Comp Gov Executive

Constitutional requirements for President

• Natural-born citizen of the U.S.

• Must be 35 years old

• Must be U.S. resident for 14 years

12th Amendment

President & Vice President elected separately

24th Amendment

Prohibited poll taxes

• And, by implication, other Jim Crow voting restrictions

25th Amendment

Established Presidential succession

1. VP

2. Speaker of House

3. Pres Pro Temp

4. Sec of State…

OR Pres disability

26th Amendment

Lowered voting age to 18

Primaries

Election to nominate candidates for GE

• Electorate casts ballots at precinct polls

Open primary

Anyone can vote

Closed primary

Voters have to be registered w/pol. party

Frontloading

States hold primaries earlier so candidates will visit & get nationwide attention

Super Tuesday(s)

Tuesday(s) when lots of states hold primaries

Caucuses

Electorate gathers in precinct meeting place

• Discusses candidates and continues to narrow field w/viability voting

Viability voting

Candidates must gain 15% of vote in caucuses to be viable

Benefits of caucuses

• Grassroots engagement

• Lower cost for taxpayers

• Strategic alignment

• More opportunities for underdogs

Drawbacks of caucuses

• Low voter turnout

• Disenfranchisement/limited accessibility

• Lack of voter privacy

• Complexity

• Empowerment of ideological extremes

National Conventions

Each party meets for one week (Aug/Sept) in different city to officially cast votes to select nominee

• Keynote: rhetorical roadmap

• DNC & RNC

Super delegates

Democratic candidates who gain auto support

Balance the ticket

VP is selected strategically to counterbalance Pres and appeal more broadly to citizenry

Horserace journalism

Focus on winners, losers, & campaign strategy rather than platforms

General election

President elected by electoral college

• Popular election Tuesday after first Monday in November

• Vote at precinct polls (+ early voting!)

Banking the vote

Encouraging voters to send in mail-in-ballots for guaranteed votes

Winner-takes-all

Candidate winning the plurality of a state’s popular vote wins all that state’s electoral college votes

District method — Maine & Nebraska

Candidate winning the plurality of a Congressional district’s vote wins the electoral college vote for that district; candidate winning the plurality of the state’s popular vote wins 2 statewide electoral votes

Youngstown Steel v. Sawyer

SCOTUS rules that Pres may not seize private enterprise through executive action

Correspondents’ Dinner

Dinner hosted at White House for members of press to ameliorate antagonism between press & WH

Unitary Executive Theory

All the power of the executive branch is vested in a President

Expressed/formal powers of the President

• Chief executive

• Appointment power

• Negotiate treaties

• Convene Congress (NOT dismiss)

• Veto

• Commander-in-chief

• Pardon power (only federal)

• State of the Union

Informal/implied powers of Pres

Diplomat-in-chief: single voice of country

Electronic throne: use of elec communications

Head of State: ceremonial leader

Rally points: celebrate victories

Crisis manager: respond to crises

First lady

Often choose “soft” issue to champion

• Ex: literacy

Inner Cabinet

Sec of State, Sec of Treasury, Sec of Defense, Attorney General

Chief of Staff

The “gate keeper” to President

• Running day-to-day activities of White House

Press Secretary

Daily briefing to White House press corps

Director of the Office of Management & Budget

Helps the President draft the annual budget to present to Congress

National Security Advisor

Provides daily briefing to Pres on national security

• Does not need Senate confirmation unless a 3- or 4-star general

Bureaucracy

Government unit intended to complete specific tasks authorized by Congress

• Purpose: implement legislation

Benefits of bureaucracy

• Expertise/specialization

• Efficiency

• Delegation of workload

Drawbacks of bureaucracy

• Insulated from citizenry

• Red tape (intended to make function properly)

• Accountability concerns

Departments

Generally the largest in terms of employees, budget, & purpose

• Headed by Secretaries (except AG!): appointed by Pres & confirmed by Senate

• Examples:

  • State: foreign relations, U.S. ambassadors

  • DOJ: law enforcement, Solicitor General (represents U.S. before fed courts), ATF&E, DEA, FBI

  • DOD: largest number of employees

  • HHS: largest budget, entitlement programs: Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare

  • DHS: most recently created

Independent agencies

Generally independent of departments and more narrow in focus than a department

• Examples:

  • CIA: foreign intelligence, NOT domestic

  • NASA: space exploration

Independent regulatory agencies

Regulating particular, narrow field

• Examples:

  • SEC: stock market

  • FCC (federal communications commission): PUBLIC airways (TV & radio)

  • The Fed (federal reserve): regulates money supply by controlling interest rates (NOT printing currency)

    • Monetary policy: regulating money supply by controlling interest rates

    • NOT fiscal policy: taxing & spending controlled by Congress and Pres through the budget

Government gorporations

Collect money for goods & services

• Generally self-sustaining

• Examples:

  • USPS: communication!

  • AMTRAK: transportation!

Bureaucratic discretion

Congress lets bureaus decide how to interpret/execute laws because

• Departments have more expertise

• More efficient

• Congress not responsible for controversial implementation (“scapegoating”)

Rule-making authority

Executive agencies specifically decide how policies are going to be implemented

• Rules, NOT laws

Congressional checks on bureaucracy

• Legislation

• Power of the purse

• Oversight: hearings & investigations