Executive/President Flashcards
(90 cards)
1
Q
What are the three categories formal powers of the President can be divided into?
A
Enumerated powers (explicitly granted in Article II)
Implied powers (implied by the text of the constitution)
Inherent powers (not set out in the constitution but are needed for the president to carry out their constitutional role)
2
Q
What are informal powers?
A
Powers that have a political rather than constitutional basis.
They include the president’s role as party leader, their ability to set the political agenda, and use of direct authority by stretching their implied powers
They depend on the individuals presidential circumstances
3
Q
The US president is often described as “…
A
the most powerful person in the world” heading the world’s largest economy, command a military superpower with a deadly nuclear arsenal and enjoy a leading role within the international community
despite all this, many presidents are deeply frustrated by the limits on their power
4
Q
Who is part of the executive?
A
President
Cabinet
15 executive departments
60 independent federal agencies
(EXOP) - including White House Office and Security Council
5
Q
Which Section of Article II of the Constitution gives the president the power to propose legislation to Congress?
A
Section 3
6
Q
Early presidents such as George Washington hardly proposed any legislation (he proposed 3 pieces) - who is seen as expanding the role of presidency?
A
Franklin D. Roosevelt after the Great Depression 1933
7
Q
What implied power did Roosevelt expand?
A
Power to use emergency powers in a national emergency
8
Q
Give an example of an inherent power:
A
After the 9/11 attacks George W Bush’s administration argued that the president’s inherent powers gave him the authority to ignore civil liberties and anti-torture laws
9
Q
What are the 5 formal powers?
A
- Executive powers
- The power to influence the passage of legislation through Congress
- Appointment powers
- Foreign policy
- Power to grant pardons
10
Q
What are executive powers?
A
The president is the chief executive of the federal government meaning they control the federal bureaucracy.
P also has the power of preparing the annual budget with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) writing it at their direction
11
Q
What was Trump’s budget for the coming year in Feb 2020?
A
$4.8 trillion even before the costs of COVID 19 were clear !
12
Q
What are the 4 powers when passing legislation (1 at the start 3 at the end)?
A
- Proposing legislation usually at the State of the Union Address
- Sign it
- Leave on the desk - effectively becomes law after 10 days unless the congressional session ends during these days (pocket veto)
- Veto - Biden has vetoed 10 and so did Trump
13
Q
What are the 2 appointment powers?
A
- Nominating officials to key posts in the executive (about 4,000 positions and more than 700 are confirmed by the Senate)
- Nominating federal judges including to the Supreme Court
14
Q
Foreign policy powers: What role does the President play?
A
Commander-in-chief of the US military
15
Q
Although the Constitution and War Powers Act 1973 sets out only Congress has the power to formally declare war, this has not been done since ___ despite regular US military action
A
1941
16
Q
The most deadly power of the P is the use of…
A
nuclear weapons - carries the ‘nuclear football’
17
Q
Only 1 president has used nuclear weapons. Which one and when?
A
August 1945 Truman end of WW2 on Hiroshima and Nagasaki killing over 250k people
18
Q
What is the power to grant pardons?
A
Pardoning anyone that has been convicted of a federal crime - e.g. Ford pardoned his predecessor Nixon for any crimes he ‘might’ have committed
Congress said in September 2023 there would be NO chance Biden would be able to pardon his son Hunter - failed to pay $1.4 million in taxes
Biden pardoned thousands of prisoners convicted of marijuana possessions Dec 2023 - promising equal justice
Also commutations which releases the prisoner but doesn’t formally pardon them - Obama 330 on last day in office
19
Q
Give 2 examples of a president using special forces to kill terrorist leaders:
A
Obama with Osama bin Laden, leader of al Qaeda
Trump authorising a drone strike to kill a top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani in 2020 which led to military retaliation in Iran
20
Q
Which president was largely criticised for using the power of the pardon?
A
Bill Clinton who pardoned his brother for a drug offence and pardoning wealthy supporters - 140 pardons on his last day in office !!! (pardongate)
21
Q
Who claimed they could pardon themself?
A
Trump in a tweet in 2018
22
Q
Who else did Trump controversially pardon in 2020?
