The Presidency

Question 1

The Cabinet - Basic Info

Answer 1

The POTUS, VP, 15 heads of departments (including the Secretaries of Defence, State and Treasury) and the Attorney General. Serve “at the pleasure of the President” - clear distinction from the UK’s principle of “first among equals.”

Question 2

The Cabinet - Background

Answer 2

Not actually mentioned in the Constitution - only allows that the President may ask the opinion of the heads of each department. As the President’s executive role has expanded, so has that of the Cabinet, as the President is less able to do everything himself.

Question 3

The Cabinet - Meetings

Answer 3

Full cabinet meetings are far rarer than in the UK - it is common for there to be only two or three per year. Bilateral meetings are far more common, as they allow for closer focus on particular issues, and as such are more productive.

Question 4

The Cabinet - Constitutional Powers

Answer 4

• Article II, Section 2 - the Cabinet’s role is to advise the President on subjects relating to the responsibilities of each member’s department.
• Many in the Cabinet make up the Presidential line of succession, e.g. the Secretary of State is 4th.
• Act as the President’s representative in each policy area, though in reality the sheer scope of the executive necessitates some actual policy powers for the cabinet.

Question 5

The Cabinet - Reasons for Appointments

Answer 5

• Experience - e.g. Obama retained Robert Gates, Bush’s Secretary of Defence.
• Neutralising potential critics/opponents - e.g. Obama appointing Clinton as Secretary of State.
• Shared specific views - e.g. Obama + Eric Holder on civil rights
• Avoiding tricky confirmations - e.g. Susan Rice withdrew her nomination for Secretary of State after Hillary’s retirement due to controversy over the Benghazi attacks of 2012, and was replaced by John Kerry, widely viewed as a safer option.
• Demonstrating bipartisanship - e.g. Obama appointed Republican Robert McDonald as Secretary of Veterans’ Affairs (a post often held by Republicans).

Question 6

The Cabinet - Reasons for Leaving

Answer 6

• Cabinet members may be fired by the President, often due to ideological differences - e.g. Bush fired Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill over differing views on Iraq and economic policy.
• Future ambitions - e.g. Hillary did not seek a second term as Secretary of State, went on to announce her 2016 candidacy.
• Policy failures - e.g. Chuck Hagel resigned as Secretary of Defence over failures to properly deal with IS - underestimated the group, leading Obama to compare them to an amateur basketball team in January 2014.
• Revolving Door - e.g. Robert Gates has sat on several corporate boards since retiring as Secretary of Defence.

Question 7

The Cabinet - Collective Decision-Making

Answer 7

In some matters, the Cabinet may take a significant role and work alongside the President in making a decision - in such cases, the President operates essentially under the doctrine of “first among equals.” E.g. Obama administration’s debate over a troop surge pitted Clinton and Gates on the pro-surge side against Biden, who cited growing opposition to the war in the Democratic party. Eventually, Obama did send troops, but not as many as Gates in particular had argued for, and also set a timetable for total withdrawal.

Question 8

The Cabinet - Important

Answer 8

• Presidents have been known to use cabinet meetings to discuss important policy areas, e.g. Obama troop surge.
• Many individual members are “heavyweights,” who will hold significant influence over their own departments, and over the President in that particular area. E.g. Bush’s Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson was instrumental in organising the TARP bailouts and conservatorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Question 9

The Cabinet - Not Important

Answer 9

• There is no real tradition of collective decision-making, which tends to be the exception rather than the rule - whilst individual members may hold power within their individual policy area, it is far less common for the cabinet as a single body to do so.
• The cabinet is unlikely to be able to act as a cohesive body, and is more likely to simply be a disparate collection of individuals, each appointed for a different reason, without a shared goal or even a shared basic ideology, due to the fact that cabinet members often have completely different political affiliations to one another. For example, during his time in office, Obama has appointed Republican secretaries of Defence (Gates, Hagel), Democratic Secretaries of State (Clinton, Kerry) and an Independent Treasury Secretary (Geithner). Having ideologically opposed individuals at the heads of arguably the three most important government departments is a significant barrier to collective decision-making.
• Cabinet members may be forced to compete for influence with their corresponding EXOP member, e.g. Ashton Carter (Sec of Defence) and Susan Rice (National Security Advsior) have both had input regarding the nuclear negotiations with Iran.

