Study Guide Chp 8
THE PRESIDENCY
Main concepts are:
• The Origins of and Rules Governing the Office of President of the United
States
• The Constitutional Powers of the President
• The Development and Expansion of Presidential Power
• The Presidential Establishment
• The President as Policy Maker
• Presidential Leadership and the Importance of Public Opinion
In general, you should understand the following:
1. the roots and rules of the office of president of the United States and the Framers’ creation of a chief executive officer under
the new constitution
2. Article II and the constitutional powers of the presidency
3. the development and expansion of presidential power and a more “personalized” presidency; how presidential success now
depends on his (or her) personality, popularity, leadership style, and position on the range of presidential authority
4. the ever burgeoning presidential establishment made up of advisors,assistants, and departments, all helping the president do
his job, but making it easier for him to lose touch with the people
5. the president as maker of policy
6. presidential leadership and the significance of public opinion: how public
7. opinion affects the presidency and how the president affects public opinion
Chapter Outline and Key Points
The Roots of and Rules Governing the Office of President of the United States
the Royal Governor—
executive branch and the Articles of Confederation—
president of the Congress—
the Constitutional Convention and the executive branch—
the Framers and the president—
Presidential Qualifications and Terms of Office
qualifications—
fear of “constitutional monarch”—
term limit under Article II of Constitution—
Twenty-Second Amendment—
office of vice-president—
impeachment—
only presidents to have been impeached—
only president to resign—
executive privilege—
U.S. v. Nixon (1974)—
Personal Characteristics of the U.S. President (Table 8.1)—
Rules of Succession
first president to die in office—
first president to be assassinated—
Constitutional Line of Succession (Table 8.2)—
Presidential Succession Act of 1947—
Twenty-fifth Amendment—
Lyndon B. Johnson—
Gerald R. Ford—
Spiro T. Agnew—
Nelson A. Rockefeller—
when president unable to fulfill duties—
president can voluntarily relinquish power (example)—
The Constitutional Powers of the President
Article II—
first sentence of Article II—
The Appointment Power
appointment of ambassadors, federal judges, executive positions—
powerful policy making tool—
president’s enforcement power—
President Teams (Table 8.3)—
George W. Bush minority appointments—
Cabinet—
The Power to Convene Congress
The State of the Union—
power to convene Congress—
Hamilton in Federalist No. 77—
power to convene Congress only symbolic significance now (why?)—
The Power to Make Treaties
advise and consent of the Senate—
historically, Senate ratified what percentage of treaties submitted to it by
the president?—
Woodrow Wilson, Treaty of Versailles and League of Nations—
Jimmy Carter and Panama Canal Treaty—
George W. Bush and International Criminal Court (ICC)—
“fast track” authority—
executive agreement—
Treaties and Executive Agreements Concluded by the United States, 17892002 (Table 8.4)—
Veto Power
veto power—
Madison’s argument in Constitutional Convention for veto—
“qualified negative”—
congressional override—
Presidential Vetoes (Table 8.5)—
line-item veto—
1996 bill giving president line-item veto—
Clinton v. City of New York (1998)—
The Power to Preside over the Military as Commander in Chief
Commander in Chief—
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution—
Pentagon Papers—
The War Powers Act of 1973—
opinion of presidents since Nixon on constitutionality of War Power
Act—
George W. Bush and request to Congress for use of force in 2001 and 2002—
The Pardoning Power
pardon—
Gerald Ford and Richard Nixon—
general amnesties—
Jimmy Carter’s unconditional amnesty to draft evaders—
The Development and Expansion of Presidential Power
forty-three presidents, only forty-two men held office—
Harry Truman’s predictions for incoming president, Dwight Eisenhower—
limits on presidential powers—
factors influencing a president’s use of his powers—
The Best and the Worst Presidents (Table 8.6)—
Establishing Presidents’ Authority: The First Presidents
George Washington and the first presidency—
precedents set by presidency of George Washington:
1)
2)
3)
4)
inherent powers—
contributions of John Adams—
contributions of Thomas Jefferson—
