Essential Question
Section 1: Presidential
Powers
Section 2: Roles of the
President
Section 3: Styles of
Leadership
Chapter Summary
What basic powers of the
presidency directly affect the
other two branches of
government—the legislature
and the judiciary?
Content Vocabulary
• mandate
• forum
Academic Vocabulary
• enforce
• annual
• medium
Reading Strategy
Create a graphic
organizer like the
one at the right to
list some of the
powers given to the
president by the
Constitution.
Which of these is the most influential
informal source of presidential power?
0%
C
B
A. A
B. B
C. C0%
0%
A
A. mandate from the
people
B. the president’s
personal beliefs
about the executive
office
C. immediate needs of
the nation
Constitutional Powers
• The Founders had two reasons to give the
national government a strong executive:
– One of the main weaknesses of the
Articles of Confederation was its lack of
an independent executive to carry out
the acts of Congress.
– Many of the Founders distrusted direct
participation by the people in decision
making.
Constitutional Powers (cont.)
• Article II, Sections 2 and 3 define the
president’s powers:
– The president is commander in chief of
the armed forces, responsible for
national security.
– The president appoints, and the Senate
confirms, the heads of executive
departments.
Comparing Governments
Constitutional Powers (cont.)
– The president conducts foreign policy—
making treaties (with the Senate’s
approval) and appointing ambassadors.
– The president appoints federal court
judges, can pardon those convicted of
federal crimes and can reduce a
person’s jail sentence or fine.
Comparing Governments
Constitutional Powers (cont.)
– The president ensures that the laws
Congress passes are “faithfully executed.”
– The president delivers an annual State of
the Union message to Congress, proposes
legislation, and can call Congress into
special session when necessary.
Comparing Governments
Which of the following is NOT a reason the
Founders cited for giving the national
government a strong executive?
B
A
A. A
B. B
C. C0%
0%
0%
C
A. Articles of Confederation
lacked a strong executive
B. Desire to return to a
monarchy like England
C. Distrust of direct
participation by the
people
Informal Sources of Power
• A number of presidents have expanded
the powers of the executive because of
their beliefs about the office.
– Thomas Jefferson purchased the Louisiana
Territory from France.
– Theodore Roosevelt said that the president
has the right and duty to “do anything that
the needs of the Nation demanded, unless
such action was forbidden by the
Constitution or by the laws.”
Informal Sources of Power (cont.)
• Some presidents expand their power based
on the immediate needs of the nation:
– During the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln
suspended the writ of habeas corpus and
jailed opponents of the Union without trial
or the legal authority to do so.
– During the Great Depression Franklin D.
Roosevelt expanded the role of the federal
government in the economy.
Informal Sources of Power (cont.)
– Following the terrorist attacks of 2001,
George W. Bush gained sweeping authority
from Congress to fight terrorism.
• A mandate—the expressed will of the people,
often in an election—is one of the greatest
sources of political power.
• Major newspapers, magazines and the
Internet provide a forum, or medium for
discussion, for presidential messages.
The expressed will of the people in an
election is known as a
A. mandate.
B. forum.
C. medium.
D. quorum.
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
A
B
0%
C
0%
D
Limits on Executive Power
• Congress can limit the president’s authority.
– Congress can pass legislation even after a
president has vetoed it.
– The Senate must confirm a president’s
appointees.
– The House of Representatives must
approve the budget.
– The House and the Senate can use the
impeachment process to remove the
president from office.
Limits on Executive Power (cont.)
• In Marbury v. Madison, the Supreme Court
said that it had the right to the final
interpretation of whether an act of the
legislature or the president violates the
Constitution.
• The federal bureaucracy can obstruct
presidents’ programs unintentionally by
failing to provide needed information, by
misinterpreting instructions, and by not
completing a task properly.
Limits on Executive Power (cont.)
• Public opinion can also affect a president.
Without favorable public opinion, no
president can carry out a political program.
Marbury v. Madison gives the Court the right
to the final interpretation of whether an act
of the president
A. is fair and just.
B. is consistent with the
will of the people.
C. violates the
Constitution.
D. is cause for
impeachment.
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
A
B
0%
C
0%
D
Content Vocabulary
• executive order
• patronage
• impoundment
• treaty
• reprieve
• executive agreement
• pardon
• amnesty
Academic Vocabulary
• design
• submit
• inspect
Reading Strategy
Create a table to identify the different roles
and duties of the president.
