Unit IV: Institutions
Ch. 14: The Presidency
pp. 368-407
Non-constitutional Roles:
A. Head of Political Party
1.
2.
Selects the party’s
chairman of the national
committee and VP
nominee
Political patronage
(appoints loyal party
members to federal
positions)
B. Chief Economist
1.
2.
Responsible for the
overall health of the
economy
Proposes the federal
budget (though
Congress can alter it)
I. Presidents vs. Prime Ministers
How are they chosen?
How do they work within their respective legislatures?
1.
2.
1.
2.
3.
Relationship
Removal
Policy
II. Evolution of the Presidency:
Constitutional Convention
A. Alternatives
1.
Proposals for the new
“executive”
B. Concerns of Founders:
“Fetus of monarchy”
“Make him too weak: the legislature
will usurp his powers. Make
him too strong: he will usurp
the legislature.”
C. Election of the President
1.
Congress
2.
Some wanted direct election. Problems:
3.
Compromise: The Electoral College
4.
Term of office?
III. The First Presidents
A. Washington-Monroe, 1789-1825
1.
2.
3.
Background?
Precedent?
Presidential appointments:
rule of fitness
B. Andrew Jackson, 1829-1837.
Expansion of presidential power:
1.
Spoils system
2.
vetoes
C. The Reemergence of Congress, 18371932
1.
2.
3.
4.
With the end of Jackson’s 2nd term, Congress quickly reestablished its
power
There were some brief flashes of presidential power:
Role of Congress as initiating legislation
Strong personality and/or national crisis
D. Emergence of the Presidency.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
FDR’s New Deal
WWII
Cold War
In the 1970s, Congress finally reasserted itself. Reagan
restored the power and prestige of the presidency.
Bush 43
Obama?
E. Growth of Presidential Power
1.
2.
Originally Congress, not President, was to be dominant
Non-constitutional sources of presidential power
a) Unity of office:
b) Presidential character and personality:
c) Growing complexity of society:
d) Congressional delegation of authority to the executive branch:
e) “electronic throne”
f)
US during Cold War
Three rules of thumb to maximize presidential power
and effectiveness:
3.
1)
2)
3)
“move it or lose it” –popularity declines over time.
“avoid details”
“cabinets don’t get much done; people do”
IV: Overview and Powers of the Presidency

A. Qualifications:

B. Terms of Office:

C. Compensation

D. Succession
1.
2.
3.
If office of presidency is vacant due to death, resignation, or
impeachment and removal,
Presidential Succession Act of 1947.
25th Amendment :
V. The Office of the President
A.
1.
2.
3.
a)
b)
c)
White House Office/White House Staff
Immediate staff of President:
Rule of propinquity:
Organization: two general forms
Circular method
Pyramid method
Analysis:
3.


Appointments to the White House Office (e.g. Chief of Staff) do
not require Senate consent.
executive privilege.
Presidents typically seek people who will be loyal-fewer divided
loyalties as compared to Cabinet positions
B. The Executive Office of the President
Appointments to the EOP require Senate consent.
1. OMB:
2. NSC:
3. CEA:
4. Council on Environmental Quality:
5. US Trade Rep
6. OPM:
EOP Organization
VI. The Cabinet
A.
Definition:
B.
Each of these is appointed by the President with Senate consent
C.
In our system:


