Bell Ringer Who can prevent the president from controlling the Supreme Court by blocking appointments to the bench? state legislatures the Joint Chiefs of Staff the Association of Governors the Senate Article I of the Constitution describes the qualifications for members of Congress. Which of the following statements is most true about these qualifications? Senators must be older than Representatives Representatives have a longer residency requirement Senators and Representatives have the same qualifications Congressional qualifications are to be decided by the Supreme Court

THE PRESIDENT EQ: What are the qualifications for president? How is the president elected?

Visual Notes Outline Qualifications: _______ Term Length: President Article 2 of US Constitution: Executive Branch (Power to implement the law) Qualifications: _______ Term Length:

THE PRESIDENT The President is the head of the Executive branch. The constitution lists only three rules about who can be president 35 years old Native-born US citizen US resident for previous 14 years There are some commonalities among presidents, but they are not requirements All presidents have been male Educated Wealthy

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS The constitution sets up an indirect system for electing the president. When voting for a presidential candidate, an indirect method of election is used. This is called The Electoral College. Each state appoints Electors who votes for one of the major candidates. The ballot will show the name of the candidate but you are actually voting for the electors that are pledged to that candidate. So…Presidents are officially elected by the Electoral College. They vote for whichever candidate wins the popular vote in the state. There are 538 total electors; a candidate needs 270 to win.

TERMS IN OFFICE Presidents serve 4 year terms They can only serve 2 (4 yr) terms based on the 22nd amendment FDR was the only president to serve more than two terms. He won four terms… ( This was BEFORE the ratification of the 22 amendment which limits presidential terms)

BENEFITS OF BEING PRESIDENT $400,000 annual salary ($199,700 after they leave office) Free housing at the White House and Camp David Free food and domestic staff Free travel on Air Force One. Use of a command fleet

THE VICE PRESIDENT Same requirements as the President. 35 years old Native-born US citizen US resident for previous 14 years Official leader of the Senate but only votes to break a tie. Takes over if president is found unable to carry out his duties.

PRESIDENTIAL SUCCESSION In 1947 Congress passes Presidential Succession Act. Which indicates the line of succession after the Vice President. Remaining questions related to succession were addressed when the 25th Amendment was passed in 1967: Explains presidential succession as follows: Vice President (Congress must approve the new Vce President) Speaker of the House President Pro Tempore of the Senate Secretary of State ….then other cabinet members

Presidential Advisors and Executive Agencies Executive Office of the President: the President’s administration who carry out a wide range of jobs: White House Office (President’s closest advisors, the most important is the chief of staff) Office of Management and Budget (OMB, prepares budget and monitors federal spending) National Security Council (NSC, helps President with military issues and foreign policy, supervises the CIA) Office of Administration (administrative services); Council of Economic Advisors (CEA, gives President information on the economy)

Some Key Terms… The Vice President: Their role depends on the President and the authority given to them by the President The First Lady: Many have had their own office in the White House to promote their own programs (Clinton for health care, Bush for education and literacy) The Federal Bureaucracy: The agencies and employees of the Executive Branch. Bureaucracy: complex system of departments with many rules and chains of command. They turn laws into action, run the day-to-day operations of the federal government, and regulate various activities. Typically they fall under one of the Departments in the President’s Cabinet…

The Cabinet Cabinet: Presidential advisors of 15 departments. The head of each department is called Secretary… except for The Justice Department -Attorney General. These people are appointed by the President (with Senate approval). Their job is to make policy decisions for their respective department.

The Bureaucracy Continues… Independent Agencies: they are not part of one of the Departments in the President’s Cabinet; the President appoints the heads of theses agencies with Senate approval Executive Agencies (deal with specialized areas) Government Corporations (businesses owned by the government, Postal Service), Regulatory Boards/Commissions (protect the public by making rules for certain groups or industries, FCC)

Government Workers: Top jobs (like Cabinet Secretaries) are appointed by the and leave their office when a new President is elected. Civil service workers are hired through the civil service system which is based on exams, experience or merit and their job is permanent. Before the (Pendleton Act)Civil Service Reform Act of 1883 federal jobs were given as a reward to those who had given political support to the elected President. This system was called called the spoils system . Today civil service jobs are awarded by the merit system.