Chapter 8: The Presidency

Chapter 8: The Presidency

Chapter 8: The Presidency o CHAPTER 8.1: The Office of the United States. Trace the developments of the presidency and the provision for choosing and replacing presidents.

It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine; nor for princes strong drink: Lest they drink, and forget the law, and pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted. Proverbs 31:4-5.

Overview: Royal Governor o The earliest examples of executive power in the colonies. o King of England appointed them to govern each colony. o And morally were entrusted with the powers of appointment, military command, expenditure, etc.

Overview: o Governors were distrusted by the Colonists. o Because the governors represented the crown. o When the Colonists declared independence their distrust of a strong executive remained. o The position of governor became a symbolic position.

Overview: Articles of Confederation: o Under the Articles of Confederation, there was no executive branch of government. o Eighteen different men served as president of the Continental Congress.

Overview: Articles of Confederation: o Some delegates suggested there should be multiple executives. o The Framer s ultimately agreed that the executive authority should be vested to one person. o This agreement was seamless because the Framers believed George Washington was the right person to be president. o The farmers believed he was the most trustworthy man in America.

Overview: o Framers had no problem in agreeing a title for the new office. o Borrowing from the title of several American colleges and universities. o The Framers called the new executive the president. o There was debate of how the president should be chosen. o And the electoral college was finally chosen.

Presidential Qualification Terms of Office: o The Constitution required that the president. o The Vice President (whose major function is to succeed the president in the event of his death or disability). o Be a natural-born citizen of the United States. o At least thirty five years old, o And a resident of the United States for at least fourteen years.

Presidential Qualification Terms of Office: o Framers ultimately reached agreement on a four-year term with eligibility for reelection. o Washington sought reelection once, and a two-term limit for presidents became traditional. o This was broken however by FDR who ran successfully in four elections.

Presidential Qualification Terms of Office: o This led to passage and ratification in 1951 of the Twenty-Second Amendment. o It limits presidents to two four-year terms.

Presidential Qualification Terms of Office: o A vice president who succeeds a president due to death, resignation or impeachment is eligible for a total of ten years in office: o two years of a president s remaining term. o Two elected terms or more than two years of a presidents term followed by one elected term.

Vice President: o The framers paid little attention to the office of vice president. o Beyond the need to have an immediate official stand-in for the president. o The VP s initial and only function was to assume the presidency in case of death of the president or some other emergency.

Vice President: o The delegates made the vice president the presiding officer of the Senate. o Except in cases of presidential impeachment. o They feared that if the Senate s presiding officer were chosen from the Senate itself, one state would be short a representative. o The VP was given authority to vote in the Senate in the event of a tie.

Impeachment: o Benjamin Franklin during the Constitutional Convention strongly supported a provision for impeachment. o It was the first step in the formal process to remove specified officials from office. o Impeachment was adopted into Article II as a check on the power of the president.

Impeachment: o Each house of Congress was given a role to play in the impeachment process. o To assure that the chief executive could be removed only for treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors. o The House is empowered to vote to impeach the president by a simple majority vote.

Impeachment: o The Senate then acts as a court of law and tries the president for the charged offenses. o With the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court presiding.

Impeachment: o A two-thirds majority vote in the Senate on any count contained in the articles of impeachment is necessary to remove the president from office. o Only two presidents, Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton have been impeached but neither removed from office.

Executive Privilege: o Executive privilege is an implied presidential power. o That allows the president to refuse to disclose information. o Regarding confidential conversations or national security to Congress or the judiciary.

Executive Privilege: o The Watergate scandal also produced a major decision from the Supreme Court. o On the scope of what is termed executive privilege.

U.S. v. Nixon (1974) o The Supreme Court ruled unanimously that there was no overriding executive privilege that sanctioned the president s refusal to comply with a court order. o To produce information for use in the trial of Watergate defendants. o In other words the president can t hide behind executive privilege from a court order. o Since then, presidents have varied widely in their use of the claim of executive privilege.

RULES OF SUCCESSION: o Eight presidents died in office. o William H. Harrison was the first to die in office, he caught a cold and died one month after his inauguration. o John Tyler became the first VP to succeed to the presidency. o In 1865, Abraham Lincoln became the first president to be assassinated.

RULES OF SUCCESSION: o The Framers were aware that a system of orderly transfer of power was necessary. o This was the primary reason they created the office of the Vice President.

Presidential Succession Act: o To further clarify presidential succession, in 1947, Congress passed the Presidential Succession Act. o The Succession Act was never used because there was always been a vice president to take over when a president died in office.

