The Presidency
Who are these people?
President of the United States
• American public knows more about the presidency than
any other aspect of American Government.
• There is a “general” understanding of the roles that
presidents play: Commander-in-Chief, Political Leader, etc.
• Image of what a president is supposed to be is based on
almost universally recognized “great” presidents:
Washington, Lincoln, and Franklin D. Roosevelt.
This Presidential Image falls far short of reality: The president
is far more limited in power than we think.
The Evolution of
Presidential Power
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History of the Presidency
• Since 1789, the influence and duties of the
presidency have expanded considerably, if not
always in a pattern of constant growth.
• Growth and evolution of the presidency has not
been a straight-line expansion of presidential
power.
• The combination of vigorous skillful presidents and
historical opportunities created by periodic crisis
has allowed presidential powers to expand.
History of the Presidency
1. Presidential actions have had profound consequences for
the nation, in both domestic and foreign policy.
2. Presidents get their power from a variety of sources, from
provisions of the Constitution to their management of
and the actions taken by the executive branch of
government.
3. Presidential power has increased over time, not because
of changes in the Constitution but because of America’s
growth as a nation.
4. There are limits to presidential power—political
compromise, public expectations, domestic and/or
international crisis.
Presidential Actions
• Presidents Washington, Adams, and Jefferson forged
compromises on issues such as choosing a permanent location for
the nation’s capital, establishing the federal courts, and devising a
system for financing the government.
• President James Monroe issued the “Monroe Doctrine” which
stated that America would remain neutral in wars involving
European nations and that these nations must cease attempts to
colonize or occupy areas in North and South America.
• Presidents John Tyler and James Polk oversaw the admission of
the huge territory of Texas into the Union, as well as the
acquisition of land that later became Oregon, Washington, Idaho,
and parts of Montana and Wyoming.
Presidential Actions
• Presidents Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren were
instrumental in forming the Democratic Party and its
local party organizations.
• Abraham Lincoln: helped form the Republican Party in
the 1850s, and played a transformative role in setting
policy as president during the Civil War.
• Raised huge union army
• Directed the conduct of the bloodiest war in US history
• Issued the Emancipation Proclamation—Which freed
the slaves in the South.
Presidential Actions
Presidential actions defined the government’s response to
the Great Depression.
• FDRs “New Deal” reforms created numerous federal
agencies that helped individual Americans and imposed
many new corporate regulations.
- Republican President Hoover: favored only modest
government action, arguing that more substantial
efforts would be of little use.
• President Dwight Eisenhower, whose party initially
opposed many New Deal reforms, presided over the
creation of new federal agencies and the building of the
interstate highway system.
Presidential Actions
Presidents were instrumental in the civil rights reforms
and expansion of the federal government in the 1960s.
• LBJ created a wide range of domestic programs, such as
the Medicare, Medicaid, and federal funding for schools.
- Advocated for Voting Rights and Civil Rights legislation
• LBJ and Nixon directed American involvement in the
Vietnam War—such presidential efforts were not wildly
successful.
Presidential Actions
In the last generation, the political and policy importance of
presidential actions has continued to increase:
• Reagan administration negotiated important arms control
agreements with the Soviet Union (end of Cold War),
introduced a policy platform based on tax cuts, fewer
federal regulations, and smaller government—rethinking
government?
• Clinton presidency was marked by passage of the North
American Free Trade Agreement, welfare reform, and by
having one of the longest periods of economic growth in
US history—achieved the first balanced budgets since the
1960s.
Article II
Defines qualifications, powers, and
duties of the President
The Constitution and the President
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Presidential Qualifications
President must be a “natural-born citizen.”
President must have lived in the US for at least 14
years.
President must be at least 35 years old.
President can be removed by impeachment or,
because of the 25th Amendment, if he is disabled.
Presidential term of office is fixed at four years
(22nd Amendment).
The Constitution and the President
The Constitution in Article II grants a president far less power
and far fewer duties than it gives Congress in Article I.
“The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of
America.”
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Executive power generally means the power to carry out laws.
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The Constitution does not precisely define executive powers, but
does make vague references as to what presidents are to do.
Military Power
Diplomatic Power
Appointment Power
Veto Power
The Constitution and the President
• The oath of office makes a vague reference to
executive power (Section 1 in Article II):
“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the
Office of President of the United States, and will, to the best of my
ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the
United States.”
• The president has the duty to “execute the
office,” and that means whatever presidents
can successfully make it mean.
Presidential Roles
The reasons behind the evolution of the
presidency lie both in the people who have been
president and the powers of the office.
Chief of State
Chief Executive
Chief Diplomat
Commander in Chief
Chief Legislator
Party Leader
Chief of State
• “Chief of State” and “Head of Government.”
