Presidential Leadership
April 21, 2009
U.S./VA Government
While you wait …
Take out a piece of notebook paper and respond:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
What was the name of the legislative program from the early
1900s that was arranged by Franklin Roosevelt and
countered the effects of the Depression?
Which president arranged the Louisiana Purchase?
How did 9/11 build presidential power?
What right did Abraham Lincoln suspend?
What are the four most important Cabinet members who
help the president decide most of his key policies called (not
the agency known as the National Security Council)?
What are the three Constitutional requirements to be
president?
The Executive Branch
President
Vice President
Cabinet
Executive Office
White House Staff
Two roles:
1. President of
the Senate
14 Departments
Bureaucracy
2. Presidential
Disability
Americans must
follow laws
Agencies
Office of Management
and Budget
National Security
Council
Homeland Security
Council
Council of
Economic Advisors
Choosing a President
1. Read all of your eight choices for
president.
2. Rank the eight choices in order of your
personal preference. Your first two
choices should be your picks for president
and vice president.
3. Write down at least three factors that you
used to make your selections.
Choosing a President
What factors did you use to make decisions?
How does this compare with the paragraphs
you wrote on what you expect from a
president?
What are the most important qualifications
for the president, in your mind?
Presidential Powers
• Presidential powers have developed over time due to
changes in the nation and presidential personalities
• Powers are defined by the Constitution, but what the
president does is also affected by the following informal
sources of power:
– Immediate needs of the nation
– Presidential energy and influence
– Mandate = expressed will of the people
Presidential Powers
• What did the Founders intend?
– No absolute power, but yes to a strong executive
• Articles of Confederation weak because it lacked an
independent executive to carry out acts of Congress, to
respond quickly to problems, and to enforce laws
• Distrust of direct participation by average citizens
– Feared that mass movements would try to redistribute
wealth in the nation and that they would lose their
private property
– Strong executive branch to protect liberty, private property, and
businesses, and hold the legislative branch in check
– Does this still hold true?
Presidential Powers
• Constitutional Powers in Article II
– Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces: national security
– Chief Executive: appoints heads of executive departments (i.e. the
Cabinet) and conducts foreign policy, such as making treaties and
appoint ambassadors
– Judicial powers: appoint federal court judges, pardon people
convinced of federal crimes (except in cases of impeachment),
reduce a person’s jail sentence or fine
– Legislative influence: ensures that all laws are “faithfully
executed,” delivers State of the Union message, proposes
legislation, and may call Congress into a special session
Presidential Powers
• Informal Sources of Power
– Personal Exercise of Power: extend role for future presidents
• 1803 Thomas Jefferson and Louisiana Purchase; established that the
president has inherent powers implied by the Constitution
• Theodore Roosevelt: right and duty to do anything that the nation
needs, unless it violates Constitution or other laws
– Immediate Needs of the Nation: time of war or economic crisis
• 1860s Civil War and Abraham Lincoln: suspended writ of habeas
corpus, jailed opponents of Union without authority, raised an army
w/o Congressional approval, blocked Southern ports without legal
right; nation agreed with the president in the end
• 1930s-1940s Franklin Delano Roosevelt: expanded role to deal with
Depression; Americans then expected president to take a firm role;
most modern presidents have acted in this way as well
• 1960s Lyndon Johnson: Congress gave extra power to deal with a
crisis in Vietnam; “take all necessary steps” to protect Americans
Presidential Powers
• Informal Sources of Power
– Mandate of the People
• Presidents like to say that their ideas and policies represent a
mandate from the people
• Mandate = strong popular support
• But popularity ratings change almost daily
• Most modern presidents use media to garner popular support
– Radio, television, magazines, newspapers, Internet
– Roosevelt’s “fireside chats” -> Twitter?
– People often judge president’s ideas according to their personal
appeal on television
– Newspapers provide a forum for discussion, staff tend to leak
information to test how people will respond to it
Presidential Roles
•
Seven key duties, five based on the Constitution
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Head of State
Chief Executive
Chief Legislator
Chief Diplomat
Commander in Chief
Economic Planner
Political Party Leader
Presidential Roles
•
Head of State
–
–
–
•
Represents the nation and performs ceremonial roles
Hosts other leaders, first baseball pitch, Christmas tree, giving
awards and medals, etc
Key: presidents are more than just politicians, also symbol
Chief Executive
–
–
–
Sees that all the laws of Congress are carried out (bureaucracy)
Seven tools: executive orders, making presidential
appointments, right to remove officials they appointed,
impoundment of funds, appoints all federal judges, grants
reprieves and pardons, grants amnesty
Executive orders: rules that have the force of law; issued by the
president to spell out details of policies passed by Congress, like
designating land for a national park
Presidential Roles
•
Chief Executive (continued)
–
–
–
–
–
Appoint about 2,200 top officials, share political beliefs?
