The US presidency

Question 1

formal sources of presidential power

Answer 1

• head of state: George Bush delivering news of 9/11 to the country, Trump delivering news on Covid 19
• head of government: formal powers that are the presidents duties, written in article II of the constitution

Question 2

executive powers

powers outlined by article II of the constitution

Answer 2

• preparation of the annual budget, but it must be passed by Congress
• president is the executive of the government

Question 3

legislative powers

powers outlined by article II of the constitution

Answer 3

• signing legislation
• veto a bill
• threat of a veto
• taking no action (leave on desk)

Question 4

e.g of taking no action

Answer 4

Obama allowed the renweal of the Iran sanctions act (1996)

Question 5

appointment powers

powers outlined by article II of the constitution

Answer 5

the president nominates officials to the executive branch and judiciary, but this must be confirmed by the senate

Question 6

2 appointments by Joe Biden

Answer 6

Antony Blinknin as secretary of state

Alejandro Myorkas as secretary of homeland security

Question 7

recess appointments

powers outlined by article II of the constitution

Answer 7

allows the president to make temporary appointments to vacancies which would usually require the senates approval, but he can’t get approval as the Senate is in recess.

Question 8

foreign affairs powers

powers outlined by article II of the constitution

Answer 8

• the president is the commander in chief of the US military and can initiate action (only Congress can declare war)
• the president negociates treaties with foreign powers

Question 9

power of the pardon

powers outlined by article II of the constitution

Answer 9

pardon: the power of the president to forgive a person of a federal crime, erasing it from their criminal record

commutation: the ability of the president to reduce the sentence issued for a crime

Question 10

number of pardons done by Clinton, Bush and Obama

Answer 10

• Clinton pardons: 396
• Bush pardons: 189
• Obama pardons: 212

Question 11

what are informal powers?

Answer 11

powers that are not granted explicitly by constitution, but which are either taken anyway or enable the president to gain power

Question 12

appointment of cabinet

informal sources of presidential power

Answer 12

• the cabinet has no constitutional power and the president maintains the final say over policy
• members are often policy specialists who offer opinions on policy and lend support to the president in his policy objectives

Question 13

Trumps cabinet - representation

Answer 13

Trumps cabinet was more white and male than any other president since Reagan

Question 14

who did Obama appoint to be the Treasury and why was this good for him?

Answer 14

Tim Geithner was appointed by Obama to be the Treasury because his role at the federal state bank of new york, which enabled Obama to deal with the recession after the 2007 economic crises - Tim Geither introduced the financial stability plan and introduced stress tests to ensure banks could withstand economic crises

Question 15

explain what happened with the Guatanamo Bay situation

Answer 15

Obama was concerned that Hagel was not transferring detainees out of Guatanamo Bay quickly enough. Obamas national security adviser sent Hagel a memo requiring him to send updates about transfers. soon after he resigned

the informalness lead to Hagel being careless and he had differing views for Guatanemo Bay than Obama.

Question 16

Obamas cabinet - representation

Answer 16

• Obamas cabinet was the most diverse, with 7 women, 4 african americans etc
• a diverse government shows good symbolism and governement at work

Question 17

% of white men in Trump and Reagans cabinet

Answer 17

71% trump and 81% Reagan

Question 18

e.g when Trump appointed someone with similar ideologies to him

Answer 18

Micheal Flynn as his national security adviser : Flynn tweeted controversial statements like ‘fear of muslims is rational’ which clearly indicates a similarity in ideology to Trump, he also critiqued Obamas administration

Question 19

3 similarities between UK and US cabinet

Answer 19

• both elected by the executive - have to be reflective of society
• roles within cabinet: both have departments
• the PM/president can be removed from cabinet with a lack of support from its members (Thatcher, Blair, May), however, in the US, it can happen but hasn’t happened before

Question 20

3 differences between US and UK cabinet

Answer 20

• power: the UK has collective responsibility where the cabinet has collective power over decision making whereas in the US, the president can overrule cabinet
• appointment proess: the US president has formal checks (clean record etc) on their cabinet whereas the UK doesn’t
• the UK cabinet has to be in Parliament to be appointed, whereas in the US, they are exclusively barred from being members of congress (e.g Clinton had to quit her job as senator to become Obamas secretary of state) - separation of powers

Question 21

how can the cabinet strengthen the power of the president

Answer 21

• their cabinet can be loyal supporters to them (Trump appointing Ben Carson due to his loyalty)
• the cabinet has no constitutional power and the president maintains the final say over policy
• members are often policy specialists who offer opinions on policy and lend support to the president in his policy objectives (Obama and Tim Geithner)

Question 22

how can cabinet weaken the power of the president

Answer 22

• if their cabinet disagrees with them, the president can be removed from cabinet, however, this has not happened yet
• the president must ensure they can rely on their cabinet (Obama and Hagel during Guatenamo Bay)

Question 23

power of persuasion

informal presidential powers

Answer 23

to persuade those around him to achieve his policy goals.

