Chapter 3 - 5/5 - Comparing the US and UK executive Flashcards
What is the State of the Union Address?
It is effectively nothing more than a wish list of what the president wants passed into law - whether it is or not depends entirely on Congress.
What is the UK equivalent of the State of the Union Address?
The Queen’s Speech at the start of every parliamentary session.
If the State of the Union Address is a ‘wish list’, what is the Queen’s Speech?
A ‘to do’ list, containing near certainties rather than requests.
What happens when the president submits a budget to Congress?
It is the start of many months of bargaining in which the president will likely be defeated on may items.
What happens when the UK government submits its budget?
The budget that is submitted is the budget that will pass.
What is the difference between the president’s and the prime minister’s appointing powers to the executive?
The prime minister does not require anyone to confirm their appointments whereas the Senate must confirm the president’s nominations.
What can the president do that the prime minister cannot?
- Veto legislation.
- Appoint federal judges - this was handed over to the JAC in 2006 in the UK.
- Pardon people - the Queen retains this power in the UK.
- The president is head of state and head of government.
What is the president’s continuation in office not dependent on?
Their support in Congress, unlike in the UK where Parliament can remove a prime minister it has lost the confidence of.
What ‘sticks and carrots’ does the president lack?
The stick of party discipline is wholly ineffective; the carrot of appointments to the administration is unwanted.
Why is there no equivalent of PMQs in the US?
The separation of powers means the president cannot enter Congress.
Where does all executive power reside?
With the president, the cabinet has none.
How does the president’s cabinet function?
As an advice-giving body because it has no power of its own.
What is the difference between cabinet members in the US and the UK?
Cabinet members in the US are barred from serving in the legislature due to the separation of powers; in the UK you cannot be part of the cabinet without first being part of the legislature.
How does the hierarchy of cabinet work in the US and UK?
In the US every cabinet member is subordinate to the president, and he is simply first; in the UK the cabinet is a collective decision-making body, with the prime minister as first among equals.
Who approves the cabinet appointments of the prime minister?
No one
