Civics Presidency Test Duplantis

What are the 3 constitutional qualifications to be president of the united states?

1. At least 35 years old
2. Natural born citizen (US or territory)
3. 14 years a resident

What are the 4 personal qualifications of president?

1. All have been male
2. None have been younger than 40
3. Only 2 non-protestant presidents
4. Only 1 non-white president

Who is the youngest president in American history?

Teddy Roosevelt (42)

Who is the youngest ELECTED president in American history?

John F. Kennedy (44)

Who are the only 2 non-protestant presidents?

John F. Kennedy and Joe Biden (Catholics)

Who is the only non-white president in American history?

Barack Obama

What are the 2 political qualifications of president?

1. Generally from a big state (population wise)
2. Generally a governor or senator

Most presidents came from which state?

Virginia

What is the presidential term length?

4 years

What is the presidential term limit?

2 terms

Which amendment sets the term limit of presidency at 2 terms?

22nd amendment

why was the 22nd amendment made

because of FDR (whose did 4 terms)

Name the 2 criticisms of the 22nd amendment

1. Hinders democratic process (people should be able to choose whomever they want)
2. Lame duck: if you are the president elected for their second term, you know they won't work as hard when the end of their term is near

What does "lame duck" mean?

if you are the president elected for their second term, you know they won't work as hard when the end of their term is near

What is supported about the 22nd amendment?

keeps one from becoming too powerful

What is the presidential salary?

$400,000

Name some white house amenities

personal chef, movie theater, basketball court, Air Force One, bowling alley, doesn’t have to pay utilities, etc.

What is the presidential retreat house in Maryland that is used to host international dignitaries? (invites leaders from other parts of the world)

Camp David

What is President Jimmy Carter famous for?

famous for the Camp David Accords- brought in the leaders of Israel and Palestine

what happened with jimmy carter’s last flight

went from Air Force one to a normal plane while he was still one it (happened after regan took office) (he was in the plane during the inaguration)

presidential airplane (any plane that a president steps on)

Air Force One

How many presidents have had to be replaced?

9 president (8 died and one resigned (Nixon))

Order of presidents to die in office

William Henry Harrison

Zachary Taylor

Lincoln

Garfield

McKinley

Harding

FDR

JFK

What does the original U.S. Constitution say about the line of presidential succession?

doesn't say much about the line of presidential succession, basically just says that if the President can't do their job they can be replaced by the VP

Who took over and declared himself President after the death of William Henry Harrison?

John Tyler

amendment that establishes succession of VP if president dies or become incapable to do his job (if there is no VP, president must appoint one, and congress must approve) (VP takes over temprarily)

25th Amendment

what are the two ways VP can temporarily take over

1. President informs Congress


2. VP and majority of the Cabinet (if they  do not feel like the President is healthy mentally and/or physically then they have to say something to Congress and most of Congress have to agree with it) (never been done before)- thought about using it with Trump with January 6

What amendment was passed as a result of John Kennedy being assassinated?

25th Amendment

Under the 25th amendment, the \_________ temporarily takes over

VP

How does the president resume his job after he is better? Who could contest this?

Write a letter to Congress saying they are now capable of being President again; VP and Cabinet could contest this

law specifying the order of presidential succession in case of the removal, resignation, death, or inability both of the President and Vice President.

Presidential Succession Act of 1947

What is the order of presidential succession?

1. Speaker of the House
2. President Pro Tempore of the Senate
3. Secretary of State
4. Secretary of Treasury
5. Secretary of Defense
6. Attorney General (goes in order of when they were created for all cabinet positions)

T/F: The VP has the same constitutional requirements as the president

True

What are the 2 roles of vice presidency?

1. President of Senate
2. Decides presidential disability (their responsibility to inform Congress that the president cannot serve properly)

What role does the Vice President play?

they "balance the ticket"

Name 2 examples of the vice president balancing the ticket.

Kamala Harris (VP) with President Joe Biden (2020)

why do presidents not have their closest confidants as the VP

could cause arguing and VP can take the spotlight away

why do presidents not give much responsibility to the VP

so the president can still be on top

What if there is a VP vacancy (resigned, impeached, died, etc)?

Invoke the 25th Amendment (states that the President can nominate a Vice President- and confirmed by both the house and the senate)

what happened in 1972 with the Republican ticket (dealing with VP)?

