Unit 5 - Executive Branch Flashcards
Who is in the Executive branch?
Prez(Vice)
idvisors Cabinet -15 executive departments plus vice (Some executive office and white house staffers considered cabinet-level, but not technically in the cabinet
Independent agencies - CIA, USPS
Regulatory commission - CPSC, FCC
bureaucracies
Who is in the Executive branch?
Cabinet -15 executive departments plus vice (Some executive office and white house staffers considered cabinet-level, but not technically in the cabinet
Independent agencies - CIA, USPS
Regulatory commission - CPSC, FCC
Salary of the president & Vice
President - $400,000
Vice Pres - $235,100
Pros
- Travel (non-taxable allowance)
- Beautiful Home
- Lots of staff (body man) loyal
- Change whatever in whitehouse (additions)
- Can eat whatever they want ( have all favorite foods)
- Free healthcare
- Official functions paid by government
- Lifetime pension on retirement 200,000/yr
- Free office space and mailing service
- 96,000/yr for office staff
- Family life put back together after hard campaign
Cons
- Very busy, lack of time
- Tension of campaign
- Can change them before and after living in the white house
- Can’t walk by themselves (never alone)
- Security Breaches
- pay for food
- Family life in the open
Staff
Serve about 20 years, very loyal
Qualifications of president
- Constitutional requirements*
- 35 Years old
- Natural-born Citizen
- Resident of USA for 14 years
- Practical Qualifications*
- Experience - Political or military (governor v. member of congress)
- Lots of money (your own or donors)
- Moderate beliefs
- White, male, protestant, married
Getting elected
Electoral college
Good idea then - Less much now
Role of the Vice President
- “president of the senate” Break ties
- Help decide if pres is disabled- Certify electoral vote count
- close advisors, diplomats, speakers, policy pushers.
Disability and succession
- Serious illness or otherwise incapacitated
- President can inform Congress of inability to perform duties; VP takes over as acting President
- If Prez is unwilling or unable to inform Congress, the VP can take over if he and a majority of the executive Secretaries informs the Speaker and President Pro Tempore of disability
- President can resume powers when disability ends simply by informing Congress that he’s better
If VP/Secretaries say Prez isn’t ready, Congress has 21 days to settle the dispute – 2/3 vote in favor of the VP or Prez is BACK!
Roles of the president
- Commander and chief of armed forces
- Execute laws of congress, incharge of more than 2 million people
- Make appointments
- Reprieves/pardons/Amnesty
-Suggest laws - Last stop for bills.
- head of state, Symbolic/ ceremonial duties
- Economic planner, prepare budgets/reports, economic policy driver
Lead the party, fundraising patrinoser
Chief Diplomat
- foreign regulations guy
- Access to intel that congress doesn’t get [CIA,NSC]
- Negotiate treaties, negotiate AND sign executive agreements.
- Recognise foreign governments/terrorist groups/etc.
Commander in Chief
- Role within the military
- Wage war, support the effort back home (Limited by war powers Act)
- Make big decisions - Nukes?
- Put down disorder at home and abroad
- Disaster relief
Vacancy / Death
- Any time there’s a vacancy at VP, President nominates a new one
- Confirmation by both houses of Congress
- If there’s a vacancy at Prez, the VP takes over
- Succession Act of 1947 sets order for succession in case of simultaneous vacancy
- Prez 🡪 Vice Prez 🡪 Speaker of House 🡪 President Pro Tempore of Senate 🡪 Secretary of State 🡪 the rest of the cabinet officers in order of their dept. creation
Who are the Bureaucrats
Political Appointees + Civil Service Workers = The Federal Bureaucracy
Bureaucratic Types:
Cabinet
- Directly report to the POTUS.
- EX: Depts of Justice, State, Treasury, defence, DHS
- Sec. of ____ Nominated by POTUS. Confirmed by Senate (majority vote)
- Serve at the pleasure of the President.
Bureaucratic Types:
Independent Regulatory Agencies
- Largely independent of the POTUS and Congress. Have quasi-legislative/executive/judicial powers to regulate an important area
- FCC, SEC, Fed
- Members of the Board of Governors Nominated by POTUS. Confirmed by the Senate (majority vote)
- Serve lengthy fixed terms to insulate their decisions from politics. Only able to remove with “cause.”
