee Valley Authority


4. Independent executive agencies– All other executive bodies – most created for

specific purposes, such as NASA– Heads appointed by the president, so these usually

have some partisan motivation

Bureaucracies as Implementers

• Enact and enforce rules and procedures for putting Congress’s policy decisions into practice

• Work out details and guidelines, and assign responsibilities among bureaucrats

• Oversee day-to-day operation of the federal government


• Policy implementation is not always successful for various reasons– Program design is flawed– Congress was not clear enough about

policy goals– A department lacks staff or resources to

carry out implementation– An agency is so mired in its standard

operating procedures that it fails to see what else needs to be done


• Administrators use their discretion differently when the standard operating procedures do not sufficiently address a particular situation

• There can be confusion when several departments are involved in the implementation of a particular policy

• Reorganization of the bureaucracy for the sake of efficiency is unlikely, because this would disrupt well-established iron triangles – congressional committees, the agencies they

oversee, and the affiliated interest groups

Bureaucracies and Regulators

• Oversee policies once they are in place through regulation1. establish guidelines for a program of project2. Enforce guidelines– through complaints registered by the public– through inspections– by issuing permits and licenses to people

who meet the guidelines3. Bureaucratic institutions have the authority to change rules of a policy and apprehend violators– All products and even many daily activities

are shaped by regulation

Bureaucracy and Democracy

• The governmental bureaucracy hires the most civilians but is not elected by the public.

• The governmental bureaucracy answers ultimately to the president, who:– Appoints agency heads who will support

his policies– Issues executive orders to change or

implement statues– Manages budget of each agency (at least

in his budget proposal)– Can reorganize an agency

Bureaucracy and Democracy

• The governmental bureaucracy is partially controlled by Congress:– Congress ultimately determines each

agency’s budget– Can refuse to confirm a presidential

appointment– Performs legislative oversight through

hearings– Can change the legislation behind a program

• Special procedures were created by Congress in 1996 in the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to express disapproval of the actions of agencies

• The governmental bureaucracy is full of iron triangles, which may produce conflicting guidelines or regulations

Documents

AP United States Government and Politics Exam