Question 10

Roles of the President

Answer 10

• Manager of the Economy
• National Leader
• Party Leader
• Chief Diplomat
• Commander-in-Chief

Question 11

Roles of the President - Manager of the Economy

Answer 11

• The President is responsible for ensuring economic success for America, such as strong growth and low unemployment and inflation. He can draft and propose legislation for this purpose (e.g. Fiscal Stimulus), and sets the government’s annual budget.
• Constraints: Congress has the power of the purse, and must approve any new spending, which constrains the President’s ability to dictate fiscal policy. Additionally, one could argue that it is businesses that really “manage” the economy, and that dictate its success/failure - most clearly demonstrated by the 2008 financial crisis.

Question 12

Roles of the President - National Leader

Answer 12

• The President is responsible for setting the general direction of the nation, and for responding to national crises - the latter responsibility often transcends party lines, e.g. Obama pictured hugging GOP NJ governor Chris Christie after Sandy. Can use Executive Orders to accomplish his aims.
• Constraints: no power to pass legislation himself, relies on Congress for this. Cannot control Stuff That Happens, e.g. 9/11, Sandy, Ferguson Riots. Also has no control over public opinion and the media, both of which can impact his ability to influence legislative positions. The current trend of political polarisation and partisanship means that partisan concerns may become increasingly important, as opposition lawmakers will not wish to be perceived as being cosy with the President, e.g. long-serving Indiana Senator Richard Lugar lost to Richard Mourdock in a primary.

Question 13

Roles of the President - Party Leader

Answer 13

• The President essentially acts as the face of his party, and is responsible, to some extent, for keeping some level of party unity, though this is not as significant as in the UK.
• Constraints: actions that the President considers to be necessary may result in him losing the support of his party, e.g. Johnson over Vietnam. Circumstances may require him to be bipartisan/unbiased in his approach, e.g. Chris Christie, Sandy, current GOP Congress.

Question 14

Roles of the President - Chief Diplomat

Answer 14

• The President is responsible for negotiating treaties and executive agreements with foreign nations, e.g. Obama-Iran/Cuba, Clinton-NAFTA. As leader of the world’s most powerful nation, he is often also responsible for overseeing negotiations between other countries, e.g. 2000 Camp David Summit between Israel and Palestine (Clinton).
• Constraints: All treaties must be ratified by the Senate - this constraint can be circumvented by signing an executive agreement instead, but there are non-permanent. It is unfeasible to expect the President to be able to oversee the US’ relations with every country in the world (the US has relations with 189). In reality, tasks will be delegated to various ambassadors.

Question 15

Power vs. Check - Propose Legislation

Answer 15

• The Constitution states that the President may recommend to Congress “such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient” - this implies that Presidential involvement in the legislative process would be a relatively rare thing. However, the president has become increasingly involved with large amounts of legislation in recent years, e.g. Johnson - Civil Rights, Bush - NCLB, DREAM, Obama - Obamacare, Fiscal Stimulus, DREAM.
• Checks: Only a Congressman or Senator is actually able to introduce legislation - if the President cannot find someone willing to do this, his legislation will not be able to progress (this is rarely an issue in reality). Alternatively, Congress is able to block any legislation drafted by the President, e.g. Dream (Bush and Obama). Even if the legislation is not blocked, Congress can amend it beyond recognition, e.g. Obamacare lost the crucial clause allowing the federal government to set up a competitor to private healthcare firms.