A
His friend and adviser Roger Stone who was convicted of obstructing the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 P election
23
Q
What are the 5 informal powers?
A
- Power to persuade
- Deal-making
- Setting the agenda
- De facto party leader
- World leader
24
Q
Which professor argued ‘Presidential power is the power to persuade’?
A
Professor Richard Neustadt
25
When is the power to persuade at its easiest?
In times of unified government (e.g. 115th Congress under Trump and 117th Congress under Biden) and high supporting ratings of the president - Trump Congress support score of 98.7% in 2017
Biden’s support score 94.9% in 2022 (Congress(wo)men voting with him) vs 70.4% in 2023 (when Reps took the Senate however 95% of Dem senators in 2023 stuck with Biden) - info by the CQ Roll Call’s annual vote studies
Biden’s popularity with the public has gone down to 41% currently vs 49% in 2020 (Trump 42% vs 45% in 2020)
26
What type of deal-making does the president engage in?
Deal-making with politicians such as offering to support a policy a legislator is championing or deliver funding to their home or district
Also bipartisan deal-making is essential during periods divided government avoid gridlock e.g. Trump and the First Steps Act 2018 and 2019 trade deal with Mexico and Canada
Trump also made concessions to allow a $1.4 trillion spending bill to pass in Dec 2019 avoiding a repeat of the 35 day government shutdown
27
Where does the P informally set the agenda?
Through the media and speeches - they decide what issues are discussed by journalists, political commentators and the public
28
What did Trump controversially say in 2019 about the ‘Squad’ ?
They should ‘go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested’ countries they came from - was condemned as racist and insulting
29
What other controversial messages did he spread?
That the Squad were ‘socialist’ and ‘radical left’
Chinese virus
Claiming the 2020 election had been ‘stolen’ and inciting the storming of the Capitol on 6th Jan 2021
30
What is de facto party leader?
The P is informally the head of their party so can influence its membership
Particularly helpful if the presidents party controls BOTH houses of Congress but does not always guarantee they will get their legislation through as we saw with Trump and his proposed repeal of Obamacare which failed in the first 100 days
31
Why is being the world leader so significant?
Because the USA is the most powerful liberal democracy and military superpower in history with the P often described as the ‘leader of the free world’
US dominated global politics and international institutions such as the UN, NATO (however Trump wanted to break ties) and WTO
32
Which president led the US and western democracies into the cold war (1945-91) against the USSR?
Reagan
33
What 3 international agreements did Trump withdraw the US from?
Paris Agreement
Iran nuclear deal
Terminated the relationship with WHO (World Health Organisation)
34
What 3 powers were created by stretching the president’s implied powers to create a new set of informal powers?
1. Executive orders
2. Signing statements
3. Executive agreements
35
Give 3 examples of executive orders and 1 problem with them.
Roosevelt record of 3,721
Bush controversial anti-terror measures after 9/11
Obama increasing the federal minimum wage and outlawing discrimination against married same-sex couples by health insurance companies
Trump criticised Obama for using them as ‘power grabs’ but Trump ended up issuing more in his first 3
years than Obama did in 8!
Obama’s executive order on advancing women’s health research and innovation (March 2024)
They can be reversed by future presidents (but can set a precedent)
36
What do presidents sign statements for?
When they sign a bill into law but wish to comment on it (can be positive or negative)
Can achieve a line-item veto (vetoing a portion of the bill) but this was ruled unconstitutional by the SC in 1996
For example Trump used one to criticise a 2017 bill imposing sanctions on Russia, Iran and North Korea, claiming it affected his constitutional powers to conduct foreign policy
37
What is an executive agreement between?
the USA and an international government - they do NOT require state ratification
Basically an informal treaty but are easier to remove than a treaty e.g. Trump withdrew from Obama’s 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change and 2015 nuclear deal
38
Bureaucratic power: What does EXOP help the president do?
1. Run the federal government
2. Develop policy
3. Write legislation
4. Communicate with the public
5. Communicate with members of congress
6. Negotiate trade deals
7. Promote their agenda
39
Who was EXOP set up by?
