4. Demographic
Characteristics of U.S.
Presidents
• 100% male • 69% politicians
• 99% Caucasian • 62% lawyers
• 97% Protestant • >50% from the top 3%
• 82% of British wealth and social class
ancestry • 0.5% born into
• 77% college educated poverty
• 69% elected from
large states
5. Fortunate Son
Recorded by Creedence Clearwater Revival
(1969)
Some folks are born made to Some folks are born silver
wave the flag, spoon in hand,
Ooh, they’re red, white and Lord, don’t they help
blue. themselves, oh.
And when the band plays, But when the taxman comes to
“Hail to the Chief,” the door,
Ooh, they point the cannon at Lord, the house looks like a
you, lord, rummage sale, yes,
It ain’t me, it ain’t me, I ain’t It ain’t me, it ain’t me, I ain’t
no senator’s son, son. no millionaire’s son, son.
It ain’t me, it ain’t me, I ain’t It ain’t me, it ain’t me, I ain’t
no fortunate one, no. no fortunate one, no.
6. Fortunate Son
Recorded by Creedence Clearwater Revival
(1969)
It ain’t me, it ain’t me, I
Some folks inherit star ain’t no military son, son.
spangled eyes, It ain’t me, it ain’t me, I
Ooh, they send you down to ain’t no fortunate one,
one.
war, lord,
And when you ask them,
It ain’t me, it ain’t me, I
“How much should we
ain’t no fortunate son,
give?”
son.
Ooh, they only answer It ain’t me, it ain’t me, I
more! more! more! yo, ain’t no fortunate son, no,
no, no.
7. Constitutional Qualifications
Must be at least 35
years old
Must have lived in
the United States for
14 years
Must be a natural
born citizen
8. Presidential Benefits
$400,000 tax-free salary
$50,000/year expense
account
$100,000/year travel
expenses
The White House
Secret Service
protection
Camp David country
estate
Air Force One personal Christmas at the White House, 2004
airplane
Staff of 400-500
10. Head of State
The President is chief of state.
This means he is the ceremonial
head of the government of the
United States, the symbol of all
the people of the nation.
Queen Elizabeth and President Reagan, 1983
President Kennedy speaks at Berlin Wall,
1963
11. Chief Executive
The Constitution vests the President
with the executive power of the United
States, making him or her the nation’s
chief executive.
President Clinton with Janet Reno, President Bush holds cabinet meeting
the first female Attorney General, in October, 2005
February, 1993
12. Commander-in-Chief
The Constitution makes the
President the commander in
chief, giving him or her complete
control of the nation’s armed
forces.
President Johnson decorates a soldier
in Vietnam, October, 1966 President Bush aboard U.S.S.
Lincoln, May, 2003
13. Chief Legislator
The President is the chief
legislator, the main architect
of the nation’s public policies.
President Clinton delivers the State
of the Union Address, 1997
President Roosevelt signs into law the
Social Security Act, 1935
14. Political Party Leader
The President acts as the chief
of party, the acknowledged
leader of the political party
that controls the executive
branch.
President Reagan & Vice-President Bush accepting their party’s
nomination in 1980
15. Chief Administrator
The President is the chief
administrator, or director, of
the United States government.
President Bush at Ground Zero after 9-11
Vice-President Johnson sworn in
aboard Air Force One
after President Kennedy’s
assassination, 1963
16. Chief Diplomat
As the nation’s chief diplomat,
the President is the main architect
of American foreign policy and
chief spokesperson to the rest of
the world.
President Lincoln during the Civil President Roosevelt and the “Bully
War, 1862 Pulpit,” 1910
20. Role of the Vice President
____ 1. The vice president is also the president of
the Senate.
_____2. The vice president is also head of the
judicial branch and presides over the Supreme
Court.
____ 3. The vice president and cabinet are part of
the legislative branch.
____ 4. The vice president is first in the line of
succession to the presidency.
____ 5. The Constitution notes only one official
role for the vice president.
____ 6. The qualifications for the vice presidency
are not the same as those for the presidency.
____ 7. The vice president administers the oath of
office to the president.
24. Formal Powers of the
President
Constitutional or expressed powers of
the presidency
Found primarily in Article II of the
Constitution (the Executive Article)
25. Formal Powers:
Commander-in-Chief
Commander in Chief of the Army & Navy
Making undeclared war
Limited by War Powers Act 1973
President can commit troops for 90 days
26. Formal Powers:
Chief Executive
“Faithfully execute” the laws
Grant pardons for federal offenses except for
cases of impeachment
Nominate judges of the Supreme Court and
all other officers of the U.S. with consent of
the Senate
Fill vacancies that may happen during recess
of the Senate (recess appointments)
27. Formal Powers:
Foreign Affairs
Appoint ambassadors, ministers and
consuls
Make treaties subject to Senate
confirmation
Receive ambassadors
Diplomatic Recognition – acknowledging
the legal existence of a country/state
28. Formal Powers:
Chief Legislator
Give State of the Union address to
Congress
Recommend “measures” to the
Congress
Upon “extraordinary occasions”
convene both houses of Congress
29. Formal Powers:
Chief Legislator (cont.)
Presidential Veto
Veto Message within 10 days of passing the House of
origin
Pocket Veto - President does not sign within 10 days
Congress can override with 2/3 majority from both
Houses
Veto Politics
Congressional override is difficult (only 4%)
Threat of veto can cause Congress to make changes in
legislation
30. Informal Powers
• Those powers not explicitly written in the
Constitution
• Similar to “necessary and proper” powers
of Congress
• In the modern era (since 1933), the
President’s informal powers may be
significantly more powerful than his
formal powers
31. Executive Orders
• Orders issued by the
President that carry the force
of law
• Clinton’s “Don’t ask don’t
tell” gays in the military
policy
• FDR’s internment of
Japanese Americans
• GWB trying suspected
terrorists in military tribunals
Notice for Japanese “relocation,” 1942
32. Executive Agreements
• International agreements, usually related to trade, made
by a president that has the force of a treaty; does NOT
need Senate approval
• Jefferson’s purchase of Louisiana in 1803
• GWB announced cuts in
the nuclear arsenal, but
not in a treaty; usually
trade agreements between
US and other nations
33. Executive Privilege
• Claim by a president that he has the right to decide
that the national interest will be better served if
certain information is withheld from the public,
including the Courts and Congress
• United States v. Nixon
(1973) – presidents do
NOT have unqualified
executive privilege (Nixon
Watergate tapes)
36. Electing a President
• Step 1:
– Primaries and Caucuses –
determine who the Presidential
candidates will be for each
political party
• Caucuses -
37. Electing a President
• Step 2:
– Convention – political parties
formally nominate candidates
- Party platform is established –
basic principles and beliefs of the
party
38. Electing a President
• Step 3:
– Electoral College – group of
people from each state chosen to
formally select the president and
vice president
39. Alternatives to Electoral College
• District Plan – each Congressional
receives 1 electoral vote
• Proportional Plan – candidates receive
electoral votes in proportion to the
percentage of popular vote received
• Direct Popular Election – based strictly
on popular vote (would require a
Constitutional Amendment)
• National Popular Vote – states agree to
give all electoral votes to popular winner
