The executive branch of government: president

Question 1

What are the sources of presidential power?

Answer 1

1. Detailed powers in the constitution.
   E.g. president is commander-in-chief, given to him by Article II, Section II, Clause I of the constitution. Obama used this power in his Libyan air strikes in 2011
2. Congress, who delegates powers to the president.
   E.g. Congress has delegated the power to impose trade tariffs against a country engaged in ‘unfair’ trade practices. In 2018 Trump announced the introduction of tariffs on steel imports.
3. Implied authority from the Constitution or Congress.
   E.g. Emergency powers if required by circumstances. FDR used emergency powers to force Japanese-Americans into internment camps during WW2.
4. The president’s constitutional role as head of executive, not specifically set out in the constitution buy required for the president to carry out his role as chief executive.
   E.g. after 9/11 George W. Bush argued that his constitutional war powers gave him authority to detain terrorist suspects and have them transported to other countries for interrogation and torture.

Question 2

What are the formal powers of the president?

Answer 2

1. Legislative powers, including initiating/signing legislation, vetoing legislation.
   E.g. Obama vetoed the restoring Americans’ Healthcare Freedom Reconciliation Act of 2015.
2. President has the power of pardon.
   E.g. President Ford pardoned Nixon over Watergate
3. Foreign affairs powers.
   E.g. president can initiate military action, such as Obama’s missile strikes in Libya
4. Nominating officials to executive branch, and nominating federal judges.
   E.g. Obama nominated Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor, although they had to be confirmed by the Senate.

Question 3

What are the informal powers of the president?

Answer 3

1. Agenda setting.
   E.g. Trump used Twitter to commandeer the political agenda with controversial tweets and forcing the media to focus on his chosen issues such as immigration and North Korea.
2. World leader.
   E.g. Obama played a key role in the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change
   E.g. Trump showed less interest in international leadership by withdrawing Paris Agreement, imposing tariffs on imported steel and sending mixed signals about the US commitment to NATO.
3. Direct authority (e.g. executive orders)
   E.g. Obama relied on executive orders after he became frustrated with Congress’s resistance to his agenda. He used a executive orders commit the USA to the Iran nuclear deal in 2015 and increase minimum wage.

Question 4

What are the constraints on the President?

Answer 4

1. Checks and balances by Congress
2. Checks and balances by judiciary
3. Other constraints, such as state governors and interest groups
   E.g. Democrat Californian governor Jerry Brown campaigned against President Trump’s withdrawal from the 2015 Climate Agreement
   E.g. the National Rifle Association successfully motivated Congress and its supporters to resist Obama’s efforts to introduce gun control.

Question 5

What is the relationship between the presidency and other institutions?

Answer 5

1. The president’s relationship with of the cabinet varies from one president to another.
   E.g. Obama met with his cabinet an average of 3.5 times per year, compared to 6 times under George W. Bush.
2. The president’s relationship with of the National Security Council varies from one president to another.
   E.g. Obama worked very closely Rahm Emanuel, the chief of staff, allowing him considerable influence and authority, even over cabinet ministers.
   E.g. Trump’s first chief in staff, Reince Priebus, resigned after little more than 6 months. Trump frequently sacked officials.
3. The president’s relationship with the federal bureaucracy and federal agencies varies from one president to another.
   E.g. some presidents (usually democrats) aim to increase the scope of the federal bureaucracy, while others (usually Republicans) aim to reduce its size. In 2018 Trump announced plans to abolish 22 government agencies.

Question 6

How did Obama’s power wax (grow) and wane (shrink) during his presidency?

Answer 6

1. Waxed, Obama was elected on a wave of optimism in 2008 as the first African-American president.
2. Waxed, Democrats controlled both Houses of Congress.
3. Waxed, as despite a serious economic crisis, Obama had a productive first 100 days, had high approval ratings.
4. Waxed, Obamas administration implemented an economic stimulus, support for the financial industry, ‘Obamacare’ and more.
5. Waned, in 2010 the Republicans won a majority in the House, Obama was frustrated by the divided government.
6. Waned, in 2014 Republicans won a majority in the Senate, legislation became more difficult to pass, so Obama began using executive orders.
7. Waned, Obama’s executive order to protect some illegal immigrants from deportation was challenged by 26 states
8. Waned, his attempt to fill a vacancy in the SC was blocked by the Senate, who refused to consider his nomination.

Question 7

Does the USA have an imperial or imperilled presidency?

Answer 7

1. Imperial, as Nixon overstretched his powers and acted unconstitutionally.
   E.g. Nixon continued the war with Vietnam without congressional approval, even after Congress had revoked the Tonkin Gulf Resolution 1971 (which gave authority)

Imperilled, since Congress responded to Nixon’s presidency by passing new laws and restricting powers of the president.
E.g. the 1973 War Powers Act was designed to stop presidents from ordering military action without congressional approval.

2. Imperial, as presidents can use executive orders as a means to rule using direct authority.
   E.g. in 2016 Donald Trump passed an executive order withdrawing the US from the trans-pacific partnership, instead of waiting for congressional approval for the treaty.

Imperilled, as the use of executive orders is an expression of weakness rather than strength, presidents use these methods as a lesser alternative to legislation when they lack support from Congress. Can be overturned by the next president.
E.g. In 2021 Biden has reversed Trump’ executive order banning refugees from key regions and enables flights from those regions to begin within days.

Question 8

What is an imperial and imperilled presidency?

Answer 8

1. An imperial presidency is the idea that the modern presidency is an imperial or ‘emperor-like’ character. Under this model, presidents dominate Congress and conduct foreign policy independently. It is unconstitutional as it goes beyond the powers of the president.
2. An imperilled presidency argues that the president’s effectiveness was limited by an overly assertive Congress and an excessively large federal bureaucracy.

Question 9

How has the president been weakened in recent years?

Answer 9

1. Post-Watergate action by Congress.
   E.g. the 1973 War Powers Act attempted to stop presidents from entering into military action without congressional approval.
   (However, presidents have still been able to take military action without asking Congress, e.g. President Obama’s military intervention in Libya in 2011.)
2. An increasingly partisan and divided Congress resulting in gridlock and government shutdowns, making it very difficult for presidents to govern effectively during periods of divided government.
   E.g. congressional gridlock after 2010 prevented Obama from passing any meaningful gun legislation.
3. Divisions within the Republican Party preventing President Trump from relying on his own party’s support in Congress.
   E.g. despite having a united government, Trump faced a brief government shutdown in February 2018 because of Republican Senator Rand Paul’s objections to the budget.

Question 10

What is the President’s relationship with the cabinet?

Answer 10

1. Cabinet meeting frequency depends on the president’s wishes
   E.g. Obama met with his cabinet on average 3.5 times per year, compared to 6 times a year under George W. Bush.
2. Cabinet members tend to be former politicians
   E.g. Biden appointed former secretary of state John Kerry as presidential envoy for climate.
3. The president does not have to take the advice from his cabinet, the constitution gives him sole authority
   E.g. Trump largely ignored the advice of Defence Secretary James Mattis as well as Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly.

Question 11

How does the President’s relationship with the cabinet vary?

Answer 11

1. Some presidents value their cabinet more than others and therefore have more meetings
   E.g. Obama had an average of only 3.5 cabinet meetings per year compared to George W. Bush’s 6
2. Some individual cabinet members may have a particularly high profile
   E.g. Hilary Clinton
   (gave her more influence than other cabinet members)
3. Some president’s have an abrasive style towards their cabinet
   E.g. Trump sacked his secretary of state Rex Tillerson via twitter in 2017.