US Presidency

Approve legislation
what is the presidents power of signing bills?

president can sign bills. As its Congress passes such few bills, a public ceremony is held, giving the president a chance to show off their achievements.

-When president Biden signed the infastructure investment and jobs act 2021, he did so in a ceremony outside the Whitehouse, surrounded by members of Congress, the vice president, and a brass band. he also gave a speech about the bill.

-President Obama had 60 bill signing ceremonies, fewer than his predecessors.

Approve legislation
what is the presidents power of veto?

presidents can veto bills. it is sent back to Congress with their objections. given the rarity of veto override, presidents can have the final say on a bill. if Congress is able to override the veto, it makes the president look weak.

Bush had 4 of his 12 vetoes overriden, at 33% this was nearly double the rate of any 20th century president.

by contrast, trump had only 1 of his 10 vetoes overriden.

Approve legislation
how can the threat of the veto shape legislation?

president trump threatened to veto the national defense authorisation act in 2020 as it included a liability shield for social media companies. he did not have to use his veto but Congress used the veto override.

president trump also signed a $1.3 trillion dollar spending bill hours after threatening on Twitter to veto it in 2018.

Approve legislation
how can the president take no actions on bills?

a president has 10 days to decide action on a bill. after those 10 days, the bill becomes law. if during those 10 days Congress goes into recess, the bill dies, known as a “pocket veto”

in 2007, george bush made the claim that he had pocket vetoed the defence uathorisation act for fiscal year 2008

State of the union
what is the state of the union?

the constitution allows the president from “time to time give Congress information of the state of the union” and make recommendations for congressional consideration. since president Wilson, this has been a congressional address.

today it is largely a legislative request from the president to congress. Congress then decides what legislation from the speech to pass.

State of the union
what were president clinton’s state of the union policies? did they pass?

-healthcare reform (1994) - failed to pass congress
-assault weapons ban (1995) success, passed a 10 year ban ending 2004

State of the union
what were George w Bush’s state of the union policies? did they pass?

-”The axis of evil” and acting against sponsors of terrorism (2002) - debateably, Congress authorized action but success of actions in the middle east is questionable.

-”healthcare reform” (2003) - success, prescriptions made more affordable

State of the union
what were obama’s state of the union policies? did they pass?

-immigration reform (2016) - failure, Obama had to rely on executive actions

-gay rights (2010), success: don’t ask, don’t tell repeal act signed

State of the union
what were trumps first term state of the union policies? did they pass?

repeal Obamacare (2018) - failure, 2017 attempts failed and courts were left to decide many issues

Called for Congress to pass 1.5 trillion dollar infastructure bill (2018) - Failure, the longest government shutdown in us history resulted from unwillingness to fund trumps border wall

State of the union
what were bidens state of the union policies? did they pass?

-support of Ukraine (2022) Success, 13.6 billion dollars pledged with the 1.5 trillion spending bill
-gun control (2022) - success, Biden passed the 2022 bipartisan safer communities act, the first major gun contorl legislation in 30 years.

Appointments
what is the presidential power of appointments?

-president can appoint 4000 officials, with around 1200 needing senate confirmation.

-key appointments such as supreme court justices and the cabinet are confirmed by a majority vote in the senate.

-marco rubio was confirmed as secretary of state by unanimous consent by the senate in janaury 2025.

-cabinet holds the heads of 15 executive departments and other officials the president wishes.

Appointments
what are recess appointments?

“recess appointments” allows presidents to make temporary appointments to the executive, which would require senate approval, but cant as teh senate is in recess.

-these appointments expire at the end of the next session of the senate. the president must then either formally nominate the appointment, or pick someone else.

Appointments
what are examples of recess appointments?

Clinton made 139 recess appointments, Bush 171, including John Bolton as UN ambassador after his hearings in the senate were dragged out by a Democrat filibuster.

-Obama made just 32 recess appointments, but his power to do so was challenged by the Supreme Court in NLRBD v. Canning (2014)

Executive power
what are executive orders?

orders to the federal bureacracy telling them how a law should be carried out. as the law has already been passed by congress, executive orders carry the force of law.

Executive power
what are 2 limits of executive orders?

-cannot be used to create new laws. presidents have tried to do this when congress would not pass their requested legislation. Obama in in the 2014 state of the union stated “ive got a pen and ive got a phone, and i can use that pen to sign executive orders”

-easily overturned by a new president, law or supreme court ruling.

Executive power
how did Biden and trump use executive orders?

-biden signed 64 executive orders in his first 100 days.

