The Executive Branch

1
The Executive Branch

• POTUS
• President of the United States

2
Head of the Executive Branch

• Only nationally elected official
• Term of office 4 years
• Two term limit
• Maximum of 10 years

3
Salary and Benefits

• 400,000 a year
• Expense Account 50,000
• Travel Expense 100,000
• Free medical, dental, and healthcare
• Air Force One
• White House Staff 400 to 500 persons
• Mansion with swimming pool, bowling alley, tennis
  courts, and private movie theatre

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• Camp David
• Housing Expenses
• Retirement - 148,499
• 96,000 a year for office expense, free space,
  and mailing
• Staff support and Secret Service protection after
  leaving office

5
Qualifications

• Formal
• Natural born citizen
• 35 years of age
• Resident of the U.S. for 14 years
• Informal
• Government experience (political alliances)
• Access to money
• Moderate political beliefs
• Personal characteristics white, married,
  protestant, financially successful, and male

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Presidential Succession

• Twenty-fifth Amendment
• Section One In the case of the removal of the
  President from office or of his death or
  resignation, the vice president shall become
  president
• Section Two Whenever there is a vacancy in the
  office of vice president the president shall
  nominate a VP who will take office upon
  confirmation by a majority vote of both houses of
  Congress
• Presidential Succession Act of 1947 Speaker of
  the House, President Pro Tempore of the Senate,
  Secretary of State followed by the rest of the
  cabinet

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Presidential Disability

• Twentyfifth sets rules to be followed.
• VP becomes acting president if the president
  informs Congress or if the VP and the majority of
  the cabinet inform Congress to be used if the
  president is unable to inform Congress.
• President resumes duty by informing Congress
• Congress will settle disputes within 21 days by a
  2/3rds vote in each house in favor of the VP to
  keep the president from resuming office

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Presidential Powers and Duties

• Presidential powers may be his alone or shared
  with the Senate or sometimes the Congress as a
  whole
• Commander in Chief
• Negotiate treaties
• Sign executive agreements
• Appointive power ambassadors, cabinet
  secretaries, Supreme Court Justices and federal
  court judges

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• Veto power
• Call Congress into special session and adjourn
  Congress if they cannot agree on a date
• Grant pardons for federal crimes
• Report on the State of the Union
• Take care that the laws be faithfully executed

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Vice Presidents Role

• Constitutional Duties
• Presides over the Senate and votes in cases of
  ties
• Helps determine disability under the 25th
  Amendment
• 14 VPs have become president 9 by death or
  resignation
• Since 1953 VPs have become more important they
  used to be ignored

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Electoral College

• The electoral college is actually a group of
  delegates chosen by the voters. On election day
  voters mark their ballots for president and vice
  president, but actually they are electing these
  delegates.
• Each state has as many delegates as it has
  senators and representatives.
• There are 538 electors in all (District of
  Columbia has three)
• The candidate who receives 270 (a majority) wins

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• Theoretically, a delegate can vote for whoever he
  or she wants, but in reality, delegates publicly
  commit themselves to a particular candidate and
  honor their commitment.
• With this system a person can be elected
  president even though he or she received a
  minority of the popular vote. (John Q Adams,
  Hayes, Harrison, and Bush 43)

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The Cabinet

• The presidents cabinet consists of the heads of
  the executive departments
• Homeland Security, State, Treasury, Defense,
  Justice, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, Labor,
  Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban
  Development, Transportation, Energy, Education,
  and Veterans Affairs

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White House Staff

• Presidents depend on their personal staff
• Advisors are often characterized as
• Domestic policy
• Economic policy
• National Security or foreign policy
• Administration and personal matters
• Congressional relations
• Communications and public relations

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Executive Office of the President

• White House Staff
• Office of the Vice President
• Office of Management and Budget
• National Security Council
• Council of Economic Advisors
• Office of Policy Development
• United States Trade Representative
• National Drug Control Policy
• Council on Environmental Quality
• Office of Science and Technology
• Office of Administration

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Roles of the President

• Chief of State
• Chief Executive
• Chief Administrator
• Chief Diplomat
• Chief Legislator
• Commander in Chief
• Chief of Party
• Chief Citizen
• Plus Economic Planner

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Evaluation of a POTUS

• Policy Leadership
• Crisis Management
• Appointments
• Foreign Standing
• Character and Integrity
• Public Persuasion
• Vision
• Plus Role Performance