• Performs ceremonial functions.
– Official “national” representative,
extraordinary abilities.
blessed
with
• Perception raises public expectations, often
unrealistically, but also bestows a political
advantage.
• Symbol of the country.
Chief Executive
Presidential authority as chief executive comes from Article II in the Constitution:
Article II
“The executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America.”
Chief Executive
• President is head of the executive branch of the federal
government: a bureaucracy that spends $3.8 trillion a year
and employs roughly 2.2 million civilians.
• Executive Orders: Set guidelines for federal agencies and
have the force of law.
– Assist officers and agencies manage the operations within the
federal government.
– Have significant influence over the internal affairs of government:
degree of laws to be enforced, waging war, dealing with
emergencies, etc.
• GWB: War on Terrorism—wiretaps and prisoner interrogation
• Obama: Work permits for young undocumented immigrants
Chief Executive
Executive Orders
• There is no constitutional provision, nor statute, that explicitly permits
executive orders; however, Presidents regularly issue executive orders.
• Executive Orders are proclamations made by the president that change
government policy without congressional approval.
- Executive Orders are limited to purely administrative matters.
• Example: Following the mass shooting of schoolchildren at Sandy Hook
Elementary (Conn), President Obama signed 23 executive orders relating to
gun control.
- Analysis of how many lost or stolen guns are used in subsequent crimes.
- Required the Consumer Product Safety Commission to develop new
requirements for gun locks.
Chief Executive
Appointments
• President appoints ambassadors, senior-level bureaucrats, and
members of the federal judiciary, including the Supreme Court
justices.
• President controls about 8,000 positions, ranging from highprofile jobs such as secretary of state to routine administrative
and secretarial positions.
- About 1,200 appointments (high-level) require Senate
confirmation.
• Appointment impact on Presidential legacy:
• Clinton:
• GWB:
Chief Diplomat
• As leader of the world’s only superpower, a
president’s words and actions matter.
• President has the power to establish relations with
foreign
governments—foreign
leaders,
nongovernmental organizations, etc—appoint U.S.
Ambassadors, and sign treaties that take effect with
the consent of two-thirds of the Senate.
• Senate power to reject treaties has been limited,
due to use of Executive Agreements.
Chief Diplomat
• Executive Agreements do not require Senate approval,
presidential use has increased to hundreds per year.
• Considered “politically binding” not “legally binding”
• Presidents have argued that such agreements usually
concern only minor matters.
• 2013 agreement with Iran on its nuclear program falls under this
presidential power.
• Modern presidents and National Security Agencies in the
executive branch have dominated American foreign policy.
• Restraints on presidential power in foreign affairs are far
fewer than those on domestic matters.
Commander-in-Chief
• Civilian Supremacy over the military: Elected head of government is in charge
of the armed forces.
• Congress has power to declare war, has not done so since the 1940s when the
US entered WWII—in fact, there have been only FIVE declarations of war.
• Presidents initiated US involvement in the Korean and Vietnam wars.
- Congress supported both actions by appropriating money for the armed
forces.
• Constitutional provisions are contradictory, and the Constitution leaves open
the broader question of who controls the military.
- In practice, the president controls the day-to-day military operations through
the Department of Defense and has the power to order troops into action
without explicit congressional approval.
➡Authorization of ships and aircraft to help the Libya opposition; and
Death of Osama bin Laden.
Commander-in-Chief
• Criticism of the president’s unilateral role in Vietnam led to
the War Powers Resolution of 1973: to restrict the
president’s war-making powers.
• War Powers Resolution: Limited the presidential
commitment of troops abroad to a period of 60 days, or 90
days if needed for a successful withdrawal.
• WPR has forced presidents to gain congressional approval, in
the form of congressional resolutions or at least consultation
with congressional leaders (large-scale military action—Iraq).
• Does WPR expand presidential power?
- Unlimited executive control for the first 90 days
Commander-in-Chief
Chief Legislator
• The Constitution establishes lawmaking as a
shared power between the president and
Congress.
- Policy compromise between the two
branches is fundamental to passing laws that
satisfy both the president and Congress.
• The Constitution gives the president the right to
recommend measures to Congress.
Chief Legislator
• President presents his/her administration’s
annual legislative program during the State of
the Union address.
- Annual speech to Congress reporting on the condition
of the country and recommend policies.
- Other: Annual budget message, economic message and
report, and special messages.
• Historically, most bills passed by Congress start
life in the executive branch.
Chief Legislator
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Main constitutional power: Veto
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In practice, the veto is used as a threat to influence legislation while it is still being
considered by Congress.
– Obama: 2009 Military Spending Bill
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Presidents do not have line-item veto authority.