Executive Branch

Collective Dilemmas

Faces more direct managerial problems and relies on info from trusted agents to coordinate bureaucracy

19th Century

Voice of the people + military leader

Spoils System

Practice of rewarding partisan loyalty with government positions

20th + 21st Centuries

Divided & united government

Theodore Roosevelt

“Bully pulpit” place as speaker for people

Woodrow Wilson

Populism and major voice in international politics

FDR

New Deal increased government power substantially

Administrative Law

Body of law created by executive agencies to refine law

Veto Power

Block bill passed by congress → modify bill if threatened

Appointments

President appoints people in bureaucracy

Executive Order

President instructs federal departments and bureaus on how to execute laws passed by Congress

Executive Agreement

Agreement between two countries; not formal treaty

Signing Statements

Public Statement written by president attached to bill, outlines President’s interpretation

White House Staff

Organizes schedules & plots political, legislative, and international strategies

Executive Office of President

Includes core White House staff

Special Prosecutors

Independent counsel hired to investigate government officials

Impeachment

Process where House formally charges a government official with “treason, bribery, or other high crimes”

Parliamentary Democracy

Executive government is elected & responsible to legislature

Presidential System

Executive is elected independently & not responsible to legislature

Mixed-presidential system

Executive is elected independently & shares responsibility for government with legislature

Line-Item Veto

Partial veto that allows president to strike out specific passages of a given bill