PRESIDENT - powers of the president Flashcards
CONSTITUTION
section I of article II
sets out NATURE of presidency
it states exec powers vested in the president
4-year terms
requirements = must be 35+, US-born citizen, and a resident of 14 years.
CONSTITUTION
section II of article II
outlines POWERS of the president.
commander in chief, can pardon people, make treaties, appoint judges, ambassadors, and officials, and can consult a cabinet.
CONSTITUTION
section III of article II
explores RESPONSIBILITIES of the president.
SoU address, special sessions of Congress, receive ambassadors, and to faithfully execute laws.
CONSTITUTION
section IIII of article II
explores the RESTRICTIONS of the presidency and the executive.
impeachment for ‘Treason, Bribery, or other high crimes and Misdemeanours’
what do enumerated powers mean?
these are powers specifically laid out in the Constitution.
e.g., approve/veto legislation, commander in chief, and negotiation of treaties, SoU address
what do implied powers mean?
these are powers that are implied or interpreted as necessary to fulfil the enumerated powers.
e.g., establish a cabinet of the govt, exec orders, exec agreements, exec privilege.
how have further constitutional amendments reflected why article II is far shorter than article I?
article II is far shorter than article I because the founding fathers were fearful of a tyrannical government similar to the British.
e.g., 22nd Amendment limits any president to two terms only.
POWERS
legislative powers
veto - Biden hasn’t vetoed anything yet
veto = very blunt political tool to override legislation he doesn’t like.
Iran War Powers Resolution 2020 - the Senate sustained on War Powers in Iran.
Trump vetoed the resolution which was a bipartisan effort to rein in presidential authority to use military force in Iran without congressional approval.
it was passed with bipartisan senate support and a Democrat House passed it successfully too - it was triggered by the use of AUMFs to kill Qasem Soleimani (Iran general).
the UN called it unlawful.
POWERS
state of the union address
the Constitution outlines this as an enumerated power - it’s an annual address delivered by the president in Congress outlining his legislative agenda for the upcoming year.
March 2022 - Biden began the SoU with Russian invasion of Ukraine, condemning Putin and encouraging a round of applause for the Ukrainian ambassador to the US. Domestic policy saw division between Reps and Dems with boos erupting from the Reps when Biden said the 2017 tax cuts benefitted the rich and not the poor. Rep for Colorado Lauren Boebert yelled out at Biden accusing him of putting American troops in coffins. She was joined by Marjorie Taylor Greene when Greene started chanting ‘build the wall’ when Biden began discussing immigration reform.
POWERS
appointments
the president can appoint 4000 officials, though 1,200 of them need Senate confirmation.
2020 Amy Coney Barrett and the hypocrisy in comparison to the 2016 failure of Merrick Garland’s nomination to SCOTUS.
POWERS
what are recess appointments?
these are temporary appointments of the president made without senate approval when it is in recess - these expire at the end of the next session and the president must formally appoint the person or he must pick someone else to nominate.
IT DOESN’T NEED SENATE APPROVAL.
no. of recess appointments is declining steadily = Obama only made 32 appointments, when Bush made 171.
POWERS
executive orders
a directive issued to the federal bureaucracy regarding how the president would like certain pieces of legislation to be interpreted and enforced.
Muslim Ban - Trump passed the controversial exec order 13769 which banned Muslim immigration from six muslim-majority countries. The ban was created in 2017 but repealed by Biden on his first day in office 2021.
POWERS
signing statements
statement issued by the president regarding a bill that he has just signed into law which points out the positives and negatives of a bill from the president’s perspective.
presidents are using this increasingly - Trump issued 716 signing statements, which was 12 times more than Obama.
POWERS
commutation and pardons
the difference between a commutation and pardon is that a commutation is the ability to reduce a sentence for a crime which frees people from current sentences, whereas pardons erase criminal records AFTER the time is served.
on his last day, Obama issued 330 commutations to people convicted of drug offences which reflected his view that the war on drugs was an utter failure.
Chelsea Manning’s sentence, which she served from 2010-2017, was for being a whistleblower, leaking 750,000 classified documents to WikiLeaks. Obama commuted her sentence and of the 35 years, she only served 3 years.
POWERS
commander in chief
president is the head of the army and the navy - though congress can only declare war.
Biden’s role in the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan in Aug/Sep 2021 is an example of the role of commander in chief.
