THE PRESIDENCY

Electing the President

Electing the President

THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE

Each state receives a specific # of electoral votes.

# of Congressmen + 2 Senators = # of Electoral

Votes

Each electoral vote is represented by a person

(more on that in a minute)

Following the November election, the electoral

college meets in December to officially cast their

votes for POTUS

ELECTORAL COLLEGE

•538 electoral votes/270

needed to win

•If neither candidate wins

a majority, the House of

Representatives elects

POTUS and the Senate

elects VPOTUS.

ELECTORAL COLLEGE & FEDERALISMElectors are chosen by the party leaders in each state

The Constitution leaves it up to the states how to

award their electoral votes (Winner-Take-All, District

Method etc.)

States also have different laws governing ***faithless

electors***-electors who refuse to cast their vote to the

candidate they were pledged to.

ORIGINAL SYSTEM

•Electors chosen by state

legislatures or popular vote

•Each elector cast two votes for

POTUS, one of which had to be

from outside of his state (Article II).

•1st Place = President

•2nd Place = VP

Problem: POTUS & VP could be

from different parties

***12th Amendment***

Electors cast a vote for POTUS and one

for VP

•Winner-Take-All/Plurality System

The winner of the popular vote in

each state wins all of that state’s

electoral votes.*

*Except in Nebraska & Maine who use

the district method.

Grover Cleveland won the popular vote for

the presidency but lost in the electoral

college to Benjamin Harrison.

CURRENT SYSTEM

Why don’t we elect POTUS by national popular vote?

I. Founding Fathers feared an uninformed or impassioned

electorate might popularly elect a tyrant.

***SAFEGUARD: They allowed the electors to vote their

conscience.

II. Forces candidates to coalition-build instead of focusing on

one geographic area/population centers

III. National popular vote would enable electoral fraud

Formal Qualifications

CONSTITUTIONAL REQUIREMENTS

•At least 35 years old

•A natural-born citizen of the U.S.

•A resident of the U.S. for at least 14

years

Informal Qualifications

It also helps to have:

•Several years prior government-

particularly executive experience;

•Prior military experience;

•Very few skeletons in your closet;

•Access to a lot of $$$;

•A middle-class background.

$alary & Benefit$•Annual Salary: $400,000

•Annual Expense Allowance: $50,000

•Travel Allowance: $100,000

•Air Force I

•Retirement Pension

•Health Insurance

•Camp David access

Presidential Powers

EVOLUTION OF PRESIDENTIAL POWER

The Presidency was a relatively weak institution prior to the 20th

century as Congress was the dominant branch.

Presidential power has expanded due to:

Internal social and economic crises

Foreign policy crises

Expansion of federal power by Congress that necessitated an

expanded federal bureaucracy administered by the Chief Executive.

POTUS LIMITED BY:

•The Constitution

•Popular Opinion

Public support for a President may

impact how much support he receives

from Congress for his programs.

***LAME DUCK***

A President who has either been voted

out of office after his first term or is

unpopular during the latter part of his

second term.

POTUS and Congress frequently struggle for power

and often have different agendas, even under a unified

government.

Veto override

Impeachment

Treaties require Senate confirmation

Cabinet and judicial appointments, ambassadorships

require Senate confirmation

Congressional oversight of actions taken by the

executive branch

The Courts

Presidential initiatives or actions may be ruled

unconstitutional

EX: U.S. v. Nixon (1973) limited executive privilege

Politics

***DIVIDED GOVERNMENT***

When the White House and one or both houses of

congress are controlled by different parties.

-Compromises benefit both sides but the process is

much slower

-Unless POTUS has an ideological majority in both

houses, he is more likely to lose legislative battles

***GRIDLOCK***

-The inability of the federal government to act quickly

and decisively due to divided government

***IMPERIAL PRESIDENTS***

•Imperial presidents will act without

consultation with the other branches in

order to move their agenda forward.

•Often done via ***executive

orders/actions***-orders have the full

force of law when that authority is

granted by the Constitution or an act of

Congress.

