““The President and the The President and the Executive Branch”Executive Branch”

The President’s JobThe President’s Job

The President’s JobThe President’s JobThe job of the

President of the United States is often considered one of the most powerful jobs in the world. The U.S. President influences many world events.

Constitutional QualificationsConstitutional Qualifications

Must be at least 35 years old

Must be a native born American citizen

Must be a U.S. resident for at least 14 years.

Presidential HistoryPresidential History

Until 2008, every other U.S. president has been a white male.

With only one exception, all have also been Protestant Christians.

Presidential HistoryPresidential History

Most have had a college degree, been a lawyer, and are from states with a large population.

Presidential “Firsts”John F. Kennedy was our first elected Catholic president and our youngest president elected (1960)Geraldine Ferraro was our first female vice presidential candidate (1984)Jesse Jackson was our first African American presidential candidate (1988) to narrowly miss his party’s nomination.

Presidential “Firsts”Joseph Lieberman was our first Jewish vice presidential candidate (2000).

Barack Obama became the first African American President of the United States of America (2008)

Electing the President

Electing the President

Presidential elections take place every four (4) years.

These years are all divisible by the number four (4).

Ex. 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016 etc.

Electing the President

Presidents are NOT elected by the popular vote!

They are actually elected indirectly by a method called the “Electoral College”.

Electing the President Voters vote in the

Presidential election but this is just to indicate their preferences to the “electors” who are people appointed to vote in presidential elections for major candidates.

Each state gets the same amount of electors as they have representing them in Congress.

Electing the President The number of electoral voters is

determined by the number of Representatives and Senators in each state.

There are a total of 538 electors who vote (435 Representatives and 100 Senators in Congress = 535)

Although NOT a state, Washington DC is also given three (3) electoral votes, as outlined the 23rd Amendment.

Grand total = 538

Electing the President

In most states, it is a “winner take all” system.

This means that if the candidate wins the popular vote of that state, they normally get all the electoral votes.

Electing the President

To be elected president and vice president, the candidates need to win at least 270 out of 538 electoral votes.

Electing the PresidentElecting the President

The Electoral College system makes it difficult for third parties to win the presidency.

Electing the President The results of the “Electoral

College” are NOT official after the election in November.

They are official in the month of December , when they are confirmed by congress.

This is one example of checks and balances.

Landmark Supreme Court Case Bush v. Gore (2000)

– Because the election was too close to call, the Florida Supreme Court demanded a recount of the Florida popular votes for this Presidential Election.

– After a series of lawsuits and media pressure, the US Supreme Court decided to take the case because of its national concern. It deemed that there would not be a fair and equitable way to recount the votes (the recount violated the 14th Amendment.) As a result, Bush won the 2000 Election.

– How did this impact the US?

Presidential Terms

Presidents serve four year terms.

Most early Presidents followed George Washington’s example and served only two terms (8 years)

Presidential Terms Only Franklin D.

Roosevelt served more than two (2) terms (1932-1945).

He was elected to four terms, mainly due to World War II.

Presidential Terms Today, the 22nd

Amendment limits the President to only two (2) terms in office.

There is a maximum of ten (10) years in office.

Presidential Salary

The President of the United States earns an annual salary of $400,000 (plus benefits and expenses).

Presidential Residences

The President lives and works in the White House in Washington DC (“1600 Pennsylvania Avenue”).

Presidential Residences

The President also has access to “Camp David”, a beautiful retreat in the mountains of Maryland.

It has been the site of many important meetings.

Presidential Transportation

The President travels on “Air Force One” (the Presidential plane)

They also have access to cars, helicopters, and other forms of transportation.

Role of the Vice President The Constitutional qualifications for Vice

President are identical to that of the President.

An important role of the Vice President is to preside over the U.S. Senate (S)he can break a tie vote if necessary!!!!!

The most important role is to assume the job of President if necessary (which has happened 9 times in our history)

Presidential Succession

The first Vice President to assume the role of President through death or illness was John Tyler in 1841 (took over for William H. Harrison after his death).

Presidential Succession

In 1947, the “Presidential Succession Act” established the official “presidential succession,” or the order of who takes over. We still felt that we more direction…

Presidential Succession The 25th Amendment

states that a vice president who assumes the role of president may choose their own Vice President.

This must be approved by

Congress!!!

Presidential Succession

This amendment also gives the Vice President the authority to determine if the President is disabled or unable to do the job.

This amendment has only been used 3 times (1973, 1974, & 1985)

Presidential Succession

The Speaker of the House and the President Pro Tempore are the second and third persons in line for the presidency.

Current Speaker of the HouseCurrent Speaker of the HousePaul RyanPaul Ryan