Chapters 14 and 16
The Presidency and the
Bureaucracy
President
• Qualifications to be President:
– 35 years old at time of inauguration
– A natural born US citizens
– US resident for at least 14 years
Roles of the President
• The President assumes five different
roles
• Head of State
– The role of the president as the
ceremonial head of government.
– In most democracies, someone other than
the elected leader is head of state (such
as the Queen of England)
Roles of the President
• Chief Executive
– The role of the President as head of the
executive branch of government.
– Bound to faithfully execute laws,
judgments of courts, and treaties of the
United States.
– The President has “Appointment Power”
and is at the top of the “Civil Service”
Roles of the President
• Take Care Clause
– Constitutional clause granting the
President the authority and leeway to
determine if laws are being “faithfully
executed” and to take action if in his
judgment, they are not.
Roles of the President
• Commander in Chief
– The role of the President as supreme
commander of the military forces of the
United States and of the state National
Guard units when they are called into
federal service.
– Though the Congress has the power to
declare war, the President can commit
troops to situations which are the
equivalent of war.
Roles of the President
• War Powers Resolution
– A law passed in 1973 spelling out the
condition under which the President can
commit troops without congressional
approval.
– Once troops are sent, the President must
report to Congress within 48 hours.
Forces must be withdrawn if Congress
does not approve of the use of troops
within 60 (sometimes 90) days.
Roles of the President
• Chief Diplomat
– The role of the President in recognizing
foreign governments, making treaties, and
effecting executive agreements.
Roles of the President
• The President has the sole authority to
negotiate treaties, which are approved
under advice and consent of the
Senate
• Advice and Consent
– Terms in the Constitution describing the
US Senate’s power to review and approve
treaties and Congressional appointments.
Roles of the President
• Executive Agreement
– An international agreement in which the
United States becomes a party once the
president has signed it, without requiring
approval from the Senate.
Roles of the President
• Chief Legislator
– The role of the President in influencing
the making of laws.
– Presidents recommend to Congress that
legislation which they feel is necessary.
Roles of the President
• Necessary and Expedient Clause
– Constitutional clause that authorizes the
President to recommend legislation to
Congress.
Roles of the President
• Veto
– The power of the President to reject
legislation passed by Congress.
– Congress can override with a 2/3 majority
• Pocket Veto
– If the President does not sign a bill within
10 days AND Congress adjourns during that
time, the bill dies and Congress cannot
override.
Roles of the President
• Line Item Veto
– Authority of a chief executive to reject
part of a bill passed by a legislature.
– Does not exist for the President today (it
did exist from 1996-1998)
– It does, however, exist for the Missouri
Govenor.
Roles of the President
• Veto Message
– The President’s formal explanation of a
veto, which accompanies the verbal
legislation when it is returned to
Congress.
Roles of the President
• Signing Statement
– A written declaration that the President
may make when signing a bill into law. It
may contain instructions to the
bureaucracy on how to administer the law
or point to sections of the law that the
President considers unconstitutional or
contrary to national interests.
Roles of the President
• Executive Order
– Presidential directive or proclamation that
has the force of law.
– Typically gives direction to the
implementation of legislation.
Roles of the President
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Head of State
Chief Executive
Commander in Chief
Chief Diplomat
Chief Legislator
Becoming President
• Primary Election
- A form of election in which voters choose
a party’s nominees for public office. In
most primaries, eligibility to vote is
limited to voters who are registered
members of the party.
Becoming President
• How the primaries work
– In a primary election, voters select the
person they wish to get the party’s
nomination. However, they are actually
voting for delegates to attend the national
convention who have already pledged
their support to that particular candidate
– While this pledge is not binding, most
always delegates vote for who they are
pledged.
Becoming President
• In addition to the delegates selected at the
state level, super delegates also attend the
convention to vote for the Presidential
Nominee
• Super Delegate
- A party leader or elected official who is given the
right to vote at the party’s national convention.
Super delegates are not elected at the state
level.
- Example: A senator or governor being rewarded
for long term service to the party.
Becoming President
• Because of the influence of the media,
a candidate that won an early primary
or caucus (such as Iowa or New
Hampshire) would have the advantage
of being a front runner.
• Front-Runner
– The Presidential candidate who appears to
be ahead at a given time in the primary
season.
Becoming President
• States saw an advantage of holding
early primaries: It got them media
attention and allowed them to be
significant in the nomination process.
• As such, states started moving their
primaries to earlier and earlier times,
front loading the primaries
Becoming President
• Front Loading
– The practice of moving presidential
primary elections to the early part of the
campaign, to maximize the impact of
these primaries on the nomination.
• Because of frontloading, more than
half the nation's primaries are held
between the middle of January and the
first week of February
Becoming President
• After the primaries, comes the
national convention in which the
nomination for President is officially
made.