-Trump signed a flurry of executive orders on his first day in office on the 20th January 2025, surrounding DEi policy, border policy, and rescinding 80 of Bidens executive orders.

Executive power
what are executive memoranda?

-similar to executive orders, however there is no formal process to issue them. they are not recorded on the federal register or numbered.

-Obama’s 2012 Memorandum Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) came from the department of homeland security, and aimed to postpone the deportation of illegal immigrants who met a certain criteria.

-biden used a memorandum in 2021 to secure DACA after trump tried to end it in 2017.

Executive power
what are presidential proclomations?

Historically signiifcant, but largely ceremonial today. they are numbered, recorded on the federal register and carry the force of law. unlike executive orders, they give orders to people outside the executive branch.

-Famous Proclomations include Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclomation, and G.W Bush Declaring a National Emergency by Reason of Certain Terrorist Attacks in 2001.

Executive power
what are presidential signing statements?

-as a president signs a bill, they can issue a signing statement along it. they usually point out the positive or negative aspects of the bill, or interpret it on constitutional grounds.

-As Obama signed the national defence authorisation act 2011, his signing statement voiced concerns over restrictions on the presidency, and stated that his administration would interpret parts of the bill to “avoid […] constitutional conflict”

Grant reprieves and pardons
what is the presidential power of the pardon?

-president can pardon federal crimes.

-only think that cant be pardoned is impeachment, Nixon resigned over the watergate affair, and in doing so, was able to be pardoned by his successor, President Ford.

Grant reprieves and pardons
how has the presidential power of the pardon gained extreme controversy recently?

-in December 2024, Biden issued an unconditional pardon for his son, Hunter.

-Upon inauguration in january 2025, Trump pardoned over 1500 offenders involved in the January 6th insurrection.

convene special sessions of congress
what is the presidential power to convene special sessions of congress?

-president can call special sessions of congress, calling either both or one house back from recess.

-this is rarely used today, but used noteably in the past, with congress being convened on 27 occassions, and the senate alone 46 times.

-in 1948 Truman called a special joint session of congress to consider domestic legislation.

Commander in chief
what is the presidential power of commander in chief?

-president is the constitutional head of the navy and army, and today this includes the air force, marines, coast guards and space fore.

-the constitution is unclear on the extent of these powers, except congress can declear war.

Commander in chief
how have the powers of commander in chief developed over time?

-war was last declared by congress in 1942, and actions of the military have since been under the president.

-the development of nuclear weaponry means that the need for swift response has increased. Congress tried to regain control in this area, passing the War Powers Acti n 1973, however this has widely been intepreted by Presidents as unconstitutional since.

Commander in chief
when and what did president gerald ford say about the presidents role as commander in chief?

“there has been a tendency on the part of congress to limit and hamstring effective action by the president to move quickly… that is not good for the united states”

Make treaties (including executive agreements)
what is the presidents role of creating treaties?

-president, with consent of the senate can create treaties with other nations.

-NEW START in 2010 was confirmed with a 2/3rds vote.

Make treaties (including executive agreements)
what are executive agreements?

-executive agreements are like treaties, however they do not require senate approval, and are seen as a way of avoiding the check of senate approval.

-Obama negotiated the Iran nuclear deal and paris agreement on climate change via executive agreements.

how have presidents use their power over the militiary within the USA?

federal troops have been deployed in the case of national emergencies.

huricane katrina 2005

president trump in 2025 used exeuctive action to order thousands of US troops to be deployed to the US mexico border to enforce his immigration policy.

Receive ambassadors
what is the presidential power/ role to receive ambassadors?

-as head of state, the president can receive ambassadors from foreign nations. through this, the president gains the implied power of recognising nations.

-George W. Bush recognised Kosovo in 2008, while Obama recognised Sudan in 2011, establishing diplomatic relations.

The president as head of state
how does the president represent the US as head of state?

-attend world summits such as G7 or G20 as a representattive of the US.

-can negoitate deals and treaties.

-ceremonial duties such as the annual pardoning of the turkey, and throwing the first pitch on the opening day of the US baseball season.

Presidential control over domestic or foreign affairs?
how is the president strong in domestic affairs? give 3 arguments.

-it is difficult for congress to defy the president if they hold a strong electoral mandate.

-constitutional requirements to address congress in state of the union.

-faces less scrutiny during uniifed government.

Presidential control over domestic or foreign affairs?
how is the president strong in foreign affairs? give 4 arguments.