POTUS’ PROGRAM

Major initiatives that POTUS seeks to enact

Presidential Programs are shaped by…

Interest groups

-They generate new ideas

Aids & Advisors

-They test new ideas for political soundness (“Will we have

the backing of Congress and/or the public?”)

Federal Bureaus and Agencies

-Will know whether or not a program can even work and how

to implement it.

Outside Experts

-Provide criticisms

Roles

• Symbol of the U.S.:

Represents America at

special occasions, key

foreign events and

ceremonies.

• EX: Awarding medals and

speechmaking.

HEAD OF STATE

CHIEF EXECUTIVE• Sees to it that laws are faithfully

executed

• ***IMPOUNDMENT***

-Not spending money allocated by

Congress (Congress must approve in

45 days)

• Appoints key officials like ambassadors

and judges (S) and lesser officials

CHIEF EXECUTIVE• Issues executive orders that affect how

laws are enforced

• Can fire employees of the Executive

Branch

• Grants pardons & amnesty

CHIEF LEGISLATOR• Proposes and drives legislation

• Approves legislation (C).

• Lobbies members of Congress to

support his agenda or uses the

***Bully Pulpit*** to appeal

directly to the American people.

• Presents his agenda to Congress

in the annual State of the Union

address.

COMMANDER-IN-CHIEFDecides where and how to deploy the armed forces, and the rules of engagement.

Power is shared by the Secretary of Defense and the Commander of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

WAR POWERS ACT•POTUS can deploy the military to a hostile area/order military operations against another country without a declaration of war for 60 days.

•POTUS must inform congress in writing within 48 hours.

MONITORS:

• Unemployment

• Inflation, taxation, business

Also:

• Does not control the economy, but pushes policies can impact it.EX: Tax cuts/increases

• Prepares the federal budget

CHIEF ECONOMIST

Chief Diplomat

Shapes the foreign policy of the United States.

Appoints and manages the ambassadors, embassies, and foreign activities of the country.

Signs treaties (S).

Executive Agreements.

Daily duties handled by the Secretary of State.

CHIEF POLITICIAN/PARTY LEADER

• Presidents help members of

their party get elected or

appointed to office (Coattails

Effect).

• They make campaign

speeches needed for re-

election.

• Head of fund-raising for the

party.

PRESIDENTIAL SUCCESSION

22nd Am. limits POTUS to two terms + two

years of the previous POTUS’ term if

necessary. (10 years total)

•25th Am.: VP takes over if POTUS dies.

•Presidential Succession Act of 1947

-Speaker of the House and President Pro

Tempore followed by Cabinet Secretaries

take over if POTUS & VP die/resign.

PRESIDENTIAL SUCCESSION

PRESIDENTIAL INCAPACITY

•25th Am also says VP & majority of the

Cabinet can decide if POTUS is mentally or

physically unable to be POTUS and remove

him.

FIN

The Cabinet

President Calvin Coolidge & his Cabinet

The CabinetCABINET = VP + heads (Secretaries) of 15 major

executive departments

CABINET SECRETARIES

•Often have conflicting loyalties due to their personal

backgrounds, relationship to special interests and rivalries

EX: Hamilton & Jefferson

•POTUS doesn’t have much control over them due to the size

of their departments.

Often receive their appointments due to:

•Their level of expertise in their respective area

•Political loyalty

OTHEROTHER ELEMENTS OF THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH

WHITE HOUSE OFFICE

-Special advisors and assistants to POTUS

-Don’t require confirmation

EXECUTIVE AND INDEPENDENT AGENCIES

-EX (EXECUTIVE AGENCIES): NASA, Small Business

Administration

-EX (INDEPENDENT AGENCIES): Federal Reserve

GOVERNMENT CORPORATIONS

USPS, Amtrak

OTHEREXECUTIVE OFFICE

-Agencies of the ExBr that report directly to POTUS

-Confirmed by the Senate

• Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

• National Security Council

• Council of Economic Advisors

***RULE OF PROPINQUITY***

Whomever is in the room when the decision is made

has the most power.

The closer your office it the Oval Office, the more

influence you have over POTUS