Divided loyalties of Cabinet officials: are the Secretaries most loyal to
President? To the Congress (which funds departments)? To client groups
(which depend on departments)? To employees of departments (Secretaries
deal with daily)?
President’s goals often conflict with Cabinet department’s goals
The Cabinet
E. Presidential influence over
the Cabinet: limited
F. Factors affecting selection of
Cabinet Secretaries:
VII. Who Gets Appointed to Federal Positions?
A.
B.
C.
The number of appointments is large, but the
percentage of appointed positions in the federal
government is small (less than 10%)
Presidents often do not know their appointees well and
depend heavily on staff recommendations.
Background of appointees:
VIII. The Power to Persuade
Power of the office of the presidency
I.
A.
B.
Powers are not as clearly defined in the Constitution as are
Congresses’.
In crisis, power grows, but in “normal” times, subject to
checks and balances.
Checks that weaken the President:
II.
A.
B.
Constitutional checks:
Informal checks:
IX. Congress vs. the President
Sources of Conflict:
A.
Separation of powers and checks and balances
B.
Each represents different constituencies
C.
Different times of election
D. Partisanship
E.
Unity of office vs. diffusion of power
F.
“two presidencies” thesis:
Sources of influence on Congress:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
Use of media. Media focuses more on a single person than on 535
people. President can easily go directly to the people with his
case. “Presidential power is the power to persuade” –Neustaedt
“Mandate from the people”
Patronage:
Chief of party role:
Personal lobbying of members of Congress.
Veto, or its threat.
national emergency.
Public Approval Ratings of Presidents by Year in Office
Average Approval
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Truman
Ike
JFK
LBJ
Nixon
1st Year
Ford
Carter Reagan Bush 41 Clinton Bush 43
Last Year
Presidential Victories on Congressional Votes
100
90
80
Percentage
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Ike
JFK
LBJ
Nixon
Ford
% Victories in First Year in Office
Carter Reagan Bush
Clinton
Bush
% Victories in Last Year in Office
Chief legislator:
(Constitutional Role)
Powers:
1.
Proposes legislation
2.
Signs laws. Sometimes uses “signing statements”

Reagan: 75 issued. Bush 43: 161 issued. Obama: 20 (Dec. 31, 2011).
Clinton issued more than any other president, but how Bush 43 used
them remains controversial.
Vetoes legislation (no line item veto as ruled by SCOTUS
[Clinton v. NY, 1998] – separation of powers)
2.
Calls special sessions of Congress
3.
Makes a State of the Union Address to Congress (Jan. 24,
2012)
Checks:

Congress can override veto with 2/3 majority in both
houses
1.
X. The Power to Say No: The Imperial Presidency
A.
B.


C.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Charges by Congress that presidential power has grown excessive. Coined by
Arthur Schlesinger (1973).
Response:
economic growth necessitated a strong executive
Congress itself delegated strong powers to the executive branch, especially in
the area of foreign policy
Areas of abuse cited by Schlesinger:
War Powers:
Emergency powers:
Use of executive agreements rather than treaties.

The former does not require Senate ratification as does the latter.
Executive privilege


Right of President to not divulge conversations between himself and his advisers.
In U.S. v. Nixon (1974), the Supreme Court stated that Presidents are in fact
entitled to executive privilege most of the time, but not in criminal cases.
5.




6.
7.
Impoundment.
Define:
Without a line item veto, Presidents must either sign an
entire bill or veto it.
Nixon impounded funds for policy objectives.
Passage of Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974:
Signing Statements

Reagan: 75 issued. Bush 43: 161 issued. Obama: 20 (Dec.
31, 2011). Clinton issued more than any other president,
but how Bush 43 used them remains controversial.
Executive Orders
Constitutional vs. Rhetorical Signing Statements

In a "constitutional" signing
statement, a president will object
to a provision of law by directly
citing a provision of the
Constitution, or by citing a
Supreme Court ruling interpreting
the Constitution, or by bare
assertion (without citation to
authority) that the law offends the
Constitution or invades the power
of the Executive. A president may
announce his intent to disregard
the law due to claimed
constitutional infirmity, or he may
announce that he will interpret
the law to avoid the constitutional
difficulties that he perceives.

By contrast, a "rhetorical" signing statement
is ceremonial in nature, and usually praises
the wisdom of the law or the lawmakers, or
notes the importance of the issue
addressed by the law. Or a rhetorical
statement may criticize Congress or the
enactment without challenging Congress's
authority to act.

