Execu&ve Branch Topic 6
Cabinet The Cabinet is a group of advisors, chosen by the President and approved by the Senate, that head the 15 largest execu&ve departments Ideally, officials should have some experience with the department, be rela&vely noncontroversial, be from different regions of the country and reflect the diversity of America.
Role Cabinet officers tend to be bureaucrats that run their agencies and offer advice to the President when asked Downside to the job low pay rela&ve to responsibility, not a long-term posi&on, poli&cs of the job make it unaorac&ve
15 Cabinet posi&ons Secretary of State Secretary of the Treasury Secretary of Defense AOorney General (Jus&ce Department) Secretary of the Interior Secretary of Agriculture Secretary of Commerce Secretary of Labor
Secretary of Health and Human Services Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Secretary of Transporta&on Secretary of Energy Secretary of Educa&on Secretary of Veteran s Affairs Secretary of Homeland Security
Execu&ve Office Agencies A. Organiza&onal structure created by FDR in the 1930s and has greatly expanded since B. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) prepares the federal budget that the President sends to Congress. All execu&ve agencies and departments submit their budget requests to the OMB for approval
C. Na&onal Security Council created in 1947 to help coordinate foreign policy with military strategy. The Na&onal Security Advisor directs the NSC staff. Due to its nature, it is rela&vely free from Congressional oversight. D. Council of Economic Advisors assesses the na&on s economic health, predicts future economic condi&ons, and helps plan gov t interac&on with the economy
White House Office A. Not much un&l the 1930s. Grown since B. Chief of Staff: the person chosen to oversee the 400+ workers in the White House. Under him are advisors, researchers, lawyers, office personnel, interns, etc (Reince Priebus) C. Press Secretary: sets up press conferences and keeps the press informed as to the President s ac&vi&es. (Sean Spicer)
Independent Agencies Called independent because they are not part of the 15 large Cabinet departments. The President appoints the heads of these agencies. There are over 200. The largest include the Environmental Protec&on Agency, NASA, Central Intelligence Agency, Federal Trade Commission, Securi&es and Exchange Commission
Government Corpora&ons There are 200 of these, most small government agencies run like businesses with a board of directors The largest include the Post Office, Tennessee Valley Authority, Federal Deposit Insurance Corpora&on, Amtrak, etc
Summary A. Some view winning the Presidency as a victory for ideas and future legisla&on that will dictate how our country will operate for the next four years. B. Reality the President is the CEO of the US. He is responsible for execu&ng the thousands of laws that Congress has created, overseeing the hundreds of agencies and departments that enforce the law, and hiring the people to run the departments and agencies.
C. Winning the presidency = JOBS + Policymaking D. Poli&cal Par&es help give the President a talent pool to help him manage the government.