• Since most candidates come to the
convention with enough delegates
pledged to win the election, the
conventions are mostly a formality and
an excuse to show party pride and
make speeches.
Becoming President
• The Changing Campaign
– Before most households had televisions,
campaigning was personalized. Campaigns
today are often less personal, with voters
receiving information through the media.
– In recent decades campaigns have become
less party-centered and more candidatecentered.
Becoming President
• Today, especially in national elections,
professionals are hired to run
campaigns, rather than the volunteers
of old
• Political Consultant
- A paid professional hired to devise a
campaign strategy and manage a
campaign.
Becoming President
• Visibility and Appeal
– While a highly visible incumbent may not
need to do much to remind voters of their
good deeds, an unknown challenger going
against a well known public office holder
needs to get themselves out in front of
the public.
Becoming President
Becoming President
Becoming President
Becoming President
• Use of opinion polls
– Politicians rely on both the national polls
and private poll conducted by their party
to determine where they stand in the
minds of voters, and strategize
accordingly
– Tracking poll
• A poll taken for the candidate on a nearly
daily basis as Election Day Approaches.
Becoming President
• Focus Groups
- A small group of individuals who are led in
discussion by a professional consultant to
gather opinions on, and responses to,
candidates and issues.
- Through these video taped discussions,
candidates learn the true feelings of
selected target groups, and tailor the
campaign accordingly.
Electoral College
• When casting a vote in a Presidential
election, people are actually casting a vote
for an Elector
• Elector
– A member of the electoral college, which selects
the president and vice president. Each state’s
electors are chosen in each presidential election
year according to state laws.
– There are 538 electors (100 for the amount of
senators, 435 for amount of representatives and
3 for Wash. DC) A person must get 270 electoral
votes to win the election.
Electoral College
• The Electoral College operates on a
system of Unit Rule in every state by
Nebraska and Maine.
• Unit Rule
– The rule that grants all of a state’s
electoral votes to the candidate who
receives the most popular votes in the
state.
Electoral College
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Takes the vote out of the cities
Maintains Federalism
Neutralizes turnout differences
Maintains the two party system, which
has proven to be stable.
Electoral College
• Popular vote not mattering
• Electors no longer use their discretion
in choosing the President, instead they
are already committed.
• Certain states “matter” more than
others, and thus get more attention
• Disproportionate representation (in
Wyoming (3 electoral votes) there is
one vote per each 164,594 people; in
California (55 electoral votes) there is
one vote per each 418,046 people)
Federal Executive Branch
• Cabinet
– A group consisting of the heads of the
executive departments who are appointed
by the President, subject to confirmation
by the Senate. The cabinet was once the
main advisory body to the President but it
no longer plays this role.
• The “traditional”
Cabinet
- Presidents may
add others as they
see fit.
Federal Executive Branch
• White House Office
– The personal office of the President, which tends
to presidential political needs and manages the
media
• Chief of Staff
– The person who is named to direct the White
House Office, and advise the President.
• Executive Office of the President
– An organization with the purpose of assisting the
President in carrying out major duties.
Federal Executive Branch
• Vice President
• The Vice President’s Job
– Strengthening the Ticket
– Supporting the President
• Presidential Succession
• When the Vice Presidency Becomes
Vacant
• Line off Presidential
Succession
• Impeachment
– An action by the House of Representatives to
accuse the President, Vice President, or other
civil officers of the United States of committing
“Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and
Misdemeanors”
– The House draws up the charges and decides to
move forward. The actual trial happens in the
Senate.
– Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton were both
impeached by the House but acquitted by the
Senate. Richard Nixon was in the impeachment
process when he resigned.
Bureaucracy
• Bureaucracy
– A group of departments, agencies, and
other institutions that for the most part
are located in the executive branch of
government and that develop and
implement public policy.
Bureaucracy
• To speak of the Bureaucracy is to
speak of the countless agencies,
administrators, and employees who
comprise the numerous government
programs and make them possible.
Bureaucracy
• Hierarchical Authority
– A basic principle of bureaucracy that refers to
the chain of command within and organization
whereby officials and units have control over
those below them.
• Job Specialization
– A basic principle of bureaucracy holding that the
responsibilities of each job position should be
explicitly defined and that a precise division of
labor within the organization should be
maintained.
Bureaucracy
• Formalized Rules
– A basic principle of bureaucracy that
refers to the standardized procedures and
established regulations by which a
bureaucracy conducts its operations.
Bureaucracy
• Cabinet Departments
– The major administrative units composed
of many agencies serving many functions.
– Each department is headed by a secretary
except the justice department. These are
presidential appointments.