Ticket is Richard Nixon and VP is Spero T. Agnew- former governor of Maryland 

Agnew did not pay his taxes- can be impeached, removed from office and could have imprisonment

So he resigns in 1973

Nixon nominates Gerald Ford- wins the nomination

In July 1974- Ford was a president because Nixon resigned

Ford has to get a VP and it is Nelson Rockefeller 

first ladies

The constitution says nothing because it was made by men

Job was White House hostess

Elanor Roosevelt's focus was in charge of minority and women issues

Jackie Kennedy- help with the peace core, with third world countries

Nancy Reagan- national drug program, DEA was made

Betty Ford- Betty Ford Clinic- detox place for alcohol

Laura Bush- literacy

Michelle Obama- childhood obesity- to make sure people live longer- because of Obamacare

Molinia trump- cyberbullying

Presidential elections are how often?

Every 4 years

Which years are presidential elections held?

any number divisible by 4

Who elects the President and VP?

electoral college

group of people chosen by each state and Washington DC to formally elect the President and VP

Electoral College

why did Hamilton have the Pres and VP voted on by the electoral college

he though people were too stupid to vote

When and where are electoral votes cast?

mid-December in state capitols

When are electoral votes counted?

early January

What was the original system of the electoral college?

allowed for two votes for presidents (president was the one with most votes and then the person with the second most votes was VP)

What was the problem with the original system of the electoral college?

came to head with Jefferson and Burr

P and VP coming from two different parties

High risk of Electoral College could run into a tie

What amendment made electors vote for the President and VP separately?

12th amendment

what is the order for voting for POTUS and VP

first POTUS then VP (separately)

What happens if no one gains a majority of the electoral college?

Goes to House to chooses POTUS

1 vote per state

Happened in 1824- Popular vote- Jackson, wins the electoral college- Adams , house- Calhoun says Adams and Calhoun becomes VP

IF tie with VP it goes to Senate chooses VP

Each senators casts a vote

if you are ineligible to be POTUS can you be eligible to be VP

no

The Presidential campaign is mainly fought in what?

battleground states

a state where it is too close to call

Battleground states

Name some states that are battleground states.

Iowa-6 , New Hampshire- 4, Flordia-30, Virginia-13, Colorado-10, Ohio-17, and Nevada-6 (86 electoral votes up in the air)

How many total votes are in the electoral college?

538

Why is the total number of votes in the electoral college 538?

435 in the house, 100 in the senate, 3 in Washington D.C. (as a result of the 23 amendment)

How many electoral votes are needed to win the presidential campaign?

270 (majority of the electoral vote)

has a president ever won with 51%

no; usually it is a bigger margin of winning

Electors usually vote for what candidate?

Electors are supposed to vote for the ones who win the popular vote in your state (supposed to be a representation of democracy), but not legally required. Traditionally, they vote for what person that wins your state’s vote

Are most states winner-take-all or proportional?

mainly winner-take-all

Out of the 50 states, how many states are winner-take-all states?

48 out of the 50

What 2 states are proportional states?

Nebraska and Maine

What method (winner-take-all or proportional) represents society more?

Proportional method

If the proportional method better represents society, why don't more states use it?

will take away power from parties in winning

electors cast their votes when/where?

Popular vote (our vote)- The first Tuesday after the first Monday of November

Electoral college- mid December in their state legislature

These votes have to be certified

In the capital on Janurary 6

Who: VP counts it

Give an example of the proportional method

If Louisiana did the proportional method (5 republican, 1 democrat), 5 would go to the republican and 1 to the democrats. Still 2 senators. So the candidate who wins the popular vote wins the other 2 (senators).

How does the proportional method work?

First look to see who won the popular vote (the senators won)

3 electoral votes left

3 districts- see who won the popular vote in that district

For the proportional method, each house district will give their electoral vote to who?

to whoever wins their district

For the proportional method, in the state, the 2 remaining votes that represent the senate go to the candidate that wins what in their state?

the popular vote

What is the Democratic "Blue Wall"?

when the democrats were unbeatable; 18 states and Washington DC voted for the democratic candidate without fail in 6 of the last 8 elections (democratic candidate was guaranteed votes from 18 states from the start)

How many states and what district made up the "Blue Wall"? They voted for the democratic candidate in how many of the last 8 elections?