-head of state and commands attention of world leaders and global media (in january 2025 trump delivered a speech to the World Economic Forum, threatening business leaders with tarrifs)

-presidents use executive agreements to avoid senate checks.

-presidents have taken military action without advice of congress

-congressional investigations largely happen after presidntial actions during crises’s .

Presidential control over domestic or foreign affairs?
How is the president weak in domestic affairs?

president may not control congress, making it more difficult to pass agenda

-senatrs can hold up bills in fillibusters

-short electoral cycle means members are more responsive to states or districts

-appointments to key domestic roles are subject to senate approval

-hyperpartisanship can make compromise more difficiult, resulting in gridlock

-federal system, states can prevent presidents ddomestic agenda from being enforced.

Presidential control over domestic or foreign affairs?
how is the president weak in foregin affairs?

-president is reliant on congress for funding (trump struggled to fund his border wall)

-congress has tried to regain power using the war powers resolution and AUMF's

-if the president acts alone, they will be held accountable alone. a poorly wexecuted foreign policy can lead to low poll ratings (biden afghanistna withdrawal 2021)

-the senate can reject treaties

-congress can use its legislative powers to control foreign policy

The president as the head of government
what is the presidents power as head of government?

-president heads executive branch, and is responsible for the organisation of the EXOP and preside over the cabinet and federal bureacracy.

-they can use executive orders to ensure US laws are carried out effectively, and can sign/veto bills.

overlapping powers between head of state and government
how does the power of commander in chief overlap ?

-president can use troops to respond to crises and natural disasters that emerge within the USA.

overlapping powers between head of state and government
how does the power of recognising countries overlap?

-by recognising countries, the president opens trade opportunities which impacts the domestic economy.

overlapping powers between head of state and government
how does the power of state of the union overlap?

-as cheif legislator, the president can shape domestic policy via their state of the union.

overlapping powers between head of state and government
how does the power of making treaties overlap?

-by making treaties, the president is acting as the US representatitve to the world, but the treaties made often have a direct impact on the US domestic economy.

informal sources of presidential power - The Cabinet
what is the nature of the cabinet?

constitutionally, the cabinet has no formal pwoer. it is simply an advisory body for the president. dspite this, every president since 1793 has had a cabinet.

informal sources of presidential power - The Cabinet
how has the cabinet expanded?

-originally just 4 membmers, state, war treasury and attorney general.

now consists of 15 executive departments, the president, vicep resident and other cabinet level executives as the president chooses.

-the additional members that a president chooses often reflect policy priorities/national circumstances when they take over.

informal sources of presidential power - The Cabinet
how is the cabinet a source of power?

members are policy specialists, and can offer opinions on policy and support them in their policy objectives.

-Timothy Geithner, Obama’s Treasury Secretary, was previously the president of the federal reserve bank in new york. he was therefore key in introducing obamas ‘financial stability plan’ to deal with the 2007 crash.

informal sources of presidential power - The Cabinet
how does the president maintain the final say over the cabinet?

the preisdent maintains the final say through their constitutional power.

-obamas policy goals did not always match those of his secretary of defense, republican chuck hagel. in august 2014, obama was comparing Islamic State to a junior varsity basketball team, while Hagel described it as an “imminent threat to every interest we have.”

informal sources of presidential power - The Cabinet
how do cabinet officials undertake work on behalf of the president?

-On the election of a new president of mexico in july 2018, Trumps secretary of state mike pompeo was sent to meet with him to improve relations between the two countries. the president was unabelt o attend every meeting and event required of them, so they used members of the cabinet as representatitves.

-on the election of a new president in Mexico in July 2018, Trumps secretary of state Mike Pompeo was sent to meet with him to improve relations between the two countries.

informal sources of presidential power - The Cabinet
how does the symbolic value of the cabinet give the president power?

-The cabinet can by a symbolic representation of presidential power.

-Clinton famously remarked that he wanted his cabinet to “look like america.” As a singular executive, the president can only appeal to a certain demographic, due to age, ideology, race, sex or religion. A diverse cabinet can therefore represent a greater range of people.

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informal sources of presidential power - The Cabinet
how has cabinet diversity continued?

-The trend of diversity has continued. While Trumps cabinet was more male and white than any president since Reagan, Bidens cabinet was the most diverse in history, with 45% and 55% non whtie members.

informal sources of presidential power - Powers of persuasion
who coined the term powers of persuasion? what is it?

In 1960, Professor Richard Neustadt argued that the “power of the presidency is the power to persuade.”