Question 16

Power vs. Check - Annual Budget

Answer 16

• Though the budget functions as any other bill would once in Congress, it is conventional that it will always be set out by the President (though alternatives are always submitted). The budget is particularly important with regards to the economy, as it essentially sets out the government’s fiscal policy plans for the year ahead.
• Checks: Budget can be, and often is, amended by Congress, which always has the final word. The President’s version is often not taken up, and can even be actively opposed by Congress, e.g. Obama’s 2015 budget rejected 413-2. Reuters described the President’s budget submission as an “annual ritual,” claiming that as soon as it is introduced, “lawmakers will promptly ignore it”

Question 17

Power vs. Check - Veto

Answer 17

• The President can veto any legislation passed by Congress, either actively (e.g. Keystone XL, Feb 2015) or passively, whereby the 10-day response period runs into a Congressional recess, and the President simply ignores the bill, thus letting it die (e.g. Bush pocket vetoed National Defence Authorisation Act (2008) despite the House insisting there was someone there to receive the bill - the bill was eventually amended and passed according to Bush’s wishes). Threat of veto can also be effective, e.g. Obama/Iran sanctions.
• Checks: Veto can be overridden by a 2/3 majority in both houses of Congress - most recently occurred with US Farm Bill (2007). Veto has become markedly less popular in recent years, e.g. Obama has only used 4 thus far, compared to over 600 by FDR.

Question 18

Power vs. Check - Chief Executive

Answer 18

• The President has absolute jurisdiction over each of the Federal government’s various departments, and is able to direct them as he sees fit. E.g. Obama oversaw the NSA’s controversial data collection program, as was exposed by whistleblower Edward Snowden.
• Checks: Public opinion can force the President into altering his priorities, e.g. after initially defending the NSA, public outcry forced Obama into promising to scale back the program, culminating in the USA FREEDOM Act, which is currently being debated in the Senate, having passed the House with an overwhelming majority in May 2015. Overzealous (illegal) actions may result in impeachment, e.g. had he not resigned (and been pardoned), Nixon would almost certainly have been impeached for the involvement of the FBI, CIA and IRS in the Watergate scandal.

Question 19

Power vs. Check - Nomination of Officials/Judges

Answer 19

• The President has sole jurisdiction over who is to be nominated to the Supreme Court, as well as to other positions, such as attorney-general and other cabinet positions. Supreme Court appointments in particular can have a huge impact on court decisions, e.g. Bush’s replacement of Sandra Day O’Connor with Samuel Alito (2006) swung the court in a distinctly more conservative direction.
• Checks: Senate can reject or delay appointments of Presidential nominees, e.g. Susan Rice was forced to withdraw her nomination for Secretary of State in favour of the “safer” John Kerry due to concerns of rejection by the Senate. Nomination of incumbent attorney-general Loretta Lynch was delayed for over 5 months due to various political conflicts, including that of Obama’s immigration EO.

Question 20

Power vs. Check - Negotiation of Treaties

Answer 20

• The President is responsible for negotiating and signing treaties with foreign nations - they can have profound effects on the US, e.g. Clinton negotiated NAFTA, ensuring free trade between Mexico, Canada and the US. Can also sign Executive Agreements, which, though temporary, are not subject to Congressional approval

Question 21

Power vs. Check - Commander-in-Chief

Answer 21

• The Constitution names the President as Commander-in-chief of the US armed forces, and is thereby empowered to direct all US military operations.
• Checks: Only Congress has the power to declare war. War Powers Resolution (1973) limits unapproved conflicts to 60 days, plus 30 days withdrawal time. Congress has power of the purse, and as such can refuse to provide funding for military involvements, e.g. Iraq Troop Surge (2008),

HOWEVER

War has only been declared 5 times ever, despite the US being seemingly perennially at war with someone or other. War Powers Resolution has never actually been used to force withdrawal from any conflict, and may actually work to empower the President in short conflicts, e.g. Reagan took 28 days to depose Grenada’s communist leader. If the President can get Congress on-side, he can garner access to funding, e.g. Iraq War Resolution (2002) - claimed that this bill’s passage was a knee-jerk reaction to 9/11, and was based on intelligence that was later proved to be inaccurate (WMDs), yet provided funding for years of conflict.