Franklin D. Roosevelt
40
The founding fathers designed a system of limited government with a separation of powers to prevent a tyrannical and too powerful president.
What are the 8 checks and balances congress has over the president?
1. Amending, rejecting or delaying the president’s legislation
2. Overriding a presidential veto
3. Power of the purse
4. Confirmation of P appointments (Senate only)
5. Ratification of treaties (Senate only)
6. Power to declare war
7. Investigations of President
8. Impeachment
41
Amending, delaying or rejecting p’s legislation example :
Obama’s gun control measures after Sandy Hook Massacre 2012 was rejected
42
Overriding a p veto example:
Obama’s veto of JASTA in 2016 which made it easier for US citizens to sue foreign states for acts of terrorism was overridden by Congress
The US Congress overturned Trump's veto of a $740 billion defence spending bill in Jan 2021, the first time this has happened in his presidency. - Mitch McConnell was determined to pass the bill (“we’ve passed this bill for 59 years in a row”)
43
Which one of Trump’s vetoes were overridden?
His veto of the annual defence bill
Senate majority leader rep Mitch McConnell criticised Trump, arguing that the legislation had been passed 59 years in a row’ and was essential to our ‘brave men and women’
44
What happens if Congress refuses to pass the president’s budget?
Government shutdown - this incentivises presidents to agree to Congress’ demands to avoid a shutdown
45
More than ___ presidential appointments to the federal governing or federal judiciary must be confirmed by the Senate via a simple majority vote
1,000
46
In US history, the Senate have rejected just _ cabinet nominees and _ Supreme Court nominees
9
11
47
Some nominees expired because the Senate refused to consider them/hold hearings. What was one controversial example of this?
Merrick Garland in 2016 - had Garland been appointed the SC would have had a majority of justices appointed by Democratic presidents since the 1970s
48
Are treaties hard to ratify?
Yes especially when the Senate is held by the opposite party to the president because they require a 2/3 majority in the Senate
49
What has been used instead of treaties?
Executive agreements
50
What were 2 significant rejections of a treaties?
Treaty of Versailles (1920) - led to American isolationism
UN Convention on the Rights of Peoples with Disabilities
51
Who has the ultimate power to declare war under the War Powers Act 1973?
Congress - however this does not always happen
52
What are investigations of the president a form of?
Oversight
53
What do investigations generate?
media scrutiny
54
Give an example of 2 high profile investigations/impeachments of the president:
1. Watergate scandal 1972-74 - Richard Nixon - involved the breaking in at the Democratic headquarters in the Watergate office building - he promised he was not connected to the break-in and was re-elected in a landslide win - televised hearing where 85% of the population seeing at last portions of the hearing - he resigned
2. Impeachment of Donald Trump - 1st one to do with Trump accused of using aid to compel the Ukrainian president to investigate his political opponent Biden and Biden’s son - 2nd one incitement of insurrection storming of the Capitol Jan 2021 - 1st one only 1 senator voted to impeach/convict while 7 did in the second impeachment
55
What 3 presidents have been impeached?
Andrew Johnson (1868)
Bill Clinton (1998)
Trump (2019 and 2021)
56
Why did some people argue Trump’s second impeachment was unconstitutional?
Because he had already left office
57
Checks and balances by the judiciary: What do the judiciary carry out on the president? Give an example
Judicial review to see if their actions are lawful or not
SC ruled in 2017 Trump’s Muslim ban was unconstitutional so he included 3 non majority-Muslim countries (North Korea, Venezuela and Chad)
Trump v Mazars 2020 - Trump had no right to refuse to give his personal financial records to criminal prosecutors - the p’s lawyers had argued he was exempt from state criminal subpoenas - Kavanaugh said ‘no one is above the law’ despite him being appointed by Trump
58
What are 3 other constraints on the president?
1. Party support in Congress
2. Prevailing judicial philosophy in the Supreme court
3. Attitudes of the media and public opinion
59
Give the most recent unified government:
117th Congress 2021-2023
60
Give the most recent divided government:
118th Congress 2023- (House held by Reps) Senate is 49 Reps and 48 Dems BUT 3 are independents and they all caucus with the Democrats
61
Who campaigned against Trump’s decision to withdraw from the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement and signed California up to a separate sub national coalition committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions?