-this is based on the fact that eachy on president has the same constitutional powers, which can be checked by congress. The president must therefore rely on persuasion and prestige to acheive their goals.

informal sources of presidential power - Powers of persuasion
what did truman say about powers of persuasion?

persuasion is “all the powers of the president amount to”

informal sources of presidential power - Powers of persuasion
how can the president use persuasion by appearling directly to congress?

-the president can appeal directly to congress, often through the media.

-In Obama’s rose garden speech of 2013, he maintained that he was convinced of the need for military action in Syria, and said that it was his role as the leader of the oldest constitutional democracy in the world to ask Congress for approval.

-Trump made similar appeals through Twitter.

informal sources of presidential power - Powers of persuasion

what is the bully pulpit?

the white house can be used as a stage, or a ‘bully pulpit’
-this is due to the gravitas of the whitehouse, especially the oval office, as the president can represent the entire executive.

-Obama used the pulipt to call for gun control following the San Barnardino shooting in 2015, and Trump bussed the entire Seante to the white house in 2017 for a breifing on North Korea.

informal sources of presidential power - Powers of persuasion
how can the president use personal gravitas as powers of persuasion?

-president can use personal gravitas through methods such as phoning congressional leaders, or having meetings with them.

-president Obama was known to telephone and have private meetings with republican speaker John Boehner to try to advance his legislative agenda.

informal sources of presidential power - Powers of persuasion
how can the president use the media to persuade?

-president can use the media to speak to the public, who in turn place pressure on congress.

-in 2011 Obama asked the public to contact mebmers of Congress to ask them to raise the debt ceiling so the US would not default on its debt. speaker John Boehner claimed to have 203 calls in one day.

informal sources of presidential power - Powers of persuasion
how can the president use inducements to persuade?

-presidnt may offer inducements to members of congress in return for support.

-Obama promised the Syrian intervention would be limited, and not involve US soldiers, to make it more agreeable with congress.

-Obama deported a large number of individuals, in an effort to show Congress that his immigration proposals could be trusted.

vice president
how has the vice presidency grown in importance?

-while the VP only has 2 constitutional powers, it has developed into a bigger role.

-in elections, the VP is important in ‘balancing the ticket’. both JD Vance and Tim Walz in the 2024 election could be seen to appeal to more working class americans.

-advisory powers depend on the president.

vice president
what are examples of recent vice presidents being important? give 4 examples.

-Al Gore headed the national peformacne review to reduce the cost of federal government, and also championed enviromental policy.

-Richard B. Cheyney was key in responding to the 9/11 attacks and increasing the presidents powers.

-Joe Bidens 30 year expierence in the senate foreign relations committee gave him expertise in Obamas middle east policy

-Kamala Harris cast more tie breaking votes in congress than any VP in history, and was the first woman to hold presidential powers as biden underwent a health check for 85 minites in November 2021.

The executive office of the president
what is the executive office of the president?

EXOP is the agencies that work for or within the white house and are organised by the President.

-often staffed with people highly loyal to him

-often referred to as the ‘west wing’.

The office of management and budget
what is the office of management and budget?

-the role of the OMB is to develop the annual budget for the President to submit to Congress.

-also oversees funding of federal programs, and gives the president advice on budget, policy and legal matters.

The office of management and budget
how does the OMB help the president create a budget?

-the president can only take office in January, so its hard to have a budget preared by the first monday in febuary as required by law.

-the OMB therefore drafts the budget, and breifs hte president on economic policies.

-it has around 500 staff.

National Security Council

what is the national security council?

-the NSC advises the president on matters of national security and foreign policy.

-attended by the VP, secretaries of state, treasury and defence, as well as joint cheifs of staff, the directy of national intelligence, and the national security adivser.

National Security Council

what is the significance of the NSC?

-significance depends on the presidents policies.

-may come into conflict with the department of defence, seen through rivalry between obamas national security adviser Susan Rice, and his sec def Chuck Hagel.

The white house office

what is the WHO?

-the White House office is headed by the Presidents chief of staff, and contains senior aids and advisers.

-the press secretary is the most public figure, they hold breifings and appear on nightly news.

-Bidens press secretary, Jen Psaki became known for her ‘psaki bombs’ - quick sarcastic responses to partisan questions from journalists.

The white house office

how can the white house office hold lots of power ?

-the body can hold extensive power over the president if they allow it.

-nixons WHO was reffered to as the ‘berlin wall’ as they made it difficult for other adviers to access the president.

elections: electoral cycle, divided government and the electoral mandate

how can election success be a source of power ?