Twenty-Fifth Amendment: o Was added to the Constitution in 1967 to assure that this will continue to be the case. o Should vacancy occur in the office of the Vice President, the Twenty Fifth Amendment directs the president to appoint a new vice president. o Subject of the approval by a simple majority, of both houses of Congress.

Twenty-Fifth Amendment: o The Amendment also contains a section that allows the VP and a majority of the cabinet or some other body determined by Congress to deem a president unable to fulfill his duties. o It sets up a procedure to allow the vice president to become acting president if the president is incapacitated. o The president can voluntarily relinquish power such as when he has a surgical procedure.

SHORT ANSWER: o What are the qualifications for being president?

Chapter 8: The Presidency o THE CONSTITUTIONAL POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT: 8.2 Identify and describe the constitutional powers of the president.

OVERVIEW: o Article II states, The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. o To help the president enforce laws passed by Congress, the Constitution authorizes him to appoint, with advice and consent of the Senate various positions in both the Executive and judiciary branch.

The Appointment Power: o Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, judges of the supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law. o These appointments must be confirmed by the Senate.

The Appointment Power: o Behind the power to appoint is a powerful policy-making tool. o The President has the authority to make nearly 3,500 appointments to his administration. o (Of which just over 1,000 require senate confirmation). o He also has the power to remove many of his appointees at will.

The Appointment Power: o The president technically appoints more than 75,000 military personnel. o Many appointees made are in position to wield substantial authority over the course and direction of public policy. o Especially his appointees in the Federal Courts, his influence can be felt far past his term of office.

The Appointment Power: o Selecting the right people is often one of a president s most important tasks. o Presidents look for a blend of loyalty, competence, and integrity.

The Appointment Power: o In the past, when a president forwarded a nomination to the Senate for its approval. o His selections traditionally were given great respect especially those of the Cabinet. o The Cabinet is an advisory group selected by the president to help make decisions and execute laws.

The Appointment Power: o But now there is more scrutiny for nominees and delays or rejections. o This leaves a president without first choices, and affects his relationship with the Senate.

The Appointment Power: o One method the president have for persuading Congress to approve or disapprove nominees quickly is to make temporary appointments. o While Congress is in recess (thus without congressional approval).

The Power to Convene Congress: State of the Union o The Constitution requires the president to inform the Congress periodically of the State of the Union. o And authorizes the president to convene either one or both houses of Congress on extraordinary occasions.

The Power to Make Treaties: o The President s power to make treaties with foreign power is checked by the Constitutional requirement that all treaties must be approved by at least two-thirds of the Senate. o The chief executive can also receive ambassadors. o Wording that has been interpreted to allow the president to recognize the existence of other nations.

The Power to Make Treaties: o The Senate also require substantial amendment of a treaty prior to its consent. o Presidents may also un-sign treaties, a place often met with dismay from other signatories. o When trade agreements are at issue, presidents often are forced to be mindful of the wishes of both houses of Congress.

The Power to Make Treaties: o Congressional fast track authority protects a president s ability to negotiate trade agreements. o With confidence that the accords will not be altered by Congress. o Trade agreements submitted to Congress under fast track procedures bar amendments. o Require an up or down vote in Congress within ninety days of introduction.

EXECUTIVE AGEEMENTS: o The President seeks to get around the Senate requirement for ratifications of treaties and Congressional approval for trade agreements via executive agreements. o Executive agreements allow the president to form secret and highly sensitive arrangements with foreign nations without Senate approval.

The Power to Make Treaties: o Since 1900 executive agreements have been used far more frequently than treaties. o Executive agreements are not binding on subsequent administrations, o Further cementing the role of the president in foreign affairs.

Veto Power: o Presidents can affect the policy process through the veto power. o The authority to reject bills passed by both houses of Congress. o The threat of a presidential veto often prompts members of Congress to fashion legislation that they know will receive presidential acceptance, if not support. o Thus, simply threatening to veto legislation is another example of the President to influence law-making.

Veto Power: o The president is given the authority to veto any act of Congress with the exception of joint resolutions that propose constitutional amendments. o Congress was given the authority to override an executive veto by a twothirds vote in each house. o Congress cannot usually muster enough votes to override a veto.

Veto Power: o A Line-Item Veto is the authority of a chief executive to delete part of a bill passed by the legislature. o That involves taxing or spending and not just the bill in its entirety. o Many governors have this authority. o In 1996 Congress gave the President the authority of the Line-Item Veto. o But it was overturned by the Supreme Court because it gave powers to the president, denied to him by the U.S. Constitution. o The President is not responsible for writing law, but enforcing law.

