US Presidency Flashcards
What are the formal powers of the President?
With examples.
-Propose legislation and submit the annual budget e.g. *2018 Trump announced plan to spend $1.5 trillion on infrastructure. *
-Sign legislation e.g. *Biden signed Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act 2024. *
-Veto legislation e.g. *Obama won 11 out of his 12 vetoes against Congress 2009-2017. *
-Act as chief executive e.g. *Biden 2025 executive order Helping Left-Behind Communities Make a Comeback. *
-Nominate executive branch officials e.g. Trump’s nomination of Musk 2025.
-Nominate federal judges e.g. Trump nominated Brett Kavanaugh 2018.
-Commander-in-chief e.g. Biden committed foreign defense 2024 under Ukraine Security Initiative $2.1 billion.
-Negotiate treaties e.g. nuclear arms treaty with Russia by Obama.
-Pardon e.g. Obama 1,927 pardons to individuals during his time in office, many of which were for low-level, non-violent offenses, particularly related to drug crimes
+ Trump pardoned himself
What is the P’s role as head of state?
Example
-Ceremonial roles e.g. world summits and events like G7 OR G20.
-Oversight of foreign policy.
-Power of the pardon.
-Comforter/mourner-in-chief.
(Head of state in the UK is the monarch)
E.g. Bush acted as comforter/mourner-in-chief after 9/11 in 2001.
What is the P’s role as head of government?
-Heads executive branch.
-Organises the EXOP.
-Presides over cabinet and federal bureaucracy.
-Sign and veto legislation.
EXOP = Executive Office of the President
What are the informal sources of the P’s power?
-Cabinet
-Vice-president
-EXOP
-OMB
-NSC
-WHO
-Powers of persuasion
-Direct authority
What is the role of the cabinet?
-Simply an advisory body.
-Consists of the heads of 15 departments.
-P can remove or add members depending on priorities and circumstances e.g. Obama elevated the Small Business Administration to cabinet status, highlighting his priority of economic recovery.
How powerful is cabinet?
-No formal power as it is not mentioned in the Constitution.
-It is not a collective body and therefore has limited power, but as individuals, cabinet members are an important source of power for the P.
-Give special insights to the P.
-Depends on how much the P uses it e.g. Reagan held 36 meeting in his first year, whereas Clinton held only 6.
-P maintains final say over policy (he isn’t ‘first among equals’).
EXOP is a key rival.
What are the main functions of cabinet for the P?
-Collegiality - helps P appear collegial and consultive/collaborative.
-Exchange information - P can gather info about what is going on.
-Policy debate - P can broaden consultations and debate policy.
-Monitoring Congress.
-Enhances democratic/representative nature of government.
What are the main functions of the VP?
Who was Biden’s VP + who is Trump’s?
-Take over the role of P if necessary.
-Cast deciding vote in event of a tie in the Senate.
-Presiding officer over the Senate.
-Important in ‘balancing the ticket’.
Biden - Kamala Harris
Trump - JD Vance
Give 3 examples of VPs playing an important role.
Richard Cheney (VP to Bush) - important role in responding to 9/11 attacks, Bush lacked experience in federal gov so Cheney took responsibility for several key policy areas.
Joe Biden (VP to Obama) - headlined in The Atlantic as ‘The Most Influential VP in History’, provided expertise over wars in Afghanistan + Iraq and economic issues post-crash.
Kamala Harris (VP to Biden) - by March 2021 had made 3 tie-break votes including a motion on the American Rescue Plan Act 2021.
What is the EXOP + its roles?
-Agencies that work directly within the WH and are organised by the P.
-Consists of top presidential staff agencies that provide advice, coordination and administrative support.
-3 most important offices are the OMB, WHO and NSC.
-Also referred to as the ‘West Wing’.
-Tension with cabinet.
What is the OMB?
-Office of Management and Budget.
-3 principle functions: develop annual budget, oversee spending of federal departments/agencies, and act as a clearing house for all legislative initiatives so they can be assessed for budgetary implications.
What is the NSC?
-National Security Council.
-Advises the P and coordinates on matters of national security/foreign policy.
-Provides a daily security briefing for the P.
-Coordinates info coming into the WH from various departments including the CIA.
-May conflict with the Department of Defense.
-Trump criticised for using it as a political vehicle, which it’s not,as he relegated numerous members and appointed Steve Bannon. He also claimed he did not need the security briefing.
What is the WHO?
-White House Office.
-Acts as a liason between the WH, Congress and the vast federal bureaucracy.
-Contains the most senior and trusted advisors.
-Chief of staff perhaps the most powerful in the WH after the P, controls who he sees, reads and speaks to.
-Can hold extensive power over the P if they wish; Nixon’s WHO nicknamed the ‘Berlin Wall’, as they made it very challenging for others to access the P.
Give an example of chief of staffs showing importance.
Andrew Cord was famously seen whispering into G.W Bush’s ear on the morning of 9/11.
‘America is under attack’.
What is the P’s power of persuasion?
-Can use their prestige and other bargaining methods to get people to do as they wish.
-Almost every power of the P is checked by Congress, meaning the P must turn to other methods.
Informal power