– Each department has responsibility for a
major function of the federal government,
such as defense agriculture or justice
Bureaucracy
• Independent Agencies
– Bureaucratic organizations that operate
outside of Cabinet-level departments and
are less subject to congressional or
presidential influence.
– Example: National Aeronautics and Space
Administration
Bureaucracy
• Regulatory Agencies and Commsions
– Administrative units, such as the Federal
Communications Commission and the
Environmental Protection Agency, that
have responsibility for the monitoring and
regulation of ongoing activities.
Bureaucracy
• Government Corporations
– A corporation created and funded by the
government to provide some public
service that would be insufficiently
provided by the private sector
– Amtrak or the USPS
Bureaucracy
• Presidential Commissions
– Advisory organizations within the
bureaucracy that are headed by
commissioners appointed by the
president. An example is the commission
on Civil Rights.
Bureaucracy
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Cabinet Departments
Independent Agencies
Regulatory Agencies
Government Corporations
Presidential Commissions
Bureaucracy
• Functions of the Bureaucracy
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Implement Laws
Make Rules
Provide Expert Advice
Settle Disputes
Bureaucracy
• Spoils System
– A system of government in which a
presidential administration awards jobs to
party loyalists
• Civil Service (Merit) System
– System of government in which decisions
about hiring, promotion, and firing are
based on individuals’ work experience,
skills and expertise.
Bureaucracy
• Neutral Competence
– The administrative objective of a meritbased bureaucracy.
– Competent – The employees are hired and
retained on the basis of expertise
– Neutral – Operates by objective standards
rather than partisan ones.
Problems with
Bureaucracies
• Slack
– A situation in which bureaucrats do not
work as hard as Congress or the President
would like
• Drift
– Situation in which bureaucrats create
policy that does not mach the policy
preferences of Congress or the President.
Problems with
Bureaucracies
• Agency Capture
– The condition under which an agency
primarily serves the interests of a
nongovernmental group rather than those
of elected officials.
• Red Tape
– The inefficiency and waste that result
from excessive regulation and overly
formal procedures.
Missouri Executive Branch
• The Missouri Executive Branch is
composed of six elected offices and
sixteen executive departments.
Missouri Executive Branch
• Governor
– Chief executive in the state
– Appoints the members of all boards and
commissions, and all state government
department heads.
– Sings or vetoes laws passed by the General
Assembly
– Grant reprieves or pardons
– Commander in chief of the Missouri
National Guard
Missouri Executive Branch
• The Current
Governor of
Missouri is Jay
Nixon.
Missouri Executive Branch
• Attorney General
– Chief Legal Officer
– Must prosecute or defend all appeals to
which the state is a party, including all
felony criminal cases appealed to the
Supreme Court of Missouri or the Missouri
Court of Appeals.
– Must use civil suit when necessary to
protect the state’s rights, interests or
claims.
Missouri Executive Branch
• The Current
Attorney
General in
Missouri is Chris
Koster
Missouri Executive Branch
• Auditor
– Chief Fiscal Regulator
– Conducts financial and performance audits
for state agencies, boards, and
commissions.
– Can be requested to audit cities and
counties
Missouri Executive Branch
• The current
Auditor in
Missouri is
Thomas A.
Schweich
Missouri Executive Branch
• Lieutenant Governor
– Assumes powers and duties of Governor
when Governor is unable to fulfill them
due to absence or inability.
– Elected separate from the Governor.
– Presides over the Senate, able to cast a
tie breaking vote and participate in
debate.
– Sits on several boards and commissions.
Missouri Executive Branch
• The current
Lieutenant
Governor in
Missouri is Peter
Kinder.
Missouri Executive Branch
• Secretary of State
– State’s main election official, operating
the office that registers candidates.
– Prepares the official ballot for elections
– Deals with business filings
– Office serves as a repository for public
records
Missouri Executive Branch
• The current
Secretary of State
is Jason Kander
Missouri Executive Branch
• Treasurer
– Manages State Revenues, Investments,
Unclaimed Property, and Tuition Savings
Program.
– Serves as Banking Director for State
Government
– Reports on State’s Financial Activities
– Manages Money and Security Transfers.
Missouri Executive Branch
• The current
Treasurer in
Missouri is Clint
Zweifel
Missouri Executive Branch
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Department of Administration
Department of Agriculture
Department of Conservation
Department of Corrections
Department of Economic Development
Department of Elementary and
Secondary Education
Missouri Executive Branch
• Department of Health and Senior
Services
• Department of Higher Education
• Department of Insurance, Financial
Institutions and Professional
Registration
Missouri Executive Branch
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Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
Department
of Labor
of Mental Health
of Natural Resources
of Public Safety
of Revenue
of Social Services
of Transportation