The President and the Executive BranchChapter 7

The President and the Vice-President

Section 1

Qualifications for President

• Constitutional Requirements1. At least 35 years old2. A native-born American citizen3. Resident of the US for at least 14 years

Which of these is the most outdated? Why?

• First Catholic President __________________• First African-American President __________• First African-American Candidate __________• First Female VP Candidate ________________• First Female Presidential Candidate_________• First Jewish VP Candidate ________________

Electing a President• Elections take place every 4 years• Constitution doesn’t provide for a direct popular

election – Electoral College– Electors = # of Senators + # of Representatives– 535 total electors; need 270 to win presidency– Most states have a “winner takes all” way to award

electors

Term of Office

• 4 year term• Constitution originally never said how many

terms a president could serve– Washington set a tradition by stepping down after

2 terms– FDR broke that tradition … big time. Elected 4

times– 22nd Amendment (1951) limited presidents to 2

terms – officially.• 10 years if you start as VP

Perks of the Presidency

• $400,000 per year, plus expenses and travel• White House– Private movie theater, gym, bowling alley, heated

pool, 80 person domestic staff

• Camp David

• Vehicle Fleet– Air Force One

The Vice President

• Elected at same time as president• Same qualifications• Little Constitutional Authority– Runs the Senate … remember?

• Nine vice presidents have moved up“I am Vice President. In this, I am nothing, but I

may become everything.”- John Adams: first vice president

• How many vice presidents can you name?

Presidential Succession

• 8 presidents have died in office. 1 resigned.• 1947 – Presidential Succession Act– Vice President– Speaker of the House– President Pro Tempore– Secretary of State– … rest of the Cabinet

1963: Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson sworn in as president aboard Air Force One after President

Kennedy’s Assassination

25th Amendment - 1967• If the president dies or leaves office, the VP

becomes president and chooses a new VP• If the president is disabled, the VP serves as acting

president – only used 5 times– 1973: VP Spiro Agnew resigned and President Richard

Nixon replaced him with Gerald Ford– 1974: Nixon resigns, Ford moves up and picks Nelson A.

Rockefeller as new VP– 1985: President Reagan has surgery and VP George H.W.

Bush is acting president for 8 hours– 2002 and 2007: George W. Bush briefly sedated for

medical procedures and VP Cheney took over

The President’s Job

Section 2

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Hail_to_the_Chief_-_U.S._Army_Herald_Trumpets.ogv

Constitutional Powers• Main job: execute laws passed by Congress• Also:– Veto bills– Call special sessions of Congress– Commander-in-chief– Receive foreign representatives– Make treaties (with Senate approval)– Make appointments (also with Senate approval)– Pardon criminals– State of the Union address very year

Roles of the President

• Chief Executive• Chief Diplomat• Commander-in-Chief• Legislative Leader• Head of State• Economic Leader• Party Leader

Chief Executive

Chief Diplomat

Commander-in-Chief

Legislative Leader

Head of State

Economic Leader

Party Leader

Making Foreign Policy

Section 3

The President and Foreign Policy

• Goals– National Security– International

Trade– World Peace– Promote

Democracy Around the World The President and the First Lady meet with Queen

Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace

Foreign Policy Powers

Executive Branch• Chief Diplomat• Commander-in-Chief• Foreign Policy Bureaucracy

– State Department– Defense Department– Central Intelligence Agency– National Security Council

Legislative Branch• Declare War• Prohibit certain military

actions• Controls defense spending

“The State Department wants to solve everything with words, and the generals,

with guns.”-President Lyndon B. Johnson

Tools of Foreign Policy

• Creating Treaties and Executive Agreements• Appointing Ambassadors• Foreign Aid• International Trade• Military Force

Presidential Advisors and Executive Agencies

Section 4

Executive Office of the President

• White House Office• Office of Management and Budget• National Security Council• Office of Administration• Council of Economic Advisors

Cabinet

Cabinet Responsibilities

• Advise the president on issues related to their departments

Vice-President and the First Lady

Federal Bureaucracy

• Hundreds of Agencies below the cabinet departments

1.Turn new laws into action by applying them to daily life

2.Administer day-to-day operations of the federal government

3.Regulate various activities• Help shape government policy

Independent Agencies

• Executive Agencies• Government Corporations• Regulatory Boards and Commissions

Government Workers

• Political Appointees• Civil Service Workers– Civil Service System– Spoils System Pendleton Act/ Civil Service

Reform Act– Merit System