Vice President
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Transcript Vice President
The Institutions
The Presidency
The White House
Constitutional Qualifications
Be at least 35 years old
A natural-born citizen of the United States
Lived in the U.S. for 14 years
Twelfth Amendment requires Vice President to
fulfill qualifications
“Typical” Qualifications
Political experience
Vice presidents, state governors, U.S. senators, U.S. representatives
Presidents with no prior elected office:
Military service
12 Presidents with no prior military service:
Not involved in the “mess in Washington”
Only two female vice-presidential major party candidates
John F. Kennedy (D) was first Catholic president (1961-1963)
Barack Obama (D) was first black president (2009-Present)
Charismatic
Outsider
John Adams (F), John Quincy Adams (D-R, NR), Martin van Buren (D), Grover Cleveland (D), William
Howard Taft (R), Woodrow Wilson (D), Warren Harding (R), Calvin Coolidge (R), Herbert Hoover (R),
Franklin Roosevelt (D), Bill Clinton (D), Barack Obama (D)
White Anglo-Saxon Protestant (WASP)
Zachary Taylor (W), Ulysses S. Grant (R), William H. Taft (R), Herbert Hoover (R), Dwight Eisenhower
(R)
Geraldine Ferraro (D) (1984), Sarah Palin (R) (2008)
James Buchanan (R) was only president not married (1857-1861)
John Tyler (W) (1841-1845) and Woodrow Wilson (D) (1913-1921) married during their terms
Inauguration
“I do solemnly swear (or affirm)
that I will faithfully execute the
Office of President of the United
States, and will to the best of my
Ability, preserve, protect and
defend the Constitution of the
United States.” – Oath of Office
Twentieth Amendment (1933)
established January 20th as
inauguration date
Used to be on March 4th
Since John Adams, the Chief
Justice of the Supreme Court has
administered the oath
Presidential Terms of Office
Four-year terms
Originally, no limit to number of terms served
George Washington set precedent/tradition of
two terms
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Elected to 4 terms (1932, 1936, 1940, 1944)
22nd Amendment (1951)
Limited president to two terms
Presidential Benefits
$400,000 annual salary
$50,000 annual tax-free expense account
$100,000 annual tax-free travel allowance
Taxable pension plan
Secret Service protection
Support staff
White House staff of 400-500 people
Camp David, a countryside getaway
Air Force One (plane) and Marine One (helicopter)
Considered the most powerful person in the world
Leader of the Free World
The Many Hats of the President
Chief Executive
Chief Legislator
Ceremonies, receive foreign leaders, official dinners
Chief Diplomat
In charge of armed forces
Head of State
Propose legislation, veto power, State of the Union
Commander-in-Chief
Execute laws, appoint executive officials
Negotiate treaties/alliances, develop foreign policies, appoint
ambassadors
Head of Political Party
Agenda setting, coattails, patronage
Chief Executive
Presidential Appointments (FORMAL
POWER)
(i.e. Secretary of State)
* Informal powers
Specie Circular
Ex parte Merryman
Emancipation Proclamation
Korematsu v. United States (E.O. 9066)
Desegregation of U.S. military (E.O. 9981)
Little Rock Nine (E.O. 10730)
EXECUTIVE PRIVILEGE (INFORMAL
POWER)
Recess appointments (FORMAL POWER)
White House Staff
Executive Office of President (EOP)
(including U.S. Supreme Court)*
Executive Appointments
A presidential directive to an executive agency to
implement or interpret a federal statute or
constitutional provision
(i.e. Federal Reserve Chairperson)*
U.S. marshals and attorneys
Ambassadors
Requires U.S. Senate approval (simple
majority)
Federal judiciary
* - The president cannot remove from office
“…take care that the laws be faithfully executed”
EXECUTIVE ORDERS (INFORMAL
POWER)
Heads of independent regulatory agencies
Executive department heads
Power to refuse appearing before or refusing to
provide information to Congress or the Supreme
Court
Presidents argue for it based on separation of
powers
United States v. Nixon (1974)
Some positions need U.S. Senate approval
Washington and the House on treaties
Evidence may not be withheld in criminal
proceedings
Clinton v. Jones (1997)
Presidency cannot protect from civil litigation on
actions before becoming president
Chief Legislator
Veto Power
Sign bills into law (FORMAL
POWER)
Signing Statements (INFORMAL
POWER)
Clinton v. City of New York
State of the Union Address
(FORMAL POWER)
Special Sessions of Congress