Question 24

how might a president persuade?

Answer 24

• personal gravitas
• bully pulpit
• direct moral appeals to Congress
• offering inducemenets to congress

Question 25

direct morals appeals to congress | 1 example

Answer 25

Obamas Rose Garden speech of 2013 - he quoted ‘i have the power, but i am handing it over to you (to Congress)

Question 26

bully pulpit | 1 example

Answer 26

a strong and significant platform from which the president can advance his policy. in US politics it usually refers to the White house - Trump on building a wall bordering Mexico

Question 27

personal gravitas | 2 examples

Answer 27

phoning congressional leaders or having personal meetings with people - Obama got his deputy chief of staff to call senators to ensure they vote to ratify Sonia Sotoayor - Trump sent his aide to speak to congress whips to share information with them to try to get his Tax Bill passed.

Question 28

offering inducements to congress | 2 examples

Answer 28

e.g offering broader policy promises to make legislation more palatable: - Obama’s promises about Syria intervention only be limited and no ground troops to prevent deaths - Obama deported more people than any other president, to show congress he could be trusted with immigration policy and to gain support for his proposed immigration reforms

Question 29

John F. Kennedy : affirmative action | examples of executive orders, successful or unsuccessful?

Answer 29

required federal contractors to take affirmative action to ensure equal treatment of employees and job applicants SUCCESSFUL

Question 30

George W Bush: Homeland Security | examples of executive orders, successful or unsuccessful?

Answer 30

established an office of homeland security as a response to 9/11 SUCCESSFUL

Question 31

Barack Obama: Closure of Guatanamo Bay | examples of executive orders, successful or unsuccessful?

Answer 31

ensured that detention centre would be closed within a year UNSUCESSFUL with a 90-6 vote in the senate

Question 32

President Clinton being successful with the power of persuasion

Answer 32

**Budget Reconcilliation Act 1993** (raised taxes) **Improving Americas School Act** (raised funding for education) **Crime Bill 1994** (funded police officers and prisons)

Question 33

President Clinton being unseuccessful with the power of persuasion

Answer 33

**healthcare reform 1993:** wanted to force employers to provide health insurance to all employees, but this was dropped in 1994

Question 34

George Bush being successful with the power of persuasion

Answer 34

**no child left behind act 2002:** expanded the governments role in education **homeland security act 2001:** provided funding for counter terrorism.

Question 35

George Bush being unsuccessful with the power of persuasion

Answer 35

**social security reform:** allow individuals to divert a proportion of their social security tax into personal retirement accounts. however, the reform was not passed as it had low public support

Question 36

Obama being sucessful with the powers of persuasion

Answer 36

Obamacare 2010

Question 37

Obama being unsuccessful with the power of persuasion

Answer 37

DREAM Act 2010: fillibustered in the senate Closure on Guantanamo Bay Assault Weapon Ban: fillibustered in the senate

Question 38

Electoral Mandate | factors that influence the power of the president

Answer 38

if a president has a strong success during election time, this means that he has a strong electoral mandate - this makes his requests difficult for Congress to ignore. however, if a president has a close/ narrow vote, it would make them weak (less confident with policy)

Question 39

e.g of a president with a strong electoral mandate

Answer 39

Obama’s landslide in 2008: 10 million more votes than his rival McCain

Question 40

control of congress | factors that influence the power of the president

Answer 40

Congress in a separation of power, have the ability to affect your power as a president, they can pass legislation against you and censor what you say

Question 41

example of when a president has had less control over congress

Answer 41

Clinton had less popularity as the majority of his party were Republicans and he was a democrat, making it harder for him to pass legislation.

Question 42

popularity at an election | factors that influence a presidents popularity

Answer 42

coattails: if a leader does well in the election it would help others in their party by attracting votes to them too. if a president is popular, they are more likely to attract support from Congress as a concequense if a president is less popular, congress are likely to distance themselves from him in the mid terms, therefore decreasing his power

Question 43

national circumstances | factors that influence the popularity of a president

Answer 43

- a national crises can help/hinder a presidents power - for example, a strong or weak economy can influence a presidents power

Question 44

how did national crises affect George Bush's power?

Answer 44

after 9/11, his approval ratings increased because of how he dealt with it

Question 45

how did national crises affect Bill Clintons power?

Answer 45

he cheated on his wife, which hindered his power

Question 46

how did national crises affect Trumps power?

Answer 46

lost support due to his response to George Floyd also lost support due to his response to covid saying it didn't exist

Question 47

what is imperial presidency?

Answer 47

continue