Which role of the presidency is most
important in the context of modern
government?
A. head of state
B. chief executive
C. commander in chief
D. economic planner
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
A
B
0%
C
0%
D
Head of State
• As head of state, the president represents the
nation and performs many ceremonial roles.
• The president is the nation’s chief diplomat.
• As a living symbol of the nation, the president
is not just a single individual, but the
collective image of the United States.
In which role of the executive office does the
president represent the nation and perform
ceremonial roles?
A. head of state
B. chief executive
C. commander in chief
D. economic planner
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
A
B
0%
C
0%
D
Chief Executive
• As the nation’s chief executive, the
president sees that the laws of Congress
are carried out.
• Presidents have several tools to influence
how laws are carried out:
– executive orders, or rules that have the
force of law,
– the power to appoint people to important
offices in the executive branch,
Chief Executive (cont.)
– the right to fire officials they have appointed,
– impoundment of funds—refusing to allow
a federal department or agency to spend
money Congress has appropriated, and
– the power to appoint officials to the
judiciary.
Chief Executive (cont.)
• The president can also grant reprieves and
pardons for offenses against the United
States.
– A reprieve grants a postponement of
legal punishment.
– A pardon is a release from legal
punishment.
Chief Executive (cont.)
• The president may grant amnesty—
a group pardon to people for an offense
against the government, often in a military
situation.
A presidential rule that has the force of law
is called
A. a presidential ruling.
B. an executive order.
C. an executive law.
D. a presidential veto.
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
A
B
0%
C
0%
D
Chief Legislator
• Congress expects the executive branch to
propose legislation it wishes to see enacted.
• Usually the president describes a legislative
program in the annual State of the Union
message to Congress.
• The president has a large staff to help write
legislation.
• An important presidential tool in lawmaking is
the power to veto any bill the Congress sends
for approval.
In the annual State of the Union message,
the president lays out his legislative
program by addressing
0%
0%
D
B
A
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
C
A. the Supreme Court.
B. his cabinet.
C. Congress.
D. the United Nations.
Economic Planner
• The Employment Act of 1946 gave new
duties to the president:
– It directed the president to submit an
annual economic report to Congress.
– It created a Council of Economic Advisers
to study the economy and help prepare a
report for the president.
Economic Planner (cont.)
– It said that the federal government was
responsible for promoting high employment,
production, and purchasing power.
• It is the president’s duty to prepare an
annual budget.
The creation of the Council of Economic
Advisers stems from
A. Article I of the
Constitution.
B. Congress.
C. the Employment Act
of 1946.
D. the Fifteenth
Amendment.
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
A
B
0%
C
0%
D
Party Leader
• The president’s party expects the chief
executive to be a party leader.
• Presidents are expected to appoint members
of their party to government jobs.
• Political patronage, or appointment to a
political office, rewards the people who have
helped get a president elected.
• If a president appears to act in a partisan way
the media and public may be critical.
The appointment to a political office as a
means of rewarding the people who have
helped get a president elected is called
A. affirmative action.
B. patronage.
C. executive preference.
D. impoundment.
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
A
B
0%
C
0%
D
Chief Diplomat
• The president directs the foreign policy of
the United States, making key decisions
about the relations the United States has
with other countries of the world.
• A struggle continues between the president
and Congress over who will exercise control
of the country’s foreign policy.
• The ability to take decisive action has added
greatly to the power of the presidency in
foreign affairs.
Chief Diplomat (cont.)
• As chief diplomat, the president has sole
power to negotiate and sign treaties—
formal agreements between the
governments of two or more countries.
• Two-thirds of the Senate must approve of all
treaties before they can go into effect.
• The president has the authority to make
executive agreements —pacts between the
president and the head of a foreign
government.
Chief Diplomat (cont.)
• Executive agreements have the same legal
status as treaties but do not require Senate
consent.
• The president decides whether the U.S. will
recognize governments of other countries.
A pact made between the president and the
head of a foreign government, without
Senate consent, is called
A. an executive
agreement.
B. a treaty.
C. a reprieve.
D. patronage.
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
A
B
0%
C
0%
D
Commander in Chief
• The president shares with Congress the
power to make war.
• The president is responsible for the key
military decisions that represent overall policy
and strategy.
• The president has the authority to order the
use of nuclear weapons.
• During war, Congress is likely to give the
president special powers at home as well as
abroad.