(FORMAL POWER)
Per the Budget and Accounting Act
of 1921
Congressional Budget and
Impoundment Control Act (1974)
Less than 10% of vetoes ever
overridden
POCKET VETO (FORMAL
POWER)
LINE-ITEM VETO
Congressional override (2/3
majority of both houses)
Prepare and propose federal
budget to Congress (INFORMAL
POWER)
Veto bills (FORMAL POWER)
Denied president right to refuse
spending appropriated funds
Office of Management and Budget
(OMB)
Agenda Setting and Power of
Persuasion
National leader and representative
(INFORMAL POWER)
Head of the party (INFORMAL
POWER)
Bully pulpit (INFORMAL POWER)
Presidential approval ratings
(INFORMAL POWER)
Veto threat (FORMAL POWER)
Formal Judicial Powers of the President
Appoint justices to the U.S.
Supreme Court and lower federal
courts
Litmus test
Requires U.S. Senate approval
(simple majority)
Senatorial courtesy*
Grants reprieves, pardons,
amnesty
Pardons forgive a crime and cancel
the punishment
Gerald Ford’s blanket pardon of
Nixon for Watergate
Reprieves postpone a sentence
allowing for appeals
Amnesty is to forget the crime in
lieu of testimony or support
Chief Diplomat
Congress delegates diplomatic powers to
President
Appoints ambassadors (FORMAL POWER)
U.S. Senate approval (simple majority)
Receives foreign dignitaries (FORMAL
POWER)
Recognize nations (FORMAL POWER)
Treaties and Pacts
Negotiates Treaties (FORMAL POWER)
Legally binding
Requires advice and consent of 2/3 majority of
U.S. Senate
Woodrow Wilson and Treaty of Versailles/League
of Nations Denial
EXECUTIVE AGREEMENTS (INFORMAL
POWER)
An agreement between heads of government
Politically binding
Does not require Senate approval
Must be re-consented by each new president
North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
Commander-in-Chief
Commander-in-Chief
Provides for domestic order
Over all armed forces
Appoints Joint Chiefs of Staff (military
advisors)
Wages war
Troop deployment
Call up the National Guard in affected
state/locality
Crisis Manager (INFORMAL
POWER)
War Powers Resolution (1973)
President notifies Congress 48 hours in
advance of combat
Armed forces for 60 days and 30-day
withdrawal period
Congress may extend military use,
declare war, or authorize use of
military
Impeachment
May be charged with treason, bribery, high crimes
and misdemeanors
House of Representatives impeaches
(indicts/charges/accuses)
Senate tries (acquit or convict)
Simple majority required (218 votes)
Presided over by Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme
Court
2/3 majority required for conviction (67 Senators)
Historical Events
Andrew Johnson
Bill Clinton
Democrat president dealing with Radical
Republicans during Reconstruction
Acquitted by 1 vote on 2 charges
Democrat president involved in affair and
impeached by GOP-dominated House for perjury
and obstruction of justice
Charged with perjury and obstruction of justice
Overwhelmingly acquitted by GOP Senate
Richard Nixon*
House Judiciary Committee was in process of
drafting impeachment articles before Nixon
resigned
Vice President
Selection of a Vice President
Balance the ticket
More widespread appeal for the ticket
Selected based on different party faction,
geographical region, political experience
Constitutional Responsibilities
Attend Cabinet meetings alongside the president
Serve on National Security Council
Delegated presidential duties
Vice President Vacancy
Preside over the Senate as President of the Senate
Break voting ties in the Senate
Preside and present counting of Electoral College
votes
Assume presidency upon death, infirmity,
disability, removal from office of president
Duties of a Vice President
John F. Kennedy/Lyndon B. Johnson (1960
Election)
25th Amendment requires majority vote from
both houses of Congress to approve a VP
appointment
Only five Vice Presidents have been elected
President
John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Martin van Buren,
Richard Nixon, George H.W. Bush
“My country has in its wisdom contrived for
me the most insignificant office that ever the
invention of man contrived or his imagination
conceived.” – John Adams
Presidential Succession
Vice president succeeds president
upon death, removal from office,
disability, infirmity
Article II
Twentieth Amendment
Twenty-Fifth Amendment
Presidential Succession Act of 1947
Vice President
Speaker of the House
President Pro Tempore
Secretary of State
Secretary of Treasury
Secretary of Defense
Attorney General
Presidential Succession (cont.)