Democrat California governor Jerry Brown
62
Give a conservative news channel and a liberal one:
Conservative - FoxNews
Liberal - CNN
63
Who had the lowest presidential opinion poll ratings in history, with a high of 49% in Feb 2020?
Trump
64
But what was Trump’s approval ratings among Reps in 2018?
85-90% compared with 40% nationally - highlighting the sharp divisions and polarisation of America
65
What are the 4 institutions the president has a close relationship with?
1. The cabinet
2. EXOP
3. 15 executive offices each head and run by a cabinet officer
4. 60 independently run federal agencies
66
What features do most cabinet officers have?
Former politicians (Clinton who served as Obama’s sec of state was previously governor for New York)
Academics
Experts in their field (Trump’s secretary of the treasury from 2017 was previously an investment banker)
Military officers (Biden appointed retired general Lloyd Austin as secretary of defence in 2021)
Lobbyists (former coal lobbyist Andrew Wheeler to head to EPA in 2018)
67
Does the cabinet have to be approved by the Senate?
Yes
68
What was the makeup difference of Trump’s cabinet vs Biden’s?
Trumps full of those who had ‘made a fortune’ (total of $2.3 billion)
Biden’s was the most diverse in US history (13 men 13 women, first African American sec of defense Lloyd Austin) and first female sec of the treasury (Janet Yellen) and openly gay transport officer (Pete Buttigieg)
69
How is the relationship with the cabinet different to the UK?
P has authority over the cabinet and does not have to take their advice while in the UK the PM is ‘primus inter pares’
In addition, they only meet a couple times a year in the US! But does depend on the president (e.g. Reagan had many more than Obama, Trump had 9 per year to begin with but by the last year in office just 1)
70
What is EXOP?
The Executive Office of the President
A group of offices that support the president in running the federal government
Includes the White House Office, the National Security Council, Office of Management and Budget and the Office of the VP
71
Who set up EXOP?
Roosevelt 1930s as the federal govt grew in response to the Great Depression.
The president needed a bureaucracy to help run the executive branch
72
How many staff in EXOP?
3000-4000
73
What are the 2 most important parts of EXOP?
White House Office - works closely with the P and had 400 employees in 2019 and 377 in 2024 - includes a collection of offices such as Office of Legislative Affairs - unlike cabinet appointments are solely at the discretion of the president
National Security Council - main forum for discussing national security or foreign policy issues - chaired by the P and members include VP, sec of state, sec of defense, sec of treasury - secure Situation Room in the basement of the White House 2011 Obama watching the mission where Osama bin Laden was killed
74
Cabinet officers head the 15 executive departments. Give 3 executive departments:
Commerce, defense, education
75
Give 2 independently run federal agencies:
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
Federal Election Commission
76
The relationship between the president and their chief of staff:
Arguably the most important relationship within the president’s administration.
Obama allowed his first chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, considerable authority - he coordinated the work of policy sczars, cabinet officers and national security advisers - he checked policy suggestions before they were sent to the president and was criticised for encouraging the p to pursue moderate rather than ideological policies
In contrast, Trump’s relationship with his first chief of staff, Reince Pribus, deteriorated quickly amid claims of a dysfunctional administration - he was replaced with John Kelly who attempted to impose order and bring discipline to the White House - but after some time him and Trump were reportedly not on speaking terms - replaced again twice after that!
Current chief of staff under Biden is Jeff Zients who has been described as moving the Biden administration in a more conservative direction
77
President’s approach towards their wider staff:
Character of every administration is different
Obama’s White House appeared to run effectively with a sense of shared purpose among staff
In contrast, Trump initially left many of the positions in his administration unfilled - after 2 years in office he failed to fill 280 positions and he frequently sacked officials + many resignations - most staff were unconditional supporters
78
The extent to which the president uses EXOP to dominate the cabinet: What have some presidents appointed in the White House?