18 states and the district of Colombia; 6 out of the last 78 elections

How many electoral votes was the "Blue Wall" worth?

242 electoral votes

When did the republicans "break" the blue wall?

2016 with Ohio

Name the 3 arguments in favor of the electoral college

1. Certainty of outcome- larger margin of victory when they vote (hard to contest it)
2. Nationalized elections- if the presidential vote was based on the popular vote, candidates would only campaign in the big cities; Rural voters in a popular election 
3. Increases the power of minority voters- minority voters have a larger share of power in state elections then they do in national elections

ex: Florida (30 electoral votes)

•African-American 16.7% vs. 13.2%(nationally)

•Hispanic 23.6% vs. 17.1%(nationally)

T/F: There is a larger margin of victory (greater certainty of outcome) in the electoral college

True

In the 2016 election (Clinton v. Trump), what percentage of the popular vote did Clinton get? Electoral votes? What percentage of the popular vote did Trump get? Electoral votes?

Clinton: 47.6% popular vote and 227 electoral votesTrump: 47.5% popular vote and 304 electoral votes

What is meant by the Electoral College having nationalized elections?

means the candidates have to be available to voters across the whole nation- have to pay attention to the nation as a whole- can't just go to big cities and not the small ones

T/F: Rural voters in a popular election have an influence on the electoral college

True

T/F: The electoral college increases the power of minority voters

True

What percentage of African Americans resides in Florida? What about nationwide?

16.7% in Florida (13.2% nationwide)

What percentage of Hispanics reside in Florida? What about nationwide?

23.6% in Florida (17.1% nationwide)

Name the 3 arguments against the electoral college

1. Over-represents small states
2. People feel like their vote doesn't count
3. Lose popular vote, but win electoral college

Wyoming is what percentage of the population? What about in the electoral college? Why is the electoral college percentage so high in Wyoming?

0.18% of the population and 0.56% electoral college; every state is guaranteed at least 3 electoral votes

what is an example of people feeling like their vote doesn’t count in the electoral college

democrats in Louisiana

How many times has a candidate lost the popular vote but won the electoral college? Who was the most recent?

5 times; Most recent- 2016- Trump lost popular vote but won presidency

What was the issue and question of Bush v. Gore (2000)?

Issue: Florida orders ballots to be recounted in certain districts

Question: Did Florida's decision to have some ballots be recounted go against the equal protection Clause of the Constitution?

What is the ruling and impact of Bush v. Gore?

Ruling: Yes, Florida's action is unconstitutional because it violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th amendment; however, there wasn't enough time for the Supreme Court to demand Florida to do a full recount (don't have enough time for them to fix it), so Florida can decide how they want to precede

Impact: President Bush won the 28 electoral votes in Florida and the presidency (was very important- Bush has 271, other candidate has 267)- very influential

In order to remove Electoral College, you would need what?

Need an amendment to the Constitution (but state legislatures wouldn't ratify an amendment that takes away their power)

Name the proposed reform plans for the Electoral College (to change it, not get rid of it)

1. District Plan
2. Proportional Plan
3. National Popular Vote Plan
4. Direct Popular Election

proposal for choosing presidential electors by which each house district will give their electoral votes for whoever wins their district and the 2 remaining votes (senators) would go to whoever wins the popular vote (like what Nebraska and Maine does)

District plan

What is the problem with the district plan?

still be giving out electoral votes in a disproportionate matter

states would allocate electoral votes proportionally based on the percentage of the popular vote a candidate receives (if a state has 20 electoral vote and a candidates wants 62% of the population vote- would get 14 electoral vote)

Proportional plan

What is the problem with the proportional plan of the electoral college?

1. Votes would be unequal because of decimals (rounding)


2. Cause more elections to go to the house of Representatives for a tie breaker

give all the electoral votes to the person who wins the popular vote (exact match) (federal government doing this)

Direct popular election

states would give their electoral votes to which ever candidate won the popular vote (states doing this), (state would have to change their state’s Constitution)

national popular vote plan

The National popular vote plan was approved by whom?

state legislatures

When does the national popular vote plan take effect?

The majority of the electoral votes were given this way (270 votes)