Question 22

Dual Presidency - Basic Info

Answer 22

• Aaron Wildavsky
• States that there are two roles for the President - foreign and domestic, and that he prefers to operate in former, where he holds more power and is faced with fewer checks
• Influenced by period 1946-1964

Question 23

Dual Presidency - For

Answer 23

• Has a strong basis in the Constitution, which grants the President the roles of Command-in-Chief and Chief Diplomat - the former of these is relatively unchecked. By contrast, Congress is granted domestic legislative powers, with the President only given the increasingly unpopular veto power.
• Foreign policy tends to be less ideologically driven, and thus, the President’s ability to direct it is less dependent on the ideological position of Congress. By contrast, the President’s ideological positions may result in him being severely constrained in his domestic legislative abilities, e.g. Obama’s attempts as gun control in 2013 failed due to Senate opposition.
• A good example is Bush - had a profound effect on foreign policy, for which his Presidency is largely remembered (going into Iraq, opening of detention camp at Guantanamo in 2002). However, faced struggles domestically - failed to pass immigration reform bills (DREAM, CIRA) and saw 1/3 of his vetoes overturned - even faced opposition on fairly innocuous subjects, e.g. US Farm Bill (2007) - last veto to be successfully overturned.

Question 24

Dual Presidency - Against

Answer 24

• In this international age, the lines between foreign and domestic policy have become blurred, e.g. Bush was heavily involved in the response to 9/11 - gave rise to changes in both foreign policy (Iraq) and domestic policy (Patriot Act, NSA).
• In recent years, Presidents have become increasingly willing to involve themselves with and sponsor flagship domestic policies, e.g. Bush (No Child Left Behind (2001), Medicare Modernisation Act (2003)) and Obama (Obamacare (2010)).
• Regardless of their success in this area, many presidents undoubtedly to attempt to involve themselves in domestic policy issues, belying Wildavsky’s claim that they prefer not to do this - e.g. DREAM Act - failed, but was endorsed by two successive Presidents.
• President can access a relatively unchecked avenue to Domestic legislation via Executive Order, which can be used to influence both social and economic policy. E.g. Obama - Min. Wage (Feb 2014) and Immigration (Nov 2014).
• The President may opt to seek Congressional approval for military action even when it is not needed - e.g. Obama sought permission for airstrikes against the Assad regime in Syria in 2013 - Congress eventually delayed the vote for so long that an alternative diplomatic solution was reached.

Question 25

Imperial Presidency - Basic Info

Answer 25

• Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.
• States that the President is able to act essentially as an “emperor,” with no effective checks on his power.
• Schlesinger wrote during the Vietnam War, which symbolised this theory - President was able to essentially authorise the expenditure of 58,000 US lives without a Congressional declaration of war.

Question 26

Imperial Presidency - For

Answer 26

• Commander-in-chief - in this role, the President is arguably able to operate unchecked, directing all US military operations. War Powers Resolution has never been used and may work in the President’s favour, Congress has only declared war 3 times. E.g. Obama has made extensive use of drone strikes, whereby he acts and judge, jury and executioner - even, in certain cases, of US citizens, e.g. in Somalia and Yemen.
• Executive orders can have a profound effect on policy, and are relatively unchecked - they require a supermajority in both chambers of Congress in order to be overridden, which is particularly difficult in the current atmosphere of partisanship. E.g. Obama signed EOs on min. wage and immigration, the latter of which came in direct response to Congress’ refusal to pass the DREAM Act - demonstrates his ability to directly oppose Congressional will. Can also affect foreign policy - e.g. in 1981, Reagan extended the administration’s surveillance power to include the investigation of foreign nations.
• “Politics stops at the water’s edge” - President does not face scrutiny in his foreign policy actions, e.g. Reagan’s interventions in Grenada and Nicaragua were not criticised by Democrats.
• Executive agreements are not subject to any check, e.g. Mutual Defence Agreement (first signed in 1953) between the US and S. Korea against N. Korea.
• Selective enforcement - the President can use his powers as Chief Executive to instruct the federal agencies not to enforce certain parts of Federal law, e.g. Obama instructed DEA not to prosecute users/producers of marijuana in states which had voted to legalise it, e.g. Colorado, Washington. In this way, the President’s instruction can supersede democratically agreed regulations.