Based on chronological order of
executive department
Secretary of Interior
Secretary of Agriculture
Secretary of Commerce
Secretary of Labor
Secretary of Health and Human
Services
Secretary of Housing and Urban
Development
Secretary of Transportation
Secretary of Energy
Secretary of Education
Secretary of Veterans’ Affairs
Secretary of Homeland Security
White House Office Staff
May be hired and fired at will; no U.S. Senate approval necessary
Part of the Executive Office of the President (EOP)
Chief of Staff
Press Secretary – “Voice of the President”
Disseminate and provide information to the president, the White
House staff, and the mass media
Facilitates news briefings and news conferences with the White
House Press Corp
Communications
Administers the White House staff
Usually a personal or close friend/ally
May possess a certain policy expertise or political connections
Develop and promote the president’s agenda; speech-writing
White House Counsel
Organizational Structures
Pyramid
Circular
Hierarchal structure reports to the Chief of Staff
Members and aides all directly report to the president
Ad-hoc
Task forces, committees, informal groups of advisors and friends report
to the president
Executive Office of the President
Policy advisors and experts
who directly report to and
serve at the pleasure of the
President
Some officials require
Senate approval
White House Office
Office of Management and Budget
(OMB)
Council of Economic Advisers
National Security Council
Assist in developing federal budget
proposal
Monitor supervision of executive
agencies
National Security Advisor
Office of the U.S. Trade
Representative
Office of National Drug Control
Policy
Office of Science and Technology
Policy
The Cabinet
Administrators, or secretaries, of the
executive departments
Appointed by president and
approval from Senate
Selection by President
Usually an expert in department
appointed with some political and
private experience
In most cases, the person barely has
any personal or political relationship
to the president, if any
Some may be chosen for image of
diversity
Department Loyalty
Policy expertise over partisanship,
administration
Some in-fighting with EOP and
White House Staff
The Executive Departments
State
Treasury
Justice
Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI)
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms and
Explosives (ATF)
Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
U.S. Marshals Service
Office of the Solicitor General
Interior
National Security Agency (NSA)
Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA)
National Park Service
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Agriculture (USDA)
Commerce
Bureau of the Census
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA)
Labor
National Nuclear Security Administration
Education
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
Energy
Federal Housing Administration (FHA)
Transportation (DOT)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Office of the Surgeon General
Medicare
Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
Health and Human Services
Defense (“The Pentagon”)
United States Mint/Bureau of Engraving and
Printing
Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
Federal Student Aid
Veterans’ Affairs (VA)
Homeland Security
United States Coast Guard
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
United States Secret Service
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
Transportation Security Administration (TSA)
The First Lady
First and foremost as White
House hostess
Attends social events and
ceremonies with or representing
president
Modern First Ladies usually
coordinate politically safe valence
issues and initiatives
Nancy Reagan’s “Just Say No To
Drugs”
Strong First Ladies
Dolly Madison
Eleanor Roosevelt
Civil rights issues, campaigned for
FDR
Hillary Clinton
Given direct policy role for national
health care initiative