Louisiana Purchase of 1803—
Incremental Expansion of Presidential Powers: 1804-1933
balance of power weighed heavily in favor of Congress—
the Framers’ fear—
Andrew Jackson—
Jacksonian democracy—
Jackson’s use of his image and personal power—
Lincoln’s “questionable acts”—
FDR and the Growth of the Modern Presidency
Congress as decision maker before instantaneous communications—
effects to technological changes on public expectations—
The Expansion of Presidential Powers—
four terms of Franklin D. Roosevelt and growth of presidential power—
Great Depression—
New Deal—
FDR personalized the presidency—
FDR’s use of radio—
modern presidency—
The Presidential Establishment
The Vice President
John Adams on the vice presidency—
reason president historically chose their vice presidents—
John Nance Garner—
Dick Cheney—
John Edwards—
Walter Mondale—
Lewis “Scooter” Libby—
The Cabinet
role of the Cabinet as a body—
no provision for Cabinet in Constitution—
new areas of presidential concern leads to new Cabinet offices—
The U.S. Cabinet and Responsibilities of Each Executive Department
(Table 8.7)—
most recently created Cabinet office—
The First Lady
First Lady—
Abigail Adams—
Edith Bolling Galt Wilson—
Eleanor Roosevelt—
Hillary Rodham Clinton—
Laura Bush—
The Executive Office of the President (EOP)
The Executive Office of the President—
prime policy makers—
National Security Council (NSC)—
acting as mini-agencies—
Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives—
The White House Staff
more directly responsible to the president often—
personal assistants to the president—
how the power of the staff is derived—
size and growth of president’s White House staff—
Executive Office Building—
importance of proximity to Oval Office—
The President as Policy maker
FDR’s new model of law-making and policy making—
“…duty of the President…privilege of the Congress….”—
The President’s Role in Proposing and Facilitation Legislation
Contract with America and presumed reassertion of congressional
power—
Clinton’s forceful presence in budgetary process—
George W. Bush, his forceful budgetary presence, and 2006 concern over his continuing deficit spending requests—
president’s most important power (in addition to support of the public)—
presidents’ difficulty in getting Congress to enact their programs—
divided government—
bills central to a president’s announced agenda more successful (e.g.,
George W. Bush’s Iraq war resolution)—
honeymoon period and its importance—
patronage—
use of personal rewards—
Speaker Tip O’Neill and the Carter White House—
president’s use of political party loyalty—
the most effective president as a legislative leader—
The Budgetary Process and Legislative Implementation
importance of budget process for the president—
FDR and the Bureau of the Budget (1939)—
Office of Management and Budget (OMB)—
Policy Making Through Regulation
executive order—
Harry Truman ended segregation in the military—
LBJ and Executive Order 11246—
Ronald Reagan’s executive orders on abortion counseling and fetal tissue
research—
George W. Bush’s executive orders on stem cell research and military
tribunals—
President Bush evisceration of the Presidential Records Act—
thwarting the wishes of Congress—
Presidential Leadership and the Importance of Public Opinion
Presidential Leadership
Barber’s Presidential Personalities (Table 8.8)—
usefulness of presidents increasing public attention to particular issues—
significance of a president’s ability to grasp the importance of leadership style—
power to persuade—
The President and Moral Leadership—
Going Public: Mobilizing Public Opinion
Theodore Roosevelt and the bully pulpit—
development of communications technology—
“going public”—
Bill Clinton’s effective use of the media as candidate and president—
George W. Bush and going directly to the people—
The Public’s Perception of Presidential Performance
cyclical pattern of presidential popularity—
highest level of approval at what point?—
every action a president takes is divisive—
only four presidents since Lyndon Johnson have left office with approval ratings over 50 percent—
Presidential Approval Ratings Since 1953, by Party—
surge in president’s approval ratings in his term—
George W. Bush “rallying” point due to foreign events—
George W. Bush low approval ratings and Democratic takeover of U.S.
House and Senate in 2006 election—
resignation of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld—