The Presidency

In the Constitution

• Founders gave the POTUS enough constitutional powers to balance Congress

• Article II, Section I outlines requirements for becoming President:– Natural born citizen– At least 35 years old– Been a resident for 14 years in the US

In the Constitution

• Term Limits– None prior to FDR– 22nd Amendment = 2 terms

• What about the VP?– Qualifications?– Role?

In the Constitution

• During the Constitutional Convention, Benjamin Franklin supported a provision allowing for impeachment– “historically, the lack of power to impeach had

necessitated recourse to assassination”• House needs simple majority to impeach,

Senate needs 2/3 majority to remove

In the Constitution

• Who are the only two presidents to be impeached? Why?

• What happened to Nixon?• Watergate produced a major decision from the SCOTUS

on the scope of what is termed executive privilege (implied presidential power that allows the POTUS to refuse to disclose information regarding confidential conversations or national security.• US v. Nixon (1974) – SC ruled unanimously that there is

no absolute constitutional executive privilege to allow a president to refuse to comply with a court order to produce information needed in a criminal trial

Presidential Succession Act - 1947

1. Vice President2. Speaker of the House3. President Pro Tempore4. Sec. of State5. Sec. of Treasury6. Sec. of Defense7. Attorney General8. Sec. of Interior9. Sec. of Agriculture10. Sec. of Commerce

11. Sec. of Labor12. Sec. of Health/Human

Services13. Sec. of Housing/Urban

Development14. Sec. of Transportation15. Sec. of Energy16. Sec. of Education17. Sec. of Veterans Affairs18. Sec. of Homeland Security

25th Amendment

• Added to Constitution in 1967 to assure that there will always be an order of succession.

• Should a vacancy occur in the VP, POTUS can appoint a new VP subject to approval of both houses (simple majority)

• Also allows the VP and a majority of cabinet members the power to deem a president unable to fulfill his duties

• POTUS can also relinquish his power (as George W. did in 2002, temporarily)

Constitutional Powers

• Few enumerated powers, but they are very powerful in the policy process

1. Appointment Power

• Over 3,000 positions!!! (only 1,000 require advice and consent)

• He can remove them at will• Technically, he appoints about 75,000 military

personnel• Selecting the right people are important

(loyalty, competence, integrity)

2. Power to Convene Congress

• State of the Union• Convene either or both houses on “extraordinary

Occasions”– Nowadays, Congress sits in mostly year-round sessions

http://www.thecapitol.net/FAQ/cong_schedule.html

3. Power to Make Treaties• Must be approved by 2/3 majority in Senate• “receive ambassadors” (implied power to

recognize the existence of other nations)• Only 16 treaties have been rejected– Treaty of Versailles (League of Nations)

• Senate may require amendments to treaties• Presidents may “un-sign” a treaty• “Advice and Consent” can be avoided by entering

into an executive agreement

4. Veto Power

• Authority to reject any congressional legislation• The threat of a veto gives the POTUS another way

to influence law-making• Congress can override a veto by a 2/3 majority in

both houses• There has been talk of amending the Constitution

to give presidents a line-item veto (they can veto parts of a bill, instead of the whole thing)

Line-Item Veto

• In 1996, Congress enacted legislation that gave President Clinton authority to veto specific spending provisions within a bill

• When he used it to stop payment of some congressionally authorized funds to NYC, the state of New York challenged the law (Clinton v. City of New York, 1998)

• SCOTUS ruled that the line-item veto was unconstitutional (would require an amendment)

5. Power to Preside as Commander in Chief

• Conflicts with Congressional power to “declare war”

• Publication of the Pentagon Papers in 1971 (revealed that Pres. Johnson had altered casualty figures and distorted facts to place progress in Vietnam in a positive light)

• This led to Congress passing the War Powers Act

War Powers Act

• Limits the president’s authority to introduce American troops into hostile foreign lands w/o congressional approval (Nixon vetoes, Congress overrides)– POTUS can deploy troops in peacetime for 60 days

(which can be extended by 30 to permit withdrawal)

6. Pardoning Power

• Pardon – executive grant releasing an individual from the punishment or legal consequences of a crime before or after conviction, and restores all rights and privileges of citizenship (except in cases of impeachment)

• Can be used for groups of people (Carter pardoned 10,000 draft dodgers)

Expansion of Presidential Power

Said Harry Truman on Dwight Eisenhower’s entering into the office of President…

“He’ll sit here and he’ll say, ‘Do this! Do that!’ and nothing will happen. Poor Ike – it won’t be a bit like the army. He’ll find it very frustrating.”

