Unit III
Congress, The Presidency, The Beauracracy
Qualifications of
the President
Must be a natural born citizen
Must be at least 35 years of age
 Who’s the youngest
President to take office?
Must be living in the US for 14
years
 You can’t live in Europe and
then run for President
Term limits
 Washington set the
Precedent
 FDR elected 4 times
 22nd Amendment
EWWW!!!!! NO HE CAN’T BE
PRESIDENT
 Generally a figure head
 Carries 2 jobs
 President of the Senate
 Immediate stand in if
the President becomes
incapacitated
 Who can be impeached?
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

President
Vice President
Judges
Senators/Reps.
Cabinet members
 Who have they tried to
impeach in the House?
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
2 Presidents
12 Federal Judges
1 Senator
Several Cabinet Members
Numerous district/circuit
judges
 Impeachment requirements
 Must be found guilty by the
House of Representatives of
crimes that include treason,
bribery, other high crimes or
misdemeanors
 By a majority vote in the
house
 Must be convicted of the crime
befitting removal from office
(violating the oath of office)
 By a 2/3 majority in the
Senate
 Vice President cannot preside
over impeachment hearings
 William Blount-Senator
 Not Guilty
 John Pickering-Judge
 Guilty/Removed
 Samuel Chase-Justice
 Not guilty
 James H. Peck-Judge
 Not guilty
 West H. Humphreys-Judge
 Guilty
 Andrew Johnson-President
 Not Guilty
 Mark Delahay-Judge
 Resigned
 William Belknap-Sec. of War
 Not guilty
 Charles Swayne-Judge
 Not guilty
 Robert Archibald-Judge
 Guilty, removed
 George English-Judge
 Resigned/charges dismissed
 Harold Louderback-Judge
 Not guilty
 Halsted Ritter-Judge
 Guilty/removed from office
 Harry Claiborne-Judge
 Guilty/removed from office
 Alcee Hastings-Judge
 Guilty/removed from office
 Walter Nixon-Judge
 Guilty/removed from office
 William Clinton-President
 Not guilty
 8 Presidents have died in
office
 William Henry
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Harrison
Zachary Taylor
Abraham Lincoln
James Garfield
William McKinley
Warren G. Harding
Franklin Roosevelt
John F. Kennedy
 1947 Congress passed the
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Presidential Succession Act
After the Vice-President
Speaker of the House
President Pro Tempore of Senate
Secretaries of state, treasury, and
defense, and other cabinet heads
in order of creation of their
department
Secretary of Homeland Security
may be moved to 8th spot, after
the attorney general, if the law is
changed
Never been used
 Always been a VP
 Nixon/Ford issue 25th
Amendment
Richard Nixon
Gerald Ford
 Appointment Power
 Power to Convene Congress
 Power to make treaties
 Cannot ratify them
 Veto Power
 Commander in Chief
 War Powers Act of 1973
 Gives the President 60 days of military force prior to asking permission
from Congress
 Gives an additional 30 days if the President formally requests it
 Pardoning Power
 Can pardon anyone convicted of a FEDERAL CRIME
 Nixon-Ford
 Stanley “Tookie” Williams execution
FIVE BEST PRESIDENTS
Lincoln (War Time)
2) FDR (War Time)
3) Washington (1st)
4) T. Roosevelt (War Time)
5) Truman (War Time)
 Almost all of the Best
Presidents were leaders
who exercised the full
power of the Presidential
office
1)
FIVE WORST
PRESIDENTS
Buchannan
2) A. Johnson (impeached)
3) Pierce
4) Harding (died in office)
5) W. Henry Harrison (died
in office)
 All were considered weaker
Presidents who didn’t
exercise Presidential power
1)
Jackson
Lincoln
 Extensively used the veto
 Suspended Habeas
power
 Created the spoils
system
 Created the kitchen
cabinet
 Asserted the supremacy
of the national
government
Corpus
 Expanded the US army
above congress
 Blockaded the south
without the approval of
congress
 Closed the US mail to all
Confederate States
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Creation of more federal
government positions
 Tennessee Valley Authority
 Expansion of the Works
Progress Administration
 Civil Works Administration
Expansion of government into
everyday life
Expansion of the bureaucracy
Made the President a policy maker
New Deal
Executive Office of the
Presidency
Advisory board to the
Presidency
Includes the following
members:
 National Security Council
 Council of Economic
Advisors
 Office of Management and
Budget
 Office of the Vice President
 US Trade Representatives
 Personal Assistants to





the President
Senior aides
Deputies
Assistants
Clerical aides
Administrative aides
 Clinton cut the staff by
15%
 Bush carries 435 staff
members
 OH WHERE OUR TAX
MONEY GOES!!!!!
 The period right after an
 Truman
election where the
Presidents popularity in
the polls is at its highest
 After re-election it’s not
as high as the first
election
 Johnson
 Nixon
 Ford
 Carter
 The Anomalies
 Bush
 Clinton
 George W.
 Neustadt
 presidential power to
persuade
 Going Public
 Mobilizing public
opinion by going
directly to the public
 Going over the heads of
congress to the people
 FDR was the first to give
 Budgetary Process
congress legislation
 Uses a bully pulpit
 Head of a political party
and can call on support
 Office of Management of
the Budget
 Plays a role in deciding
the budget
 Congress still has the
major power of the purse
 1998-Year of the
Balanced Budget
 The Executive Office
 Made up of policymaking and advisory bodies
 Three principle groups: NSC, CEA, OMB
 Executive Orders
 Presidential Records Act
 Office of Homeland
 Blocks the release of
Security
 Congress raised it to a
department status
presidential documents
for 12 years
 Bush has been criticized
for protecting his fathers
administration