Chapter 8
Section 1
President and Vice President
Mr. Young
American Government
Truman on ascending to the
Presidency
►“
I don’t know whether you fellows ever had
a load of hay fall on you, but when they told
me yesterday what happened (Roosevelt
died), I felt like the moon, the stars and all
the planets had fallen on me.”
Harry Truman 1945
Qualities and Qualifications video
► http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDFdsM
W-CwE&feature=related
Five Living Presidents
Team Teach: Can you name all of them?
Essential Question
►What
qualifications for
the office of president do
you think are most
necessary for carrying out
the duties of the
president.
Duties of the President
► These
have changed
over time.
► Constitution gives
president responsibility
to appoint—with
Senate consent—heads
of executive
departments, federal
court judges, and
other top officials
President Duties Video
► http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDvtGr3
FI84
Duties Cont.
►Most
important
duty: To ensure
that all laws of
the United
States are
“Faithfully
executed”
Duties Cont.
►A
president may
pardon people
convicted of federal
crimes, except in cases
of impeachment
Duties Cont.
► President
has
lawmaking power
and expected to take
some leadership in
proposing policy
changes (Obama and
Health Care)
► Each year President
makes a State of the
Union address
Presidential Term
► George
Washington
set a precedent for
only two, 4 years
terms, broken by
Franklin D. Roosevelt
► Lead to the 22nd
Amendment
► Can potentially serve
10 years in office
Presidential Salary
► Constitution
did not
specify compensation,
or salary
► President makes
$400,000, $50,000
annual expense
account, $100,000
non-taxable travel
account, and 19,000
for entertainment
Presidential pay history
Date
establish
ed
Salary
Salary in
2009
dollars
September
24, 1789
$25,000
$566,000
March 3,
1873
$50,000
$865,000
March 4,
1909
$75,000
$1,714,000
January 19,
1949
$100,000
$906,000
January 20,
1969
$200,000
$1,175,000
January 20,
2001
$400,000
$487,000
White House Staff
►Presidents
receive free
medical, dental,
and health care
►Receive lifetime
compensation of
$148,400 a year
White House Videos
► http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=
4316690n
Map of White House
Presidential Luxuries
White House 132 Rooms
Vice-President’s House
Oval Office
Air Force One
Air Force One
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=CZiyW03ffW4
Doomsday Plane
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S
MK5bmdAEHc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m
eIuEVhyROQ
Swimming Pool built by Gerald Ford
White House Bowling Alley
White House Private Movie Theater
White House Tennis Courts
White House Basketball Court
White House Putting Green
Play it where it lies, Mr. President
►
►
►
The White House Putting Green lies a short walk outside the Oval Office door to the
southeast. A putting green was first installed by President Dwight Eisenhower in
1954 with help from the United States Golf Association and private donations. Ike
had difficulty keeping the squirrels (which Harry Truman had nearly tamed by
hand-feeding them) from burying nuts in the green and joked that the Secret
Service should shoot them. He resorted to having the groundkeeping staff trap and
relocate them. Eisenhower was a very avid golfer and was sometimes criticized for
it, but he and his doctor readily defended the habit as good for his health, which
had suffered during his presidency.
Most modern presidents after Ike have been avid golfers, including his successor,
John Kennedy, who, sensitive to the criticism aimed at Eisenhower for golfing on
weekday afternoons, kept his habit a closely-guarded secret and even let
Eisenhower's putting green grow out, although it was later renovated. Other avid
golfers include Gerald Ford, George HW Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W Bush.
Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Ronald Reagan were casual golfers.
Bill Clinton had the putting green moved to its current location and—according to
Time in 1995—designed by golf course architect Robert Trent Jones Jr. The Clinton
green is 1,500 sq. ft. of southshore creeping bentgrass.
Team Teach Question
► In
your opinion, what would be the best
perk/coolest thing about being President of
the United States of America?
Constitutional Presidential
Qualifications
Article 2, Section
1
1. Natural born US
citizen
2. 35 years old
3. Resident of US
for 14 years
►
Personal
Qualities
►Governmental
experience is
important
►Political careers
provide alliances
and name
recognition
Qualifications Video
► http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDHr1IM
xqwo&feature=related
Team Teach Question
► Do
you believe that it is harder or easier for
a person who has been in the Senate or
House of Representatives for a long period
of time to win the Presidency of the United
States?
Money/
Political Beliefs
►Requires
large
amounts of
money, some of
the candidate’s
own
►Usually choose
candidate’s
whose beliefs are
moderate
Personal Characteristics
► Most
come from
Northern European
Backgrounds
► Most are from middleclass families
► Have generally been
white, married,
Protestant, and
financially successful
men
Personal Growth of Presidents
►
“The Presidency of the
United States carries with
it a responsibility so
personal as to be without
parallel…No one can make
decisions for him…Even
those closet to him…never
know all the reasons why
he does certain things and
why he comes to certain
conclusions. To Be
President of the United
States is to be lonely,
very lonely at times of
great decisions.”
Presidential
Succession
► Eight
presidents have
died in office
► Succession Act of 1947
established presidential
succession order and
was added to
Constitution in 25th
Amendment
Office
Current officer
President of the United States
Barack Obama (D)
Vice President of the United
States
Joe Biden (D)
Speaker of the House
John Boehner (R)
President pro tempore of the
Senate
Daniel Inouye (D)
Secretary of State
Hillary Rodham Clinton (D)
Secretary of the Treasury
Timothy Geithner (I)[3]
Secretary of Defense
Leon Panetta (D)
Attorney General
Eric Holder (D)
Secretary of the Interior
Ken Salazar (D)
Secretary of Agriculture
Tom Vilsack (D)
Secretary of Commerce
John Bryson (D)
Secretary of Labor
Hilda Solis (D)
Secretary of Health and Human
Kathleen Sebelius (D)
Services
Secretary of Housing and Urban
Shaun Donovan (D)
Development
Secretary of Transportation
Ray LaHood (R)
Secretary of Energy
Steven Chu (D)
Secretary of Education
Arne Duncan (D)
Secretary of Veterans Affairs
Eric Shinseki*
Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano (D)
Presidential
Disability
►
1.
2.
Vice president
becomes acting
president under two
conditions:
President informs
Congress of an
inability to perform
duties
Vice-Pres and majority
of cabinet or another
body authorized by law
informs Congress
Vice-Presidential
Roles
1.
2.
►
►
Presides over Senate
and votes in case of a
tie
VP helps decide
whether President is
disabled
President assigns VP
power and
responsibility
Serve on National
Security Council and
represent president
overseas