The Power to preside over the Military as Commander in Chief o One of the most important executive powers is the president s authority over the military. o Article II states that the president is Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States.

The Power to preside over the Military as Commander in Chief o While the Constitution specifically grants Congress the authority to declare war. o President s since Lincoln used the title commander and chief and the law be faithfully executed to wage war to broaden various powers.

The Power to preside over the Military as Commander in Chief o The Vietnam War was conducted without a congressional declaration of war. o In fact acknowledging Lyndon Johnson s claim for war-making authority. o In 1964 Congress passed with only two dissenting votes the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which authorize a massive commitment of U.S. forces in South Vietnam.

The Power to preside over the Military as Commander in Chief o When it was discovered that Nixon and Johnson misled Congress with the aftermath of the Pentagon Papers; o Congress passed the War Powers Act to limit the president s authority to introduce American troops into hostile foreign lands without congressional approval. o President Nixon vetoed the act but it was overridden by a two-thirds majority.

The Power to preside over the Military as Commander in Chief o Presidents since Nixon have continued to insist that the War Powers Act is an unconstitutional infringement of their executive power. o George W. Bush in 2001, complied with the act and sought both Houses of Congress to approve a joint resolution authorizing the use of force against those responsible for the 9-11 attacks. o For the Iraqi War the president was again given the use of force that he determines necessary and appropriate.

The Pardoning Power: o Presidents can exercise a check on judicial power through their constitutional authority to grant reprieves or pardons. o A pardon is an executive grant releasing an individual from the punishment or legal consequences of a crime before or after conviction and restores all rights and privileges of citizenship.

The Pardoning Power: o Presidents exercise complete pardoning power for federal offenses except in cases of impeachment, which cannot be pardoned. o Ford issued the most famous presidential pardon of Richard Nixon. o Even though pardons are generally directed toward a specific individuals, presidents have also used them to offer general amnesties.

SHORT ANSWER: o What did the Supreme Court rule in U.S. v. Nixon, and how did it affect the presidency?

Chapter 8: The Presidency o THE DEVELOPMENT OF PRESIDENTIAL POWER: 8.3 Evaluate the development and expansion of presidential power.

Pro_29:2 When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.

Overview: o Every President brings his vision of America but also expectations about how to use presidential authority. o Presidential Authority is limited by the formal powers listed in Article II of the Constitution. o Supreme Court s interpretation of those Constitutional provisions.

Overview: o How a president wields these powers is affected by the times in which the president serves. o His confidantes and advisers o And the president s personality and leadership abilities.

Overview: o Different times call for different kinds of leaders. o Also often provide limits, or wide opportunities for whoever is President at that time. o Crisis, in particular trigger expansions of presidential power.

Establishing Presidential Authority The First Presidents. o George Washington: Several precedence. o Took every opportunity to establish the primacy of the national government. o Washington used a militia of four states to put down the Whiskey Rebellion. o A rebellion of farmers in Western Pennsylvania who opposed Federal Excise Tax on Liquor.

Establishing Presidential Authority The First Presidents. o Washington s action helped establish the idea of federal supremacy. o The authority of the executive branch to collect taxes levied by Congress. o He began the practice of regular meetings with his advisers, thus establishing the cabinet system.

Establishing Presidential Authority The First Presidents. o Washington asserted the prominence of the role of the chief executive in the conduct of foreign affairs. o He sent envoys to negotiate the Jay treaty to end continued hostilities with Great Britain.

Establishing Presidential Authority The First Presidents. o Over the objection of the Senate, he continued to assert his authority. o First to negotiate treaties and then, simply to submit them to the Senate for its approval. o Washington made it clear that the Senate s function was limited to approval of treaties. o And did not include negotiation with foreign powers.

Establishing Presidential Authority The First Presidents. o Washington declared strict neutrality when Britain and France went to war. o The Constitution was silent about the president s authority to declare neutrality.

Establishing Presidential Authority The First Presidents. o Washington s supporters argued that the Constitution granted the president inherent powers. o That is powers that belong to the president because they can be inferred from the Constitution. o The president s power to conduct diplomatic relations could be inferred from the Constitution.

Establishing Presidential Authority The First Presidents. o John Adams poor leadership heightened the division of Federalists and Antifederalists. o It quickened the development of political parties.