Expansion of Presidential PowerEstablishing Authority: The first Presidents• Washington ESTABLISHED the office of President– Wanted to establish the dominance of national

government (Whiskey Rebellion)– Cabinet system– Chief executive (dealing with foreign countries)– Authority to declare neutrality (inherent power)• Power belonging to the national government because it is a

sovereign body

• Adams – weak leadership potential quickened development of political parties

• Jefferson – Louisiana Purchase extended powers

Expansion of Presidential Power1809 – 1933: Congress over President• Why would Congress arise as the most powerful branch

(remember, founders were concerned about monarchical president)?

• Jackson – 1st to act as a strong national leader– Why did he represent the common man?– Jacksonian democracy: western, frontier, egalitarian spirit

• Spoils system, nullification crisis

• Lincoln: the Civil War led to him taking action w/o obtaining approval of Congress– Suspended habeas corpus– Expanded size of US army– Blockade of southern ports (initiating a war w/o approval)– Closed US mail to treasonable correspondence

Expansion of Presidential Power

Growth of Modern Presidency• How has the growing media (since the 1930s)

led to a change in the public’s expectations of president?

• Why has the trend become for presidential (as opposed to congressional) decision-making to be more important?– Let’s start with FDR…

Growth of the Executive Branch

• As the scope of presidential authority grew over the years, so did the executive branch– Including the number of people working directly

for the President

Vice President

• Historically, the VP was chosen to balance (politically, geographically, voter base)

• John Adams wrote about being the 1st VP, he said it was “the most insignificant office that was the invention of man…or his imagination conceived.”

• Walter Mondale (VP under Carter) – 1st VP to have an office in the White House

The Cabinet

• No basis in Constitution• As a body, the Cabinet’s major function is to

help the president execute the laws and assist him in making decisions

• Interest groups have been rewarded by the creation of an executive department– Farmers = agriculture– Teachers = education

The First Lady

• Serve as informal advisers• Edith Bolling Galt Wilson – probably most

powerful– Wilson collapsed and was left partly paralyzed– Dubbed “Acting First Man”

• Other influential first ladies?

The Executive Office of the President (EOP)

• Established by FDR to oversee New Deal programs

• Purpose is to provide the president w/ a general staff to help him direct the diverse activities of the exe branch

• National Security Council, Council of Economic Advisers, Office of Management and Budget, Office of VP, Office of the US Trade Representative

The White House Staff

• Personal assistants, clerical and administrative aides, strategists, lobbyist, etc.

• Do not require Senate approval• White House staff = 51 (1943) grew to a White

House staff = 583 (1972)– Clinton promised to cut the White House staff

(saves $), and he did by 15%

Presidential Leadership

• What makes an effective leader?• Should we hold modern presidents to the

leadership expectations established by Washington, Lincoln, FDR?

• What about the “power to persuade”?

Mobilizing Public Opinion

• “going public” = the president goes over the heads of members of Congress to gain support from the people, who can then place pressure on their elected officials

• When criticized for not holding traditional press conferences, President Clinton responded “you know why I can stiff you on the press conferences? Because Larry King liberated me from you by giving me to the American people directly.”

The Public’s Perception of Presidential Performance

• What do approval ratings measure? What do they mean? How can they be used?

• Presidents use the “honeymoon” period to push their programs through Congress

• Since Johnson’s presidency, only 4 presidents have left office w/ ratings of more than 50%