1. Can anyone be the President of the U.S.? Constitutional Requirements: Must be at least 35 years old Must have lived in the United States for 14 years Must be a natural born citizen Unofficial: Ability to win party nomination High office holder Family name Money

2. Demographic Characteristics of U.S. Presidents 100% male 97% Caucasian 97% Protestant 82% of British ancestry 77% college educated 69% politicians 62% lawyers >50% from the top 3% wealth and social class 0.5% born into poverty 69% elected from large states

3. Presidential Benefits $400,000 tax-free salary $50,000/year expense account $100,000/year travel expenses The White House Secret Service protection Camp David country estate Air Force One personal airplane Staff of 400-500 Christmas at the White House, 2004

4. Powers of the President

5. Formal Powers of the President Constitutional or expressed powers of the presidency Constitutional or expressed powers of the presidency Found primarily in Article II of the Constitution (the Executive Article) Found primarily in Article II of the Constitution (the Executive Article)

6. Formal Powers: Military Powers Commander in Chief of the Army & Navy Commander in Chief of the Army & Navy Making undeclared war Making undeclared war – Limited by War Powers Act 1973 President can commit troops for 90 days President can commit troops for 90 days

7. Executive Powers Formal: Formal: Expressed in Constitution “ “Faithfully execute” the laws Direct the administration Appoint and remove many officials

8. Informal Powers: Those powers not explicitly written in the Constitution but inferred – expanded during modern presidencies Executive Orders Orders issued by the President that carry the force of law – Clinton’s “Don’t ask don’t tell” gays in the military policy – FDR’s internment of Japanese Americans – GWB trying suspected terrorists in military tribunals Notice for Japanese “relocation,” 1942

10. Executive Agreements International agreements, usually related to trade, made by a president that has the force of a treaty; does NOT need Senate approval Jefferson’s purchase of Louisiana in 1803 GWB announced cuts in the nuclear arsenal, but not in a treaty; usually trade agreements between US and other nations

11. Executive Privilege Claim by a president that he has the right to decide that the national interest will be better served if certain information is withheld from the public, including the Courts and Congress United States v. Nixon (1973) – presidents do NOT have unqualified executive privilege (Nixon Watergate tapes)

12. Diplomatic Powers Appoint ambassadors, ministers and consuls Make treaties subject to Senate confirmation Receive ambassadors Diplomatic Recognition – acknowledging the legal existence of a country/state

13. Legislative Powers Give State of the Union address to Congress Recommend “ measures ” to the Congress or veto legislation Upon “ extraordinary occasions ” convene both houses of Congress

14. Judicial Powers Grant reprieves Grant pardons Commute sentences Grant amnesty

15. Quick Fire Describe the message of one of the following political cartoon.

16. Presidential Roles

17. Head of State Queen Elizabeth and President Reagan, 1983 President Kennedy speaks at Berlin Wall, 1963 The President is chief of state. This means he is the ceremonial head of the government of the United States, the symbol of all the people of the nation.

18. Chief Diplomat President Lincoln during the Civil War, 1862 President Roosevelt and the “Bully Pulpit,” 1910 As the nation’s chief diplomat, the President is the main architect of American foreign policy and chief spokesperson to the rest of the world.

19. Chief Legislator President Clinton delivers the State of the Union Address, 1997 President Roosevelt signs into law the Social Security Act, 1935 The President is the chief legislator, the main architect of the nation’s public policies.

20. Leader of the Political Party President Reagan & Vice-President Bush accepting their party’s nomination in 1980 The President acts as the chief of party, the acknowledged leader of the political party that controls the executive branch.

21. Commander-in-Chief President Bush aboard U.S.S. Lincoln, May, 2003 President Johnson decorates a soldier in Vietnam, October, 1966 The Constitution makes the President the commander in chief, giving him or her complete control of the nation’s armed forces.

22. Chief Executive President Bush holds cabinet meeting in October, 2005 President Clinton with Janet Reno, the first female Attorney General, February, 1993 The Constitution vests the President with the executive power of the United States, making him or her the nation’s chief executive.

23. Chief Administrator Vice-President Johnson sworn in aboard Air Force One after President Kennedy’s assassination, 1963 President Bush at Ground Zero after 9-11 The President is the chief administrator, or director, of the United States government.

24. Chief Citizen The President is expected to be “the representative of all the people.”

25. Role of the Vice President

26. Jumpstart Assignment Describe the following political cartoon. How does it relate to the power of the President and Vice President?