President Flashcards
Domestic Politics
Issues within the USA that directly concern citizens, for example gun control, healthcare and racial issues.
Electoral mandate
An electoral mandate is the permission granted to a political leader or winning party to govern and act on their behalf.
E.G President Biden was elected in 2020, the mandate is in effect as long as he is in power.
Executive branch
This is headed by the president and is one of the three branches of government, the other two are the legislative branch and the Judiciary.
Executive Orders
This is an official document issued by the executive branch with the force of law, through wich the president directs federal officials to take certain actions.
They can be a alternative to legislation in congress.
Unified government
This is where both houses of congress and the presidency are controlled by the same party.
Formal sources of presidential power
- Given and outlined by Article II of the consitution
- Head of state
- Head of government
Head of Government
The president is the chief executive and as such is head of the executive branch. Article II hands the president therefore some ‘enumerated’ powers that have been explicitly written in the consitution.
Enumerated powers
- Executive powers
- Legislative powers
- Appointment powers
- Foreign affaris powers
- The power of pardon
Executive powers
- Chief executive of the federal government
- Submit the annual budget
Presidential power - Submit the annual budget
- The budget is drawn up by The Office of Management of the budget (OMB), part of the executive office. The president then submits it to congress where it has to be approved.
- This is followed by a lengthy bargaining and negotiation process between congress and the president, particulary if they are controlled by opposing parties.
ESSAY E.G - 2019 government shutdown, the longest in US history.
- It occured when the 116th congress and the president could not agree on an approprations bill to fund the operations of the federal government for the 2019 fiscal year.
- 9 executive departments had to shutdown as a result.
Legislative powers
- Proposing legislation
- Signing legislation
- Vetoing legislation
Presidential power - Propose legislation
- Article II gives the power to propose legislation to congress.
- He may do this through a annual state of union adress.
- He can do this at anytime, by calling a press conference ir making a announcement at a public event.
ESSAY E.G - In 2018 Donald Trump used his state of union adress to promise a crackdown on immigration, keeping open Guantanamo Bay and blostering the USAs nuclear arsenal.
- In Bidens 2021 SoU he outlines the American Job plan, part of the Build Back Better ACT.
Presidential Power - Signing legislation
- Once a bill has been passed through congress presidents have several options, the most likely is to sign the bill into law.
- This can be done in a elaborate ceremony with relevant members of congress and officials.
- A president may do this in order to take credit for legislation and publicly show his support for a certain issue, possibly in a bid to increase his poppularity.
ESSAY E.G - At the Obamacare (ACA) ceremony in 2010, senior democrats were joined with a 11 year old Marcelas Owens, who campaigned after his mum dies without health insurance.
Presidential Power - Vetoing Legislation
Instead of signing a bill into law, the prime minister has the option to veto a vill after it has passed the neccesary processes in the legislator, this will result in the bill being sent back to congress.
- Vetos can be overturned by congress, this is only possible if 2/3 of each chamber agree.
- Over 1500 presidential vetos have been used.
- Trump made 8 vetos.
- Obama made 12 and only the final one was overturned.
ESSAY E.G
Clinton, Partial-birth abortion bill Veto 1996
Bush, in 2007 Congress passed a bill to withdraw from Iraq, this was vetoed by buch and it was failed to be overturned.
Appointment powers
- Nominating executive branch officials
- Nominating all federal judges
Presidential Power - Nominate executive branch officials
The president has the power to nominate all officials in the executive branch. The most important of such are the heads of the 15 executive departments that make up the cabinet. Treasury, State and argiculture etc.
- All appointments must be confirmed by a single majority vote in the senate.
ESSAY E.G
Biden appoited Antony Blinken as his secratary of state in 2021.
Presidential Power - Nominate all federal judges
These include SCOTUS justices, but also judges that sit on federal trial and appeal courts.
- All appointments are for life, the senate must confirm all of these by a simple majority.
ESSAY E.G
Donald Trump nominate federal appeal court justice Britt Grant
He also appointed Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanuagh and Amy Coney Barrett.
Presidential Power - Foreign affairs powers
- Acting as commander-in-chief
- Negotiating treaties
Presidential Power - Acting as commander-in-chief
Between the 1940s and 1980s this power was hugely signifcant and presidents were seen as playing a highly signifcant role as commander-in-chief of the armed forces.
- After the fall of the USSR this power declined in importance, but after 2001 and the events of semptember 11th this all changed, bush was forced to intervene in Afghanistan and Iraq, whilst Obama was drawn into crisis in Iraq, Libya and Syria.
- Congress has the power to declare war, given to it by the constitution. But the President now can ask Congress to ‘authorise’ the use of troops.
War Power Resolution 1973
- Checks the presidents power to commit the USA towards armed conflict.
- The President can send the US armed forces into action abroad only by declaration of war by congress, authorization, or in a case of ‘national emergency created by attack upon the US its territories or possessions’.
- The president must notify congress within 48 hours of committing armed forces to military action, if congressional authorization for military force a a decleration of war is not given by congress, toops must no remain for more than 60 days.
Presidential Power - Negotiating treaties
- Presidents have the power to negotiate international treatiers.
- However these must be ratified by a 2/3 majority in the senate
ESSAY E.G - The senate rejected 7 treaties in the 20th century including Clintons Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, which would have prohibited ‘any nuclear weapon test explosion or any other nuclear explosion’. This failed to get even a simple majority in the senate.
- Obamas ‘New start’ treaty was a nuclear arms treaty with russia reducing the number of strategic missile launchers in 2011.
- USA-Mexico-Canada trade agreement 2020 replaced NAFTA that had expired, ratified by senate.
Presidential Power - Pardon
Presidents have the power of Pardon.
- In 1974 Ford pardoned his predecessor Richard Nixon over all Watergate related matters.
- Clinton pardoned 140 people on his final day in office.
- Obama pardoned only 70 people in his first 7 years in office, but 142 in his last month.
Informal powers of the president
- The electoral mandate
- Executive orders
- Signing statments
- Executive agreements
- National events
- Powers of pursuasion
The electoral mandate
- The larger the presidents electoral mandate at the last election, the greater his chance of success in convincing congress
ESSAY E.G - Ronald Reagan was potentially in a very strong position after his second term in 1984, as he was realected with 59% of the popular vote and victory in 49 states.
- Bill CLinton was only elected with 43% of the vote, and George W Bush was in a very weak position as he lost the popular vote to opponent Al Gore.