-if a president can claim a sweeping victory, requests to congress become difficult to ignore.

-Trump claimed a “landslide” victory following the 2024 election, winning all swing states. Trump continued to be highly authoratitve with executive orders.

-on the contrary, following Trumps 2016 victory, trump was perceived as far weaker, as he lost the popular vote.

elections: electoral cycle, divided government and the electoral mandate

what is the coattails effect?

-is president does well in elections, it helps other candidates in their party attract votes and win seats, increasing control over congress. if a president is unpopular however, members of congress are likely to distance themselves from the president.

-Trump was mocked for having a short ‘coattails’ effect in 2016, as the Republicans lost 2 senate seats and 6 house seats in the mid terms.

National circumstances

how can national circumstances effect presidential power ?

-national events can help or hinder presidential influence.

-in the days following 9/11, Bush’s poll ratings increased substantially, as americans looked to al leader. in contrast, Biden faced criticsm over his handling of the US withdrawal from afghanistan in 2021.

-the booming economy under Bill Clinton helped him, however Trump in 2018 had an improving economy but declining approval ratings.

Relationship with congress

what are the factors in which the presidents relationship with congress is built around ?

-electoral mandate and timing of electoral cycle

-manner in which they exercise constitutional powers

-popularity

-which party controls either house of congress

Relationship with congress

how was trumps relationship with congress poor ?

-in september 2018, Politico ran the headline “congress dares trump to shut down the governmetn in new spending deal”

-antagonistic relationship between the branches was due to hte looming midterm electinos, but also the divisive nature of trumps rhetoric.

-his attacks on congress for failing to repeal obamacare, presusre to confirm Kavanaugh led to an infuriated congress pushing back on his power.

Relationship with Supreme Court

what is the nature of presidents relationship with SCOTUs

-Presidents relationship with SCOTUS is more stable than relationship with Congress.

-they have limited ability to pressure the court, and while nominations can change the balance of the court, vacancies do not occur at will.

Relationship with Supreme Court
how can the president publically effect the relationship with the court?

-presidents can publically reflect on their relationship with the court.

-Obama openly criticised the court in 2010 in his state of the union address, arguing that the ruling in Citizens United v. Federal elections commission had “opened the floodgates” to huge amounts of money being spent on elections.

-Biden condemned the court follwogin Trump v. USA [2024], stating “there are no kings in america”.

Relationship with Supreme Court
how was trump able to influence the ideology of the court?

appointed Gorsuch in 2017
appointed Kavanaugh in 2018
appointed Amy Coney Barret in 2020

the imperial presidency
who coined the term the ‘imperial presidency’ ?

In 1973, Arthur Schlesinger Jr wrote The Imperial Presidency

-he aruged that the power of the president was growing, exacerbated by a lack of checks from congress.

the imperial presidency
in contrast, what is a ‘lame duck’ or ‘imperriled’ president ?

-a president who finds it difficult to exercise constitutional powers is an “imperriled president”

-a ‘lame duck’ is a president who is holding office after losing re-election, such as Donald Trump in 2020/21.

The president and foreign policy
how does presidential control over foreign policy fluctuate?

George W. Bush had huge amounts of power to involve hte US in wars between 2001 and 2003.

-however, the declining popularity of these wars, and Bush himself, allowed congress to increasingly exercise control near the end of his term .

The president and foreign policy
how can the president control foreign policy? (1) give 3 arguments.

-president can use executive agreemnts to avivoid senate confirmation.

-reception of ambassadors can be used to recognise nations.

-appointments of US officials to control foreign policy. while the secdef needs senate confirmation, national security advisor does not.

The president and foreign policy
how can the president control foreign policy? (2)

-the role of commander in chieif has usurped congress power to declare war. while congress has tried to remedy this using the power of the purse and AUMF, it has struggled to prevent action. War Powers act has been viewed unconstitutional by presidents since 1973 and therefore has not been successfully enforced.


-as head of state, president finds congress acting in deference in times of emergencies. by the time congress tries to reclaim power, the damage is often done.

The president and foreign policy
how can congress control foreign policy? (1)

-Congress can use power over appropriatoins to fund/defund military action. in 2007, Democrats attempted to defund the Iraq war.

-issuing or repealing an AUMF.

The president and foreign policy
how can congress control foreign policy? (2)

-congress can use its legislative power to control foreign policy. Congress passed laws preventing Obama allowing Syrian refugees and the release of Guantanmo Bay detainees onto US soil.

-ratifies treaties and appointments. Congress attempted to time limit obamas nuclear deal with iran.