THE PRESIDENT
CHAPTERS 13-17
QUALIFICATIONS AND
SUCCESSION
PART 1
QUALIFICATIONS OF BECOMING
PRESIDENT
• There are both Formal and informal qualifications to
being president
FORMAL QUALIFICATIONS
1. Be a “natural born citizen”
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Must be born in the US or a US territory
A US army post in another country does
count
2. Be at least 35 years of age
3. Have lived in the United States for at
least 14 years
INFORMAL QUALIFICATIONS
• What types of things do you want to
see in a president????????
• Intelligence
• Character
• Age
• Gender
• Background
DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS
OF U. S. PRESIDENTS
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Male - 100%
Caucasian - 97%
Protestant - 97%
British ancestry - 82%
College education - 77%
Politicians - 69%
Lawyers - 62%
Top 3% wealth & social class - At least 50%
Elected from large states - 69%
SIDE NOTE:
• The president can only serve 2 terms
• This was limited with the passing of the 22nd
Amendment (1951)
• FDR was elected 4 times
• The president gets paid around
400,000 dollars a year
• 50,000 dollar a year expense account
• A house, plane and special camp retreat
THE LIST OF
PRESIDENTIAL
SUCCESSION
• You need to know up to
number 5.
• Presidential Succession
Act of 1947:
• set the order of succession
following the Vice President.
• The 25th Amendment,
(1967)
• made it clear that the Vice
President will become
President if the President is
removed from office.
THE VICE PRESIDENT
THE CONSTITUTION GIVES THE VP 2
JOBS:
1. To Preside over the Senate
The VP votes only in the case of a tie
•
2. To help decide the question of presidential
disability
25th Amendment section 3 & 4
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Procedures if the president is disabled
Today:
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The VP is a great Diplomat and spokes person for
the president
THE VP CAN BECOME THE PRESIDENT
• If the president dies.
• If the president is disabled in some way
• This can happen in two ways
1. the President informs Congress, in writing,
“that he is unable to discharge the powers
and duties of his office,” or
2. the Vice President and a majority of the
members of the Cabinet inform Congress, in
writing, that the President is thus
incapacitated.