US Executive Flashcards
What are formal and informal powers?
-formal powers of the president are granted by the constitution + are fixed i.e the power to e head of the executive branch of the federal govt
-informal powers derive from a variety of sources, including the president’s popularity or standing within the party–} not fixed and vary depending on the president
What can formal powers be divided into?
-enumerated powers= explicitly granted to the president by Article II of the constitution, or delegated by congress
-implied powers= implied by the text of the constitution
-inherent powers= not set out in the constitution, but are needed by the president to carry out their constitutional role as head of the executive
Examples of how past presidents have used these powers
-Article II of the constitution grants the president power to propose legislation to congress i.e Lyndon B Johnson framed and pushed for the passing of the civil rights act 1964
-Roosevelt used implied powers when expanding the president’s power to use emergency powers in a a national emergency–} issued exec order to detain 120,000 Japanese-Americans in camps during WW2
-Bush’s admin argued that the detention of terrorist suspects for an indefinite period after 9/11 was an inherent power
Formal powers: executive powers
-president is the chief of the executive, so must ‘faithfully execute laws’ i.e Obama banning permanent drilling on portions of the ocean floor in 2016 using the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act of 1953
-has the power of drawing up the annual budget i.e in 2020, Trump’s budget for govt spending was a record 4.8 trillion–} however, congress still has power of the purse i.e congress passed a law to withhold 10% of federal funds from highways in any states that didn’t raise the drinking age to 21 in South Dakota v Dole
Formal powers: influence the passage of legislation through congress
-can propose legislation to congress i.e in the annual state of the union address in the January of each year, they present their legislative agenda
-has the power to sign bills into laws or ‘leave it on the desk’ for it to become a law after 10 working days without a signature. If congressional session ends during these 10 days, then the bill is lost(called a pocket veto –} last used in 2000 by Bill Clinton
-can veto a bill put forward by congress i.e Trump used the veto 10 times between 2017-21, 2 of which were to block legislation that would have ended the state of national emergency at the Mexico border allowing him to use federal funds to build the border wall
Formal powers: Appointment powers
-nominates officials to key exec posts–} more than 4,000 positions that they can appoint in the exec branch + over 700 must be confirmed by senate by simple majority(last formal rejection was in 1989 to George Bush, gives president freedom to appoint whoever they see fit i.e Trump appointing Elon Musk to lead a newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)
-president also nominates federal + SC judges and a simple majority vote confirmation is required from the senate
Formal powers: Foreign policy
-president is commander-in-chief of the military + can initiate military action
-despite Article I of the constitution stating that only congress has the power to declare war, it has not done so since 1941 + although War Powers act 1974 requires president to ask congress to approve military action, many presidents have due to their commander-in-chief role
-i.e George W Bush ordered the invasion of Afghanistan(2001) and Iraq(2003) as part of his “war on terror”
-i.e Obama initiated military action in Libya(2011) and Syria(2015) + used drone strikes in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia to ‘kill terrorist suspects’
-has the power to use nuclear weapons i.e Truman ordered 2 nuclear bombs to be dropped in Hiroshima + Nagasaki(Japan) killing more than 250,000 people
Formal powers: Power to grant pardons
-can pardon anyone who has been convicted of federal crimes, with the exception of cases of impeachment
-i.e Ford pardoned Nixon for any crimes he may have committed in the Watergate scandal
-Clinton was criticised for pardoning his brother for a drug offence + granting 140 pardons on his final day in office(Pardongate)
Examples of how formal powers are checked
-federal courts challenged Trump’s 2017 “Muslim travel ban” through judicial review, arguing it violated the 1st amendment’s protection against religious discrimination
-Congress may not confirm judicial nominees i.e Republican controlled senate refused to confirm Obama’s nomination of Merrick Garland
Informal powers: ‘the power to persuade’
-presidents can use their personal influence, the authority of their office + their political capital to win support from key political figures i.e Reagan was known as ‘the great communicator’ and known for his ability to connect with public through his speeches–} made him highly effective in promoting his policies, such as the ending of the Cold War
How is the power to persuade constrained?