Establishing Presidential Authority The First Presidents. o Jefferson expanded the role of the president in the legislative process. o Like Washington, he claimed that certain presidential powers were inherent. o Jefferson used those inherent powers to justify the expansion of the nation through the Louisiana Purchase.

Incremental Expansion of Presidential Powers: 1809-1833. o During this time Congress was seen as the most powerful branch. o The president was seen as distant. o Andrew Jackson was the first president to act as a strong national leader. o Who represented more than just the landed, property elite.

Incremental Expansion of Presidential Powers: o His presidency embodied a every man egalitarian spirit. o Jackson used his image and personal power to further develop the Democratic Party with presidential appointments.

Incremental Expansion of Presidential Powers: o Frequently at odds with Congress, he made use of the veto power. o Jackson also reasserted the supremacy of the national government and presidency. o By facing down South Carolina s nullification of a federal tariff law.

Incremental Expansion of Presidential Powers: o Abraham Lincoln s presidency was similar to Jacksons. o To combat the unprecedented emergency of the Civil War, Lincoln assumed powers that no president before him had claimed. o Lincoln believed he needed to take quick action for the survival of the Union. o Lincoln frequently took action without the approval of Congress.

Expansion of Executive Power: Lincoln o Suspending Writ of Habeas Corpus, which allows those in prison to petition to be released, citing the need of jail persons suspected of disloyal practices. o Expanded the size of the U.S. Army above Congressionally mandated ceilings. o Ordered a blockade of southern ports without the approval of congress. o Closed the U.S. mail to treasonable correspondence.

Lincoln s Argument: o That inherent powers in his office allowed him to circumvent the Constitution in times of war or national crisis. o Since the Constitution conferred on the president the duty to make sure that the laws of the United States are faithfully executed, the acts enumerated above were Constitutional. o Lincoln simply refused to allow the nation to crumble because of what he viewed as technical requirements of the Constitution.

Growth of the modern presidency: o Since the 1930s, the general trend has been for presidential as opposed to congressional decision making to be more and more important. o The start of this trend can be traced to the four-term presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR). o Who led the nation through several crisis.

Growth of the modern presidency: FDR o The Presidential power and the federal government and its program grew significantly. o FDR was faced with the Great Depression.

Growth of the modern presidency: FDR o To jump start the economy, FDR asked Congress for and was given broad executive powers to wage a war against the emergency, as great as the power that would be given to me if we were in fact invaded by a foreign foe.

Growth of the modern presidency: o Roosevelt acted quickly and fashioned a plan for national recovery called the New Deal. o A package of bold and controversial programs designed to invigorate the failing American economy. o The institution of the presidency changed profoundly and permanently as new federal agencies were created to implement the New Deal.

Growth of the modern presidency: o FDR also established a personalized presidency through his radio addresses and fireside chats. o To his successor, FDR left the modern presidency. o Including a burgeoning federal bureaucracy. o An active and usually leading role in both domestic and foreign policy and legislation.

Growth of the modern presidency: o And a nationalized executive office that used technology (radio). o And then, television to bring the president closer to the public.

SHORT ANSWER: o How do crises impact presidential power? o Why is Franklin D. Roosevelt said to be the founder of the modern presidency?

Chapter 8: The Presidency o THE PRESIDENTIAL ESTALBISHMENT 8.4: Outline the structure of the Presidential establishment and the functions of each of its components.

(Pro 11:14) Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.

Overview: o As responsibilities and scope of presidential authority grew over the years. o So did the executive branch including the number of people working directly for the president in the White House.

The Vice President: o Traditionally, the Vice President was a sure place for a public official to disappear into obscurity. o Historically, presidents chose their VP so the presidential ticket would appeal to more voters in different places. o Little thought given to the possibility that the VP would become president.

The Vice President: o How much power a vice president has depends on how much the president is willing to give. o Recently, Vice Presidents were given significant powers and access to the president.

Cabinet: o The Cabinet which has no official basis in the Constitution but is implied by Article II, Section 2. o Is an informal institution based on precedent, whose membership is determined by tradition and presidential discretion.

Cabinet: o By Custom, the advisory group selected by the President includes the heads of major executive departments. o Presidents include their VP in cabinet meetings. o As well as any other agency heads or officials to whom the President would like to accord Cabinet level status.

Cabinet: o As a body, the Cabinet s major function is to help the president execute the laws and assist him in making decisions. o Over the years, the Cabinet has been growing, alongside the responsibilities of the national government.

Cabinet: o interest groups in particular pressured Congress and the president to recognize their demands for services and governmental action. o They often were rewarded by the creation of an executive department.