Question 27

Imperial Presidency - Against

Answer 27

• Power of the purse - only Congress is able to control federal spending, and this may serve to restrict the President’s actions, e.g. refusal to grant funds for a troop surge in Iraq (2008).
• The Supreme Court can declare Presidential action to be unconstitutional or limit more general Presidential power, e.g. Train v. City of New York (1975) ended the practice of Presidential impoundment of funds, Hamdan v. Rumsfeld (2006) ruled that the Bush administration had to offer full jury trials to Guantanamo detainees.
• The President himself has no legislative power - any legislation he does draft can be defeated or amended beyond recognition, e.g. DREAM, Obamacare (2010) lost the provision that a public health insurance provider would be set up to compete with private firms.
• Many of the President’s unchecked powers can only give rise to temporary provisions, such as executive orders and executive agreements, e.g. the Republican leadership has warned that any potential nuclear agreement with Iran signed by Obama without Congressional approval would be repealed by a future Republican President. Therefore, though the President may be able to use his powers without significant checks, it will be more difficult for him to have a lasting impact without cooperation with the other branches of government.
• “Politics stops at the water’s edge” is now a largely outdated idea - in his later years, Bush was attacked over failures in Iraq, whilst Congress responded to the 2011 Benghazi Attacks by setting up select committees to investigate. The GOP-controlled committees have announced that they will release their findings, including on the role of then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton immediately before the 2016 election, which many expect Clinton to contest for the Democrats.

Question 28

Power to Persuade - Basic Info

Answer 28

• Richard Neustadt
• Suggests that the President must persuade the other branches of government to support his view in order to accomplish anything.

Question 29

Power to Persuade - For

Answer 29

• President may be forced to make concessions in order to pass the legislation that he wishes to, e.g. Obama included the Hyde Amendment in his final Affordable Care Act (2010) despite himself taking a pro-choice stance, in order to secure the vote of Blue Dog Bart Stupak - he would rather have the bill with concessions than no bill at all.
• President may have to use Pork Barrel Politics in order to pass certain pieces of legislation, e.g. LBJ had to promise funding for the Central Arizona Water Project to Democrat Carl Hayden in order to secure his crucial vote for Senate cloture on the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
• Presidents must be effective at persuading members of both parties in order to be successful - may establish a “two-way street of cooperation” in order to get stuff done, e.g. Clinton, a Democrat, showed himself to be willing to pass conservative legislation, such as DOMA (1996) and new “workfare” programs in order to garner support on more progressive issues from the GOP-controlled Congress. The bipartisanship factor also explains why Obama has been less effective in his second term - when passing Obamacare (2010, 0 GOP votes) and the Fiscal Stimulus (2009, 0 House GOP votes) in his first term, the Democrats held Congress, and this lack of bipartisanship came back to haunt him when the GOP took the House in 2010 and the Senate in 2014.
• Presidents may opt to appeal directly to voters when looking to champion legislation - lawmakers will look to back a popular President in order to better their prospects of re-election

Question 30

Power to Persuade - Against

Answer 30

• Executive action faces little threat of being overridden, as the requisite supermajority is difficult to obtain, especially given the current atmosphere of strong partisanship. Thus, the President can have a significant impact on policy without having to persuade anyone at all, e.g. Obama - min. wage and immigration.
• As commander-in-chief, the President is able to act without check, with many operations being kept secret from Congress and the general public until they have already been carried out in the interest of national security. E.g. Obama administration’s drone strikes allowed him to essentially act as judge, jury and excecutioner, sometimes even of US citizens.
• As chief executive, the President has unchecked ability to instruct the federal agencies as he pleases - e.g. through his instruction to the DEA in 2014, Obama was simply able to supersede federal law.

Question 31

Cyclical Presidency

Answer 31

• Charles O. Jones
• The President is affected by 3 cycles - elections, economic, and public opinion, each affecting the other two.
• E.g. Bush’s second term saw a distinct fall in his popularity, coinciding with defeat in the 2006 midterms and the global financial crisis.

