The President and foreign policy Chief Diplomat Chief Negotiator Commander-in-chief

Which powers is he exercising within this role? Acting as commander –in –chief Negotiating treaties Executive agreements Presidential preorgative

Who helps him in this role? The vice-president The State Department The Secretary of State The National Security Advisor The National Security Agency Foreign policy advisor Chief of Staff ………………and many others

Who checks him in this role? The Senate Foreign Relations Committee The House Foreign Relations Committee The Supreme Court The Senate Chamber The House The public The media

What were the founding fathers’ intentions for the President’s role in foreign policy? The President is Commander in chief of the army and navy Congress has the power to declare war In other words…………….. The President could not be trusted with the power to declare war and so he could only supervise, once Congress declared. The would make the Presidents powers reactive and the powers on Congress proactive

What is the imperial presidency? This is an expression that was used in 1973, by Arthur Schlesinger, in his book to describe the gradual decline in the effectiveness of constitutional checks on presidential power alongside an increased willingness on the part of Congress to delegate unconstitutional powers to the president, leaving the president largely unchecked and exceptionally powerful in foreign policy. **** to support this viewpoint you have to believe that there has been a permanent shift in the checks and balances within the system. After Nixon, Ford and Carter seemed to retreat into a more traditional role and congress was more dominant. Did that then challenge the theory of the imperial president? Where does GWB fit into this viewpoint?

What factors lead to an imperial president? Public fear (cold war) National security (9/11) Weak congress (Vietnam) International tension(the Twentieth Century) Presidential prerogative (Eisenhower in Korea)

How valid is this theory? In support The age of crisis is well underway and the constitutional balance of powers will never be the same again- David Mervin 1990 Truman’s use of the Presidential prerogative dramatically enlarged the power of future presidents to take the nation into war - Schlesinger The president is as imperial as the congress, the press and the people allow him to be.-Dante Chinni In opposition Presidents are leaders not rulers – which means of course they are not imperial at all. Tanenhaus Whether or not a president is imperial is in the eye of the beholder – Prof Davies The imperial presidency is a creation of liberals who were happy enough when the strong president was a democrat, but resented it when the strong President was a Republican. - Nixon

The imperilled presidency Ford 1980 – ‘the pendulum has swung too far in the opposite direction…………………..we have not an imperial presidency, but an imperilled presidency………..the presidency does not operate effectively……………………….it is harmful to our overall national interest.’ analysis Why did Ford think this? He put it down to the erosion of party leadership in Congress and the inability of successive presidents to control the federal bureaucracy. His advice – beef up the power of the party leadership in Congress; make greater use of VP and Cabinet; for presidents to spend more time with members of Congress. Presidential powers are cyclical, they are not constant.

Make notes on the presidents since 1945, using p Consider the validity of the theory against their actions as commander-in-chief Read the article ‘The president as commander-in-chief’ A2 focus – Politics Review – NOTE THE DETAIL. Read the Patriot Act and The President and Terrorism. Make particular notes on the detail of President Bush’s actions and the viewpoints on his performance. Task