Executive Branch – Chapter 7
- Enforces Laws
- Article II
- Leader is the President
Qualifications
- 35 years old
- Lived in the U.S. 14 years
- Natural Born Citizen – a naturalized citizen cannot become president
- When elected, the President takes an oath to uphold the Constitution
Electing the President
- The Primaries
- states hold primary elections to vote for the candidates who will run for the office under each party
- Nominating Conventions
- a meeting held by each party to officially select the candidate who will run
- General Election
- 1st Tuesday of November ???
- Electoral College
- Elects the President
Electoral College
- Popular vote
- total number of people voting for a candidate - occurs but has no role in deciding the president
- 538 votes exist in the Electoral College
- Each state get the same number of electors as representatives in Congress
- 435 (Representatives) + 100 (Senators) + 3 (D.C.)
- NC – 15 electoral votes
- A candidate needs 270 to win – a majority
- Winner Take All – every state but Nebraska & Maine
- if a candidate wins the majority vote in the state, all electoral votes go to that candidate
- Vote in December
Problems with the Electoral College
- Seems non-democratic – votes are not proportional
- May get the most votes and still lose
- Electors are not bound – could change their ballot
- 3rd party candidates have no realistic chance
Term and Benefits
- Serves a 4 year term
- Limited to 2 terms (22th Amendment)
- Salary - $400,000 – set by Congress
- Secret Service Protection for Life
Vice President
- Official Duties
- President of the Senate
- Second in line of succession – 25th Amendment
- Decide Presidential disability
- Qualifications are the same as president
- Balance the Ticket – Presidential race
- Unofficial duty – Balance the ticket
Presidential Succession
- Vice President, Speaker of the House, President Pro-Tempore, Secretary of State – pg 168
Vocabulary
- Executive Order – Command that has the force of law
- Executive Agreement – agreement between president and leader of another country
- Pardon – Declaration of forgiveness
- Reprieve – Delay of Punishment
- Amnesty – pardon to a group of people
Chief Executive
- Leads the Executive Department
- Deals with specifics
- Can issue executive orders
- A command has the force of law
- Appoints officials
Chief Diplomat
- Makes foreign policy decisions with foreign leaders
- Makes treaties
- Makes executive agreements
- Agreement between president & leader of another country
- Does not require Senate approval
Commander in Chief
- Leads the military
- Orders troops into battle
- Can order troops to end disturbances within the U.S.
- War Powers Act (1973)
- The President must inform Congress he is sending troops into battle & he must bring them home after 90 days unless Congress grants an extension
Chief of State
- Ceremonial Head of the nation
- Attends events
Chief of the Party
- Leads his party
- Helps get people in his party elected
Legislative Leader
- Leads Congress in lawmaking
- Can write a bill but someone in Congress must introduce
- Gains support for legislation through the mass media
Judicial Leader
- Appoints judges who serve for life
- Can pardon an individual
- Can give amnesty to a group
- Can delay punishment through a reprieve
Chief Economist
- Makes sure the nation prospers
- Makes sound fiscal policy
Offices in the Executive Branch
- Includes the White House Office
- Serves the President
Executive Office of the President (EOP)
- Chief of Staff – decides what issues are brought to the President
- Press Secretary – provides reporters with news
- Office of Management & Budget – prepares the nation’s budget & makes reports to the President on the fiscal soundness of the nation
- National Security Council – provides for the safety of the nation – CIA – gathers information on other nations
Cabinet
- 15 Executive department heads
- Makes the president’s job easier by dividing the work
- Department of Homeland Security – most recent addition – terrorism
Executive Agencies
- Specialized areas of government
- President chooses the head of each agency
- EX: EPA, FDA & CDC
Regulatory Commissions
- Controls certain types of business
- Must be impartial with no political pressure
- Run by a board appointed by the president and approved by the Senate
Government Corporations
- Similar to private corporations
- General manager & board of directors runs each corporation
- Ex: Post Office
Federal Bureaucracy
- “Red Tape” – inefficiency caused by rules and regulations
- Each person has a designed function & must operate within a chain of command
Civil Service System
- Spoils System – giving federal jobs to people that helped the winner – “To the Victor belong the Spoils”
- Government grew more and more incompetent as people who weren’t qualified filled positions (late 1800s)
- Americans demanded change (Progressives)
- Reformed system came about – called the Merit System
- Pendleton Act (1883) – instituted the Merit system where those most qualified get the jobs