Not easy to get rid of an official who may have support
Impoundment: president refuses to spend money Congress has
appropriated for a specific purpose (usually routine)
•
Nixon tried to use this to eliminate programs, didn’t work
Appointing Supreme Court justices leaves a legacy
Reprieve: Postponement of legal punishment
•
–
Pardon: Release from legal punishment
•
–
Punishment delay
Grace, totally forgiven
Amnesty: group pardon to people for an offense against the
government (draft dodgers, polygamous Mormons)
Presidential Roles
•
Chief Legislator
–
–
–
Staff helps to draft bills for Congress and set the agenda
Usually described in the State of the Union address
Tools:
•
•
•
Political Favors
Veto power
NO line item veto, that is only for state governors
– This means that the president can only veto the entire part of
legislation, he/she cannot pick and choose the parts that
he/she wants to specifically get rid of
Presidential Roles
• Chief Diplomat
– Makes key decisions about foreign relations, struggle with
Congress over foreign policy, though presidents have advantage
because they have access to more information and the assistance
of the CIA, State Department, Defense Department, and the
National Security Council
– Has ability to take decisive action, whereas hard to pass Congress
– Sole power to negotiate and sign treaties, but the Senate must
approve of all treaties before they take effect (Versailles)
– Executive agreements: pacts between the president and a foreign
government, generally routine, after 1950 must be disclosed
– Decides which counties we recognize as legitimate (Cuba)
Presidential Roles
• Commander in Chief
– Shares power to make war with Congress; Bush Sr. received
approval from Congress before sending troops to Iraq in 1991,
which avoided a Constitutional issue
– Since 1973, no president has challenged War Powers Act (Iraq)
– Responsible for key military decisions, not day to day operations
– Has authority to use atomic weapons (Truman)
– Takes actions at home to support war effort (price controls, gas
and food rationing, control of industries for goods)
– Control serious disorder in the nation, such as rioting or disaster
Presidential Roles
• Economic Planner
– Grown rapidly since FDR’s New Deal
– Since 1946, submits annual economic report to Congress; created
Council of Economic Advisors and declared that government
could promote employment, production, purchasing power
– Prepares federal budget, decides where to put the money
• Party Leader
– Give speeches to raise money for the party
– Appoint members of the party to government jobs
– Patronage: appointment to political office that rewards those
persons who supported party during the election
– Conflict: head of the whole nation or just the party?
Presidential Powers
• Limitations on Presidential Power
– Congress
• Congressional override of presidential veto
• War Powers Act of 1973: president must remove troops from
combat zone after 60 days
• Power of the purse
• Impeachment = a decision to bring charges, not remove from office
– Federal Courts
• Have constitutional power to limit a president
• President cannot act in areas of authority delegated to Congress,
even if Congress fails to act.
Presidential Powers
• Limitations on Presidential Power
– Bureaucracy
• Obstruct programs by failing to provide needed information,
misinterpreting instructions, neglecting to complete a task well
• Have discretion to interpret as they see fit and their interpretations
may not always be the same as the president’s intention
– Public Opinion
• Without it, a president cannot carry out political programs
• Americans expect their presidents to be symbolic leaders and to act
with courage and dignity, but they will often disown the president if
he or she does not live up to their standards
• Founders did not put anything in the Constitution for regulating the
moral character of a president
Presidential Character
• Does it matter? Can you be a good president, but have
lousy character?
• YES: Character is a measure of worldview. A president’s
worldview will affect all of his or her decisions. It also
sets the president’s track record and how other people
will respond to him/her. It also affects elections and the
party image. Therefore, character is important.
• NO: You can make solid policy decisions while having a
shady personal life. Policy decisions are about deciding
what is best for the country. That has nothing to do with
personal life. Therefore, character is not as important.
Review
• Journal: How important is moral character in a
president?
• What are the five Constitutional roles of the president?
• Commander in Chief, Chief Diplomat, Chief Legislator,
Chief Executive, Head of State
• What are the two non-Constitutional roles?
• Party Leader and Economic Planner
• Describe some of the limits on presidential power.
• How have presidential powers evolved over time?