-limited by the extent of the president’s control over congress i.e Obama enjoyed a presidential support score of 96.7% in 2009 in a unified govt, Trump won 98.7% of votes in 2017 in a unified
-during divided govt period in 2011, Obama’s score dropped to 57%
Informal powers: Deal making
-presidents need the support of Congress to pass their legislation
-during periods of divided govt, bipartisan deal-making is essential to avoid gridlock i.e 2018 First Step act, which reformed criminal justice by educe sentences for certain nonviolent offenders etc
-bipartisan legislation in times of national crisis i.e CARES act 2020 which provided economic relief to individuals + businesses during COVID
-not always successful i.e Trump’s 35 day govt shutdown in 2018-19 due to dispute over funding for the proposed border wall
Informal powers: setting political agenda
-president determines what issues are discussed by journalists + the public i.e Trump’s controversial tweets:
- tweeted that the 4 POC Dem congresswomen in 2019 known as ‘the squad’ should ‘help fix the totally broken and crime infested’ countries they came from
- Trump described COVID-19 as ‘the Chinese virus’ and blamed the Chinese govt for the global pandemic
-(extra example: Capitol hill riots happened after Trump claimed the election had been ‘stolen’ from him and encouraged his supporters to ‘fight like hell’)
Informal powers: De facto party leader
-the president is the unofficial party leader which enhances their ability to shape the party’s agenda
-i.e president delivers an annual constitutionally mandated speech called the ‘state of the union address’ where they can announce their priorities for the upcoming year–} Biden focused on economic growth + reducing healthcare costs in his 2023 speech
-however, president’s influence can be limited by congress:
-i.e Republican-controlled Senate rejecting Obama’s gun restriction policies in 2013
-i.e Republican-controlled senate did not fully repeal Obama’s ACA 2010 despite it being one of Trump’s main presidential campaign pledges in 2017
Informal powers: World leader
-president is often described as ‘leader of the free world’ due to the USA dominating global politics + international organisations i.e the UN, NATO
-Obama convinced nations to sign up to the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change and the 2015 Iran nuclear deal
-President controls the US veto power in the UN i.e Biden has issued 4 vetoes on UN Security Council resolutions calling for a ceasefire in Gaza as of Nov 2024
-interest in this power varies depending on the president i.e Trump withdrew the USA from both the Paris Agreement + the Iran Nuclear deal and terminated the USA’s relationship with the world health organisation(WHO) during COVID
What is direct authority?
-the power of the president to take action directly, without consulting congress
-this is achieved by ‘stretching’ the president’s implied powers(implicitly granted to the president in the constitution or by congress) to create a new set of informal powers beyond those set out in the constitution
Direct authority: Executive orders
-official order directly to the federal govt, which has the effect of a law but can be easily reversed by the next president–} implied from Article II of the constitution, which gives the president executive powers
-i.e Eisenhower used an EO in 1957 to send federal troops to enforce racial desegregation in Little Rock, Arkansas
-i.e George W Bush used an EO to authorise anti-terror measures after 9/11, including surveillance of suspects without a court order
-Obama often issued EOs as an alternative to legislation due to divided govt i.e increasing federal minimum wage, outlawing discrimination against married same-sex couples by health insurance companies
Direct authority: Signing statements
-presidents use this when they sign a bill into law but wish to comment on it
-controversial because presidents can effectively use them to achieve a ‘line-item veto’(allowed presidents to veto a portion of the bill before it was declared unconstitutional by the SC in 1996 via the Line item veto act)
-can be used to criticise legislation:
-i.e Trump criticised a 2017 bill imposing sanctions on Russia, Iran and North Korea, claiming it affected his constitutional powers to conduct foreign policy
-i.e Biden disagreed with the 2024 National Defence Authorisation Act’s restrictions on his ability to direct military spending
Direct authority: executive agreements
-agreement made between the US and an international govt
-doesn’t require senate ratification like a normal treaty would which avoids lengthy negotiations with senators
-use of them has increased dramatically since WW2 i.e North American Free Trade Agreement signed by Clinton in 1993 and enhanced trade between US, Canada and Mexico
-agreements can simply be abandoned by the next president i.e Trump withdrew from Obama’s 2015 Paris agreement on climate change and 2015 Iran nuclear deal
Direct authority: Bureaucratic power
-Franklin D Roosevelt set up the Executive Office of the President to expand the power of the executive
-collection of offices providing both policy advice + admin support to the president
Congress’ constraints on president: delaying or rejecting president’s legislation
-president cannot pass laws without the support of congress
-i.e after Sandy Hook elementary school shooting, Obama released plans for stricter gun controls, including a ban on assault weapons but his legislation was rejected by congress in 2013
-harder to pass legislation in divided govt= Obama found it hard to pass legislation in 2nd term(2010 onwards) as Republicans had majority in the HOR
Congress’ constraints on president: Overriding a presidential veto
-difficult to do as supermajority in both chambers is necessary
-i.e congress only overrode one of Trump’s vetoes near the end of his first term, when he attempted to veto the annual defence spending bill–} overridden despite Republicans having a majority in the Senate (Senate majority leader at the time, Mitch McConnell pointed out that the bill was essential to the ‘brave men and women’ in the armed forces)