Interest Groups and the Executive Branch: o Farmers (Agriculture), o Business people (Commerce), o Workers (labor) o Teachers (education) o All saw the creation of departments as increasing access to their president. o As the Federal Government grew, so did Cabinets. o However, the presidents reliance on Cabinet secretaries has decreased.

The First Lady: o From the time of Martha Washington, first ladies (a term coined in 1849) o Have assisted presidents as informal advisers while making other, more public and significant contributions to American society.

The First Lady: o Edith Bolling Galt Wilson was probably the most powerful first lady. o When President Wilson had a stroke in 1919, she became his surrogate and decided whom and what the stricken president saw. o Eleanor Roosevelt played a prominent role in national affairs.

THE EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT (EOP) o Was established by the president to oversee his New Deal Programs. o It was created to provide the president with a general staff to help him direct the diverse activities of the executive branch.

THE EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT (EOP) o It expanded to include several advisory and policy-making agencies and task forces. o Units of the EOP have become the prime policymakers in their fields of expertise. o They play key roles in advancing the president s policy preferences.

Most Important Members of the EOP: o The National Security Council. o The Council of Economic of Advisers, the Office of Management and Budget. o Office of Vice President o Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

National Security Council: o The National Security Council (NSC) established in 1947 to advise the president on American military affairs and foreign policy. o The NSC is composed of the president, VP, and the secretaries of state, defense, and treasury.

National Security Council: o The chair of the joint Chief of Staffs and the director of the CIA also participate. o The National Security Adviser runs the staff of the NSC, coordinates information and options, and advises the president.

THE EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT (EOP) o Although the president appoints the members of each of these bodies. o They must perform their tasks in accordance with congressional legislation.

The White House Staff: o Often more directly responsible to the president are the members of the White House Staff. o The personal assistants to the president. o Including senior aides, their deputies, assistants with professional duties, and clerical and administrative aides.

The White House Staff: o As personal assistants, these advisers are not subject to Senate conformation. o Nor do they have divided loyalties. o Their power is derived from their personal relationship to the president. o They have no independent legal authority.

The White House Staff: o The Chief of Staff heads the staff to facilitate the smooth running of the staff and the executive branch of government. o White House staff was 247 in 1943 but now it hovers around 500.

SHORT ANSWER: o What are the roles of the Executive Office of the President and the White House staff?

Chapter 8: The Presidency o PRESIDENTIAL LEADERSHIP AND THE IMPORTANCE OF PUBLIC OPINION. o 8.5 Explains the concept of presidential leadership, and analyze the importance of public opinion.

Introduction: President s Ability To Get His Programs implemented: o Including his leadership abilities, o His personality and powers of persuasion, o His ability to mobilize public opinion to support his actions, o The public s perception of his performance. o Congress s perception of his public support.

Presidential Leadership: o Research by political scientists shows that presidents can exercise leadership by increasing public attention at particular issues o (e.g. Build the Wall, Taxes, etc.) o Political Scientist Richard E. Neustadt calls the president s ability to influence members of Congress and the public the power to persuade. o This he believes is the power crucial to presidential leadership.

Presidential Leadership: o The difference between great and mediocre presidents centers on their ability to grasp the importance of leadership style. o Truly great presidents, such as Lincoln and FDR understood that the White House was a seat of power. o From which decisions could flow to shape the national destiny.

Mobilizing Public Opinion: o President would often reach directly to the people to support his policies. o Be it in the media, or speeches.

Going Public: o Direct, presidential appeals to the electorate like those often made by recent presidents are referred to as going public. o Going public means that a president goes over the heads of members of congress. o To gain support from the people who can then place pressure on their elected officials in Washington.

The Public Perception of Presidential Performance: o Approval Ratings are a measurement. o To see if the President or other public figures can enact public policy simply because of their name and office. o Presidents of high levels of public support are able to pass controversial legislation. o A public appearance from a popular president can help a congressmen or governor in a hotly contested election get elected.

The Public Perception of Presidential Performance: o In sharp contrast, low approval ratings are often crippled in the policy arena. o Presidential popularity generally follows a cyclical pattern. o These cycles have been recorded since 1938 when pollsters first began tracking presidential popularity.

The Public Perception of Presidential Performance: o Typically, presidents enjoy their highest level of public approval at the beginning of their terms. o Try to take advantage of this honeymoon period to get their programs passed by Congress as soon as possible. o Each action a president takes however is divisive. o Some people will approve and others will disapprove. o Disapproval tends to have a negative cumulative effect on a president s approval rating.