Question 32

Imperiled Presidency

Answer 32

• Gerald Ford
• The President may be impaired by factors that are either outside his control or are non-political.
• E.g. Ford’s credibility was damaged from the off by his role in the Crooked Deal, in which he issued a pardon to Nixon, his predecessor, in 1974, after the Watergate scandal
• Carter’s governmental credentials harmed by repeated failures to resolve the Iran Hostage Crisis - multiple US soldiers killed in various rescue missions, sometimes in farcical circumstances, without any success. the perpetrators of the Iranian coup d’etat viewed this as proof of their ability to destabilise a foreign government.
• Clinton was temporarily harmed by the Whitewater property scandal, and then by his affair with Monica Lewinsky and subsequent impeachment, though he recovered to earn the highest final approval rating since WWII, a record which still stands. This might suggest that whilst a President can be adversely affected by circumstance, it is possible for him to recover.

Question 33

Vice President - Balancing the Ticket

Answer 33

Presidential candidates often choose a running mate who balances out any flaws they might have, and allows the campaign to appeal to a broader base of voters. E.g. Obama, who was young, inexperienced (especially in foreign policy), and urban picked Biden, who was rural, old, had served in Congress since Obama was 12, and has been chair of the Senate foreign relations committee. McCain picked Palin in 2008 to counter the Dems’ diversity factor. A northerner might pick a southerner, e.g. Kennedy/Johnson, though this has become less common given the rarity of Northern Republicans and Southern Democrats.

Question 34

Vice President - Powers

Answer 34

• Breaks ties in the Senate - especially important when the Senate is split 50-50, as it was in the 107th Congress, when Dick Cheney was required to break 6 ties. However, such close issues tend not to even reach a vote due to filibuster - 60 required for cloture.
• Takes over from the President if he dies, or temporarily if he is incapacitated, e.g. George H.W. Bush after the assassination attempt on Reagan in 1981.
• Has the freedom to attack the opposing party in ways that the President is not able to due to the “dignity of the office” - both Biden and Cheney have been described as “attack dogs.” E.g. Biden publicly ripped into the inconsistencies of Mitt Romney’s economic plan immediately after the first televised debate of the 2012 campaign.

Question 35

Dick Cheney

Answer 35

• Widely viewed as one of, if not the most powerful VP in history.
• Publicly declared that he had no ambitions to become President, so Bush did not view him as a threat.
• In an unprecedented move, Cheney would sit in on Republican caucus meetings, thus inhibiting free discussion between members and, to some extent, undermining the principle of separation of powers, as the executive was given prior warning of what Congress was going to do. Previous VPs, such as Johnson under Kennedy, had attempted to do this, but were rebuffed.
• Orchestrated the war on terror - persuaded Bush to go into Iraq, oversaw the set-up of the prison on Guantanamo, organised the authorisation of waterboarding and other “enhanced interrogation techniques” via a back channel to John Yoo in the Office of Legal Counsel.
• Powers were reined in in his second year due to threats of impeachment after his behind-closed-doors deals became public - described by many as a lame duck VP. Guantanamo remained open, but the Supreme Court awarded more rights to detainees. Failed to prevent Bush from negotiating a nuclear deal with North Korea. Failed to convince Bush to increase military aid to Israel.

Question 36

Presidential Eligibility

Answer 36

• Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution states that the President must:
  
  • Be a natural-born citizen of the US
  • Be at least 35
  • Have been a permanent US resident for at least 14 years
• 22nd Amendment limits Presidents to serving 2 terms
• Article 1 disqualifies anyone who has previously been impeached from public office

Question 37

25th Amendment

Answer 37

1962 - Formalised the Presidential line of succession

Question 38

22nd Amendment

Answer 38

1951 - Limited Presidential tenure to two terms

Question 39

National Emergency Act

Answer 39

1976 - Allows the President to take full control of government agencies in order to most effectively respond to a crisis. Consistent with the theory of the Imperial Presidency, though he must seek approval from Congress every 2 years in order to officially continue the state of emergency.