‘Policy sczars’ - government officials who are responsible for a particular area of policy, often similar to a cabinet officer
For example Biden’s ‘drug sczar’ Dr Rahul Gupta is currently overseeing the most progressive federal drug strategy since Nixon first appointed a drug sczar in 1971 - supervised drug consumption sites
Policy sczars may be given greater access to the president than cabinet officers!
Even Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, acted as a policy sczar on a broad range of issues including the border wall, healthcare, US innovation and criminal justice reform - he also took charge of the federal response to COVID 19 pandemic
Obama widely criticised of using many policy sczars to avoid senate scrutiny/approval
79
The president’s view of the federal bureaucracy and federal agencies:
Some presidents aim to increase the scope of the federal bureaucracy (usually Democrats e.g. Roosevelt and Obama who increased number of federal employees by 8%)
others wish to reduce the scope ie Trump who wanted to ‘drain the swamp’ and planned to abolish 22 government agencies (but Congress did not consent)
80
What was found out about Trump and the pandemic response office in 2018?
He disbanded it after it was set up by the National Security Council - perhaps a bad idea 😬
81
What did Bush do to the federal bureaucracy despite wanting to reduce it?
Expanded it by 13.8% but largely because of 9/11
He also increased spending on education and healthcare and launched an economic stimulus in response to the 2008 financial crisis
82
What is an imperial president?
One that dominates Congress and conducts foreign policy independently of the legislature
‘Emperor-like’
Goes beyond the powers intended by the framers
83
What is an imperilled president?
A weak president and its effectiveness is limited by Congress and an excessively large federal bureaucracy
84
Does the USA have an imperial or imperilled presidency? Imperial:
Nixon’s actions during the Vietnam war (authorising military intervention in Cambodia and Laos without telling Congress and continuing the war, as well as the Watergate scandal)
Presidents do not ask Congress to declare war
May avoid asking Congress to authorise military action
They have access to emergency powers (e.g. Bush with detention w/o trial at Guantanamo Bay and Trump for his border wall and banned US citizens from travelling to European countries during COVID)
They can make use of direct authority (executive orders) - but can be overridden by future presidents
Strong partisan support in Congress can prevent a president from being held to account
Presidential style
Expansion of the federal government increases the president’s power
85
Imperilled:
Gerald Ford argued the presidency was imperilled due to a bloated and inefficient federal bureaucracy
Congress responded to Nixon by passing the War Powers Act 1973
Presidents can be FORCED to use direct authority to avoid gridlock in Congress
They are unable to achieve their legislative priorities without congressional support
Government shutdowns are a reminder on the limitations of presidential power
Lame duck periods of presidency (Obama) usually at the end of their term (especially a 2-year term)
Senate can refuse to hold hearings for appointments (ie Merrick Garland)
86
The waxing and waning of Obama’s power: How did his power change?
At the beginning in 2008 he had much power - many welcomed him as a historic break with the past as the first black president who also promised a new start in foreign policy after George W Bush
Campaign slogan ‘change we can believe in’
Productive first 100 days with Obamacare, environmental reforms and the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act 2009- in 2010 he signed the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Repeal Act which had previously barred openly gay people from the military
His power began to wane when he lost control of Congress (2010) BUT his personal popularity remained strong and had some important successes such as killing of Osama bin Laden in 2011
Politics became much more polarised during his second term
Failed to pass gun-control measures after Sandy Hook massacre
2014 Senate lost to the republicans
He became a lame duck president and relied on executive orders and agreements rather than legislation BUT his executive order to protect some illegal immigrants from deportation was challenged by 26 states and was blocked by the SC in 2016
He also failed to appoint Merrick Garland
87
Who violated the War Powers Act in 2011?
Obama’s military intervention in Libya
88
Despite claiming to bring in a new era of ‘foreign policy’ what programme did Obama controversially pursue?
A ‘targeted killing’ programme which allowed him to launch 10 times more unmanned drone strikes in the Middle East and Asia than his predecessor Bush
89
What act was passed to try and limit
presidential power by requiring any declaration of emergency be accompanied by a legal justification?
The National Emergencies Act 1976 - but had very little impact - more than 30 national emergencies remained current in 2020
90
In what state was Trump removed from the ballot 2024?
Maine