With whom does the president share the
power to make war?
A. the Supreme Court
B. Congress
C. the state legislature
D. the armed forces
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
A
B
0%
C
0%
D
Content Vocabulary
• de facto
• covert
• executive privilege
Academic Vocabulary
• survey
• tension
• generate
Reading Strategy
As you read, create a graphic organizer like
the one below to list the reasons for
presidential isolation.
Which leadership quality is most important
for a good president?
A. understanding the
public
B. ability to communicate
C. openness to new ideas
D. ability to compromise
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
A
B
0%
C
0%
D
Increased Responsibilities
• The Founders originally intended for the
Congress, not the president, to lead the
nation.
• Instead the powers and duties of the
president have grown steadily over the
years.
• Public opinion surveys clearly show that
Americans look to the president to keep the
peace and to solve economic and social
problems.
According to public opinion surveys, whom
do Americans expect to keep the peace and
to solve economic and social problems?
A. Congress
B. the president
C. state governments
D. the Supreme Court
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
A
B
0%
C
0%
D
Leadership Qualities and Skills
• A president must know and understand the
American people.
• When a president has public support,
presidential proposals and policies are better
received by Congress than when the public
holds a president in low regard.
• Successful presidents must be able to
communicate effectively and to present their
ideas in a way that inspires public support.
Leadership Qualities and Skills (cont.)
• A successful president must know when the
time is right to introduce a new policy, make
a key decision, or to delay such actions.
• Good leadership also requires the capacity
to be flexible and open to new ideas.
• A successful president must be able to
recognize that sometimes they have to
settle for legislation that provides only part
of the programs they want.
Leadership Qualities and Skills (cont.)
• Successful presidents need political courage
to go against public opinion to do what they
think is best.
Good presidential leadership requires
A. flexibility.
B. the ability to
communicate well.
C. political courage.
D. all of the above.
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
A
B
0%
C
0%
D
Presidential Isolation
• As presidents have become more dependent
on the White House staff, there is the danger
that they will become isolated from solid
information and sound advice.
• Presidents can easily discourage staff
members from disagreeing with them or
giving unpleasant advice.
• Top staffers have easy access to the
president and can use their closeness to
control others’ access.
Presidential Isolation (cont.)
• One of President Reagan’s staffers called
Reagan’s chief of staff the de facto
president, meaning that although he did not
legally hold the office, he exercised the
power as if he were president.
• President Reagan’s isolation made it
believable when he claimed he was unaware
of the covert, or secret, activities of his
National Security Council staff in the IranContra affair.
Presidential Isolation (cont.)
• Keeping in direct touch with the public can be
very difficult for a modern president.
• The need for the cabinet members to protect
the interests of their departments and the
constituent groups they serve always
influences the advice they give.
As presidents rely more on White House
staff, there is an increased danger of
presidential
A. conflict.
B. isolation.
C. misunderstanding.
D. distrust.
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
A
B
0%
C
0%
D
Executive Privilege
• To keep their White House discussions
confidential, modern presidents have
sometimes used executive privilege—
the right of the president and other highranking executive officers, with the
president’s consent, to refuse to provide
information to congress or a Court.
• Presidents claim executive privilege is
necessary to protect their communication
with executive branch staff.
Executive Privilege (cont.)
• As more policy has been made in the
Executive Office of the President, the
constitutionality and limits of executive
privilege have become controversial.
The right of the president and other highranking executive officers to refuse to
provide information to congress or a Court
is called
A. executive espionage.
B. executive order.
C. executive privilege.
D. executive agreement.
A. A
B. B
C. C
0%
0%
D. D
A
B
0%
C
0%
D
Presidential Powers
• Formal powers are granted in Article II of the
Constitution.
• Informal sources of power include the
president’s personal exercise of power, the
immediate needs of the nation, and public
mandates.
• Powers can be limited by Congress, the
federal courts, the bureaucracy, and by public
opinion.
Roles of the President
• Head of State—Performs ceremonial roles
• Chief Executive—Sees that laws of Congress are
carried out
• Chief Legislator—Proposes legislation
• Economic Planner—Prepares federal budget
• Party Leader—Supports party members
• Chief Diplomat—Directs foreign policy
• Commander in Chief—Commands armed forces of
the United States
Presidential Leadership Skills
• Understanding of the public
• Ability to communicate
• Sense of timing
• Openness to new ideas
• Ability to compromise
• Political courage
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