- Jobs are divided into 2 categories
- Classified – jobs given based on exams & kept no matter who is president
- Unclassified – jobs filled by appointment as in the spoils system – Appointed positions
- Hatch Act (1939)
- Forbids civil servants from working in a campaign or participating in party politics
- Office of Personnel Management – administers tests and hires workers
- Merit System Protection Board – handles promotions based on merit
Law Enforcement Agencies
- Assist in enforcing laws
- Federal
- FBI – handles violations of federal law
- Counterfeiting
- Bank Robbery
- Espionage & spying
- Kidnapping
- SBI – state – violations of state law
- Highway patrol
- Murder if suspect & body stay in state
- County – the county
- Local Police
Executive Branch – Chapter 7
- ______Laws
- ______
- Leader is the ______
Qualifications
- ______
- Lived in the U.S. ______
- ______
- When elected, the President takes an oath to uphold the Constitution
Electing the President
- The Primaries
- ______
- Nominating Conventions
- a meeting held by each party to officially select the candidate who will run
- General Election
- 1st ______after the first Monday in November
- Electoral College
- ______
Electoral College
- Popular vote
- total number of people voting for a candidate - ______
- ______votes exist in the Electoral College
- Each state get the same number of electors as representatives in Congress
- ______
- NC – ______
- ______
- ______– every state but Nebraska &______
- if a candidate wins the majority vote in the state, all electoral votes go to that candidate
- ______
Problems with the Electoral College
- ______
- May get the most votes and still lose
- ______
- 3rd party candidates have no realistic chance
Term and Benefits
- Serves a ______
- ______
- Salary - $400,000 – set by ______
- ______
Vice President
- Official Duties
- President of ______
- ______
- Decide Presidential disability
- Qualifications are the same as president
- Unofficial duty – ______
Presidential Succession
- Vice President, Speaker of the House, President Pro-Tempore, Secretary of State – pg 168
Presidential Roles
Vocabulary
- Executive Order – ______
- Executive Agreement – agreement between president and leader of another country
- Pardon – ______
- ______– Delay of Punishment
- Amnesty – ______
Chief Executive
- Leads the Executive Department
- Deals with specifics
- Can issue ______
- ______
- Appoints officials
Chief Diplomat
- Makes foreign policy decisions with foreign leaders
- ______
- Makes executive agreements
- ______
- ______
Commander in Chief
- Leads the military
- ______
- Can order troops to end disturbances within the U.S.
- War Powers Act (1973)
- ______
Chief of State
- Ceremonial Head of the nation
- ______
Chief of the Party
- Leads his party
- ______
Legislative Leader
- ______
- Can write a bill but someone in Congress must introduce
- Gains support for legislation through the mass media
Judicial Leader
- ______
- ______
- Can give amnesty to a group
- Can delay punishment through a reprieve
Chief Economist
- Makes sure the nation prospers
- ______
Offices in the Executive Branch
- Includes the White House Office
- ______
Executive Office of the President (EOP)
- Chief of Staff – ______
- ______– provides reporters with news
- ______– prepares the nation’s budget & makes reports to the President on the fiscal soundness of the nation
- ______– provides for the safety of the nation – ______– gathers information on other nations
Cabinet
- ______Executive department heads
- Makes the president’s job easier by dividing the work
- Department of Homeland Security – ______
Executive Agencies
- ______
- President chooses the head of each agency
- EX: ______
Regulatory Commissions
- Controls certain types of ______
- Must be impartial with no political pressure
- Run by a board appointed by the president and ______
Government Corporations
- ______
- General manager & board of directors runs each corporation
- ______
Federal Bureaucracy
- “Red Tape” – ______
- Each person has a designed function & must operate within a chain of command
Civil Service System
- Spoils System – ______
- Government grew more and more incompetent as people who weren’t qualified filled positions (late 1800s)
- ______
- Reformed system came about – ______
- ______(1883) – instituted the Merit system where those most qualified get the jobs
- Jobs are divided into 2 categories
- Classified – ______
- ______– jobs filled by appointment as in the spoils system – Appointed positions
- ______
- Forbids civil servants from working in a campaign or participating in party politics
- Office of Personnel Management – ______
- Merit System Protection Board – handles promotions based on merit
Law Enforcement Agencies
- Assist in enforcing laws
- Federal
- FBI – ______
- Counterfeiting
- ______
- Espionage & spying
- ______
- SBI – state – violations of state law
- Highway patrol
- Murder if suspect & body stay in state
- County – the county
- ______
State of the Union