The Public Perception of Presidential Performance: o Recent presidents have experienced a surge in their approval ratings during the course of their presidencies. o Popularity surges usually allow presidents to achieve some policy goals that they believe are for the good of the nation. o Even though the policies are unpopular with the public. o Often coming on the heels of domestic or international crisis.

Chapter 8: The Presidency o TOWARD REFORM: THE PRESIDENT AS POLICY MAKER 8.6. o Assess the president s role as policy maker.

(1Co 4:2) Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.

Overview: o When Franklin D. Roosevelt sent his first legislative package to Congress he broke the traditional model of law-making. o As envisioned by the Framers, it was to be Congress that made the laws. o Now FDR was claiming a leadership role for the president in the legislative process.

Overview: o It is the duty of the President to propose and it is the privilege of the Congress to dispose. o With those words and the actions that followed, FDR shifted the presidency into a law-and policy-maker role.

Overview: o President and the Executive Branch executes laws. o It can generally suggest laws. o Propose budgets to Congress to fund those proposals.

The President s Role in Proposing and Facilitating Legislation: o The FDR presidency set a precedence. o The public now look to the president to formulate legislative plans to propose to Congress. o Congress can subsequently adopt, modify, or reject his plans for the nation.

The President s Role in Proposing and Facilitating Legislation: o Modern presidents continue to play a major role in setting the legislative agenda. o Especially in an era when the House and Senate are narrowly divided along partisan lines.

The President s Role in Proposing and Facilitating Legislation: o On a whole the president has a hard time getting Congress to pass their programs. o Because presidents generally experience declining support for policies they advocate throughout their terms. o It is important that a president propose key plans early in his administration.

The President s Role in Proposing and Facilitating Legislation: o Another way to bolster support for his legislative package is to call on his own political party. o As the informal leader of his party, he should be able to use that position to his advantage. o To build coalitions in Congress where party loyalty is very important.

The President s Role in Proposing and Facilitating Legislation: o This strategy works best when the president has carried members of his party into office on his coattails. o As well as when his party has a majority in the legislature.

The Budget Process and Legislative Implementation: o Closely associated with a president s ability to pass legislation, o Is his ability to secure funding for new and existing programs. o A president sets national policy and priorities through his budget proposals. o His continued insistence on their congressional passage.

The Budget Process and Legislative Implementation: o The budget proposal not only outlines the programs he wants. o But indicates the importance of each program by the amount of funding requested for each and for its associated agency or department.

The Budget Process and Legislative Implementation: o Because the framers gave congress the power of the purse. o Congress has primary responsibility for the budget process until 1930.

The Budget Process and Legislative Implementation: o In 1939, the Bureau of Budget was created. o Its purpose was to help the president tell congress how much money it would take to run the Executive Branch. o In 1939, it became part of the newly created Executive Office of the President (EOP).

The Budget Process and Legislative Implementation: o It was later renamed by Nixon, The Office of management and Budget (OMB). o The OMB is an agency that clarifies its function in the executive branch. o The OMB works exclusively for the president and employs hundreds of budget and policy experts.

Office of Management and Budget: o Responsibilities include preparing the president s annual budget proposal. o Designing the president s program. o The reviewing the progress, budget, and program proposals of the executive department agencies.

Policy making Through Executive Order: o Major policy changes may be instituted when a president has issued an executive order. o A rule or regulation issued by the president that has the effect without congressional approval. o An executive order can be reversed by a new President coming into office. o Congress can also pass a law to not fund the executive order but it can also be subject to presidential veto.

Policy making Through Executive Order: o While many executive orders are issued to help clarify or implement legislation entered by Congress. o Other executive orders have the effect of making new policy. o President Truman also issued an executive order to end segregation in the military. o Affirmative action was institutionalized as national policy through Executive Order 11246 issued by Lyndon Johnson.

Signing Statements: o Presidents may also issue signing statements when signing legislation. o Often these written statements merely comment on the bill signed. o But they sometimes include controversial claims by the president that some part of the legislation is unconstitutional. o And he intends to disregard it or implement it in other ways.

Signing Statements: o Signing statements, have become another way for the president to use his informal powers to make and influence public policy. o For example, these statements invite litigation and may delay policy implementation.

Signing Statements: o Because signing statements happen at the end of the legislative process. o They are also a largely unchecked way for the president to assert himself in the ongoing power struggle with Congress.

SHORT ANSWER: o What is the difference between an executive order and a law?