The President and Congress:

1
The President and Congress

• A Strategic Relationship
• Part II

2
What should the relationship between the
president and Congress look like?

• To what degree should Congress look to the
  president for policy leadership?
• To what degree should partisanship govern the
  presidents relationship with Congress?
• Under what circumstances do you think the
  president and Congress should compromise?
• Dont forget to turn in your group notes from
  Friday after todays class!

3
To what degree should partisanship govern the
presidents relationship with Congress?

• Unified and divided government
• An advantage
• Not a total advantage

4
Under what circumstances will the president and
Congress compromise?

• Logic of compromise
• When a party to a negotiation prefers any
  improvement over the status quo to the status quo
  itself.

5
Under what circumstances will we see the
president and Congress compromise?

• Unified government
• Issue is good for one party and bad for the other
• Long time until the next election
• Major legislation

6
Under what circumstances will the president and
Congress fail to compromise?

• Logic of the failure to compromise
• Hard to explain to enthusiastic supporters
• Parties wish to maintain differences
• Reduces chances of getting more later

7
Under what circumstances will the president and
Congress fail to compromise?

• Divided government
• Issue is subject of intense interest by active
  pressure groups
• Issue is good for one party and bad for the other
• Elections are close

8
Veto bait

• Divided government only
• Congress passes an uncompromising bill
• Veto imposes costs on the president
• Can lead to game of successive approximations
• How can the president win?

9
Why do we expect the president to be a policy
leader?

• Visibility of the president
• Precedent
• Laws passed
• Campaigns

10
Measuring legislative success
11
What affects the presidents ability to
successfully lead Congress?

• Presidential popularity?

12
Does public approval affect success in Congress?
13
What affects the presidents ability to
successfully lead Congress?

• Presidential popularity?
• Size of electoral victory?

14
Does size of electoral victory affect success in
Congress?
15
What affects the presidents ability to
successfully lead Congress?

• Presidential popularity?
• Size of electoral victory?
• Skill?

16
Skills that can help

• Personal charisma
• Strategic thinking

17
What affects the presidents ability to
successfully lead Congress?

• Presidential popularity?
• Size of electoral victory?
• Skill?
• Structures in Congress?
• Size and strength of party coalitions?

18
How does the president lead Congress?

• Proposing legislation
• Supporting existing legislation
• Budgeting
• A two-year process!

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Presidents 2002 Budget, Discretionary Spending
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Discretionary domestic spending

• Energy
• Homeland Security
• Commerce
• Agriculture
• Science
• Natural Resources
• Justice
• Education
• Transportation
• Veterans Affairs
• Health