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Chapter 12: The Presidency--Leading The Nation

Terms in this set (34)

executive agreements
formal agreement that presidents make on their own with foreign nations--are legally binding as long as they do not conflict with Constitution or law enacted by Congress.
___ are formal agreement that presidents make on their own with foreign nations--are legally binding as long as they do not conflict with Constitution or law enacted by Congress.
executive agreements
Presidents have found their _____--the power to execute the laws--to be significant because it enables them to decide how laws will be implemented
administrative authority
What are the constitutional authority for the president's role
1. commander in chief
2. chief executive
3. chief diplomat
4. legislative leader (veto + propose legislation)
Two features of the office in particular--- _____ and ______-- have enabled presidents to make use of changing demands on government to claim national policy leadership.
1. national election
2. singular authority
Describe the Whig theory
- which holds that the presidency is a limited office. According to this "weak presidency" theory, the president is primarily an administrator, charged with carrying out the will of Congress
- execute the law, nothing about individual opinions
who proposed the stewardship theory? what is it?
- proposed by Theodore Roosevelt
- calls for a "strong presidency" that is limited, not by what the Constitution allows, but by what it prohibits
- holds that presidents are free to act as they choose, as long as they don't violate the law
What are the four systems of presidential selection?
1. original
2. party convention
3. party convention, primary
4. party primary, open caucus
describe the four systems of presidential selection
1. original: party nominees are chosen in congressional caucuses. Electoral college members act somewhat independently in their presidential voting
2. party convention: party nominees are chosen in national party conventions by delegates selected by state and local party organizations
3. party convention, primary: As in system 2, except that a minority of nat'l convention delegates are chosen through primary elections (the majority still being chosen by party organizations)
4. party primary, open caucus: as in system 2, except that a majority of nat'l convention delegates are chosen through primary elections
How did Andrew Jackson change the EC?
- the candidate who wins a state's popular vote is awarded its electoral votes.
- Thus, the popular vote for the candidates directly affects their electoral votes, and one candidate is likely to win both forms of the presidential vote.
- NPC as a means of nominating the party's presidential candidate
invisible primary
- the year before the first contest in Iowa
- the time when candidates demonstrate through their fundraising ability, poll standing and debate performance that they are serious contenders for the nomination
once the state caucuses and primaries get under way, a key to success is ______ aka strong showing in the early contests that contributes to voter support in subsequent ones.
momentum
momentum
strong showing in the early contests that contributes to voter support in subsequent ones.
the first caucus is in ___ and the first primary is in ____
Iowa; New Hampshire
how many electoral college votes do you need to win? what if you can't reach it?
270
if not, the election is decided in the House of Reps
The importance of electoral votes is magnified by the _____: all states except Maine and Nebraska grant all their electoral votes as a unit to the candidate who wins the state's popular vote
unit rule
The _____ was created by Congress in 1939 to provide the president with the staff necessary to coordinate the activities of the executive branch.
EOP (executive office of president)
Which one is not included in the EOP?
a) WHO
b) SIR
c) NSC
d) OMB
B
_______ consists of the president's closest personal advisors.
a) WHO
b) SIR
c) NSC
d) OMB
A
_____ advises the president on foreign and military affairs
a) WHO
b) SIR
c) NSC
d) OMB
C
The heads of the 15 executive departments, such as Department of Agriculture, constitute the president's _______.
cabinet
Who appoints the cabinet?
- appointed by president, subject to confirmation by the Senate
- selects them for their prominence in politics, business, govt, or the professions
Who appoints the heads and top deputies of federal agencies and commissions and ambassadors?
the president
Why is the president's problem of control is most severe in the case of appointees who work in the department?
their offices are located outside the White House, and their loyalty is sometimes split between a desire to promote the president's goals and an interest in promoting their own agenda
Why do lower-level appointees within the departments and agencies pose a problem for president?
- the president rarely, if ever, sees them, and many of them are political amateurs
- sometimes "captured" by the agency in which they work because they depend on the agency's career bureaucrats for advice and info
Although presidential appointees enable presidents to extend their influence into every executive agency, these appointees don't always act in ways that serve the president's interest. (t/f)
true
why do presidents still have an edge over Congress when the issue is foreign policy?
because they have more authority to act on their own and are more likely to have congressional support
- the world sees the president as US rep, so Congress uses him to maintain credibility
For most presidents, the next best thing to being "Congress, too" is to have __.
a Congress loaded with members of their own party
define unified government
used to describe the situation where one party controls the presidency and both houses of Congress
____ is used to describe the situation where one party controls the presidency and both houses of Congress
unified government
define divided government
used to describe the situation where control is split between the parties
____ is used to describe the situation where control is split between the parties
divided government
what does the Budget Impoundment and Control Act of 1974 say?
prohibits a president from indefinitely withholding funds that have been appropriated by Congress
What is the Wars Powers Act?
- requires the president to consult with Congress whenever feasible before sending troops into combat
- requires hostilities to end w/in 60 days unless Congress extends that period
- gives president extra 30 days to withdraw the troops from hostile territory
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