34% of President Reagan's signing
statements raised constitutional
objections 47% of President George H. W.
Bush's signing statements raised
constitutional objections 18% of
President Clinton's signing statements
raised constitutional objections 78% of
President George W. Bush's signing
statements raised constitutional objections
Other Constitutional RolesChief Executive:
Powers:
1. “take care” clause of Article II requires that the president enforces laws, treaties,
and court decisions:
 Impoundment
 Lincoln’s suspension of habeas corpus
 Electronic eavesdropping by Bush 43 administration
 FISA
2. Appoints officials, and can fire them
 Recess appointments
executive orders (“Stroke of the pen. Law of the Land. Kinda cool." Paul Begala,
former Clinton advisor, The New York Times, July 5, 1998)
Checks:
1. Congress passes the laws; has “power of the purse”
2. Senate can reject appointments and treaties
3. Impeachment (House) and removal (Senate)
4. Supreme Court can strike down executive orders
3.
Commander-in-Chief
Power:
1. head of the armed forces
Checks:
1. Congress appropriates
2. Congress declares war
3. War Powers Act of 1973
D. Chief Diplomat
Powers:
1. Sets foreign policy
2. Appoints and receives ambassadors
3. Negotiates treaties and executive
agreements
4. Negotiates “congressional-executive
agreements”
5. diplomatic recognition to foreign
governments
Checks:
1. Congress appropriates
2. Senate can reject ambassadors and treaties
Chief of State
1.
ceremonial head of our
nation
F. Chief Jurist
Powers:
1. Appoints federal judges
2. Issues pardons and amnesty
Checks:
1. Senate can reject judicial
appointments
2. Senators can place “holds”
and/or filibuster nominations
XI. President’s Program. Congress Responds to the
Imperial Presidency: reassertion of congressional authority
in mid-1970s.
War Powers: passage of the War Powers Resolution of 1973.
A.
President can send troops overseas to an area where hostilities are
imminent without a congressional war declaration only under these
circumstances:
1.
Must notify Congress within ___________
2.
Must withdraw the troops after __ days (can be extended by __
days if safety of troops requires it)
3.
Must consult with Congress if troops are to engage in combat.
4.
Congress can pass a resolution, not subject to presidential veto, to
withdraw troops.
B.
Criticisms:
1.
Unconstitutional:
2.
Ties the hands of President
3.
Makes it easy on the enemy (wait it out)
Emergency Powers: National
Emergencies Act of 1976
1.
2.
3.
President must inform
Congress in advance of
powers to be used as
emergencies
State of emergency
automatically ends after 6
months
President can declare
another 6 months, subject to
Congressional review
Congress and the CIA
1.
2.
Past CIA abuses led to
investigations and oversight
committees in 1970s
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance
Act (1978):
Impoundment
1.
Passage of Budget and
Impoundment Control Act of 1974:

If President impounds funds
temporarily (deferral), either house
can override.

If president impounds funds
permanently (rescission), the act is
automatically voided unless both
house of Congress approve within
45 days.

Establishment of CBO as a check
on OMB.

Congress given 3 additional months
to consider the President’s
proposed budget.

Establishment of Budget
Committees in each house.
Confirmation of presidential
appointees
1.
2.
3.
4.
Senatorial courtesy
Controversy over recess
appointments
policy preferences over “rule of
fitness”
Long confirmation delays
(holds)

1.
2.
3.
Legislative Veto
Define:
In INS v. Chada (1983) the Supreme Court declared the legislative
veto to be an unconstitutional violation of separation of powers.
1996: Congressional Review Act:
Foreign affairs.
1. appropriations
2. Iran-Contra hearings 1980s
3. Gulf War (1991)
4. Kosovo (1999)
5. war on terror
6. Patriot Act

XII. Presidential Transition: The Vice
President
A.
1.
B.
C.
D.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Only two constitutional duties:
Preside over the Senate
Traditionally, the job is a dull, do-nothing one.
VP is selected to balance the ticket.
Importance of the office:
9 of 44 Presidents have not finished their terms of office.
VP can become Acting President if President becomes disabled.
(25th Amendment).
More recently, Presidents have made more effective use of the
VP, especially Bush-Cheney, but also Reagan, Clinton)
Can be a steppingstone to the presidency