Executive Branch 8 Slides after this!

Executive Basics Described in Article 2 Responsible for executing, or carrying out, the nation’s laws Headed by the President The most powerful elected officer 44 different people in office

Qualifications Must be native-born citizen Be at least 35 years of age Must have been a resident of the US for at least 14 years Common Ties All men All but 1 have been white All have been Christian Most attended college Many were lawyers Most have held other political offices before President

Few Notable Presidents Oldest-Ronald Reagan at 69 Years old Youngest-John F Kennedy the youngest elected at 43. Teddy Roosevelt youngest sworn in at 42. Median age is 54 Obama is currently 51.

Term in Office 4 year term May be elected to 2 terms Cannot serve more than 10 years FDR – only President elected to 3 terms

Salary and Benefits Salary is set by Congress but Congress cannot change the salary for current President $400,000 year – went into effect during H.W. Bush presidency – plus yearly expense account Other benefits Travel Air Force One Lives in White House Camp David vacation spot Security – Secret Service for life

Impeachment Impeachment – formal process in which an official is accused of unlawful activity House votes to impeach but does not remove from office – just formal charges Senate must have 2/3 vote to remove official Andrew Johnson was impeached for violating the Tenure Of Office Act Bill Clinton was impeached for lying under oath. Neither were removed from office

Vice President Takes over if the President dies or resigns Presides over Senate Power is so limited John Adams, the first VP said it was the most insignificant office ever invented. 9 VP’s have taken over presidency Must meet same qualifications as president Salary $230,700

Other Notable Presidential Facts 7 Presidents have been shot – 5 were while in office – Abraham Lincoln, James Garfield, William McKinley, and John F. Kennedy died from shots 8 presidents have died in office 1 President has resigned

Electoral College Citizens do not vote directly for the President Founding Fathers were uncertain how successful the people would be in choosing wise leaders People who elect the president are called Electors There are 538 electors # of Representatives and Senators for each state, plus DC has 3 votes Whoever won the popular vote in the state during the November election will receive the electoral votes for the state.

Electoral College Cont. Whichever candidate wins the majority of votes for the Electoral College wins. If no candidate wins majority of votes – the House of Representatives.