The Presidency

1
The Presidency

• Chapter Seven

2
The Bush Presidency and September 11

• How do you think the terrorist attacks influenced
  the nature and perception of the Bush presidency?
• Why do you think his job performance rating
  went to 90 percent?
• Why were the constitutional powers of the
  presidency important in this context?

3
Our Two Presidencies

• Founders designed a presidency that gave the
  executive enough resources for coordinating
  national responses during emergencies but not
  enough to usurp the Constitution.
• Withheld some executive powers giving Congress a
  say over the authority the president was given.
• So leadership gravitates to presidents during
  crisis, but then dissipates quickly as the
• crisis recedes.

4
The Presidency the Constitution

• The presidents constitutional duties and
  authority as commander in chief, diplomat,
  executive, and legislator are found in Article II
  of the Constitution.
• Taken together they do not fully account for the
  forceful character of the modern presidency.
• What does? Delegation of power from Congress and
  successful presidential assertions of authority.

5
The President As Commander in Chief

• The Constitution declares the president to be
  commander in chief of the nations armed forces.
• Founders had some difficulty giving one
  individual control over the military.
• Settled on checking the presidents powers by
  making it so ONLY CONGRESS can declare war.

FDR with Churchill and Stalin at Yalta --
National Archives.
6
The President As Head Diplomat and Commander in
Chief

• The authority of commander in chief provides the
  president with broad license.
• Lincoln suspended the writ of habeas corpus that
  had prevented the Union Army from detaining
  civilians suspected of spying. Did not consult
  Congress.
• The Korean and Vietnam Wars were fought without a
  congressional declaration of war.
• Congresss check seems ineffective. Has Congress
  declared war in the aftermath of September 11?

7
The War Powers Act

• In 1973 Congress had sought to carve out new
  authority for itself by approving this act over
  Nixons veto.
• Requires the president to inform Congress within
  48 hours of committing troops abroad in a
  military action.
• Moreover, the military action must end within 60
  days unless Congress provides an extension.

8
The War Powers Act

• The impact of this law has been limited.
• Presidents have continued to take military action
  without informing Congress.
• Reagans invasion of Grenada in 1983.
• Clintons deployment of U.S. troops in Somalia as
  part of a United Nations peacekeeping force in
  1993.
• And in 1999 the participation of U.S. military
  forces in the NATO action against Yugoslavia.
• Why do you think Congress has not been more
  active in this area?

9
The President As Head Diplomat

• The Framers provided the president with broad
  authority to transact diplomatic affairs.
• Much of this reasoning lay in their experience
  under the Articles of Confederation.
• From the outset Washington interpreted the
  provision to receive Ambassadors and other
  public Ministers to mean that he alone had the
  authority to recognize new governments and
  receive its ministers.
• Howls of protest then and when Truman recognized
  the state of Israel.

Truman and President Dutra of Brazil -- National
Archives, Truman Library.
10
President As Head Diplomat

• The most important limitation on the presidents
  leadership in foreign affairs is the requirement
  that a 2/3s majority of the Senate ratify
  treaties.
• Example Senate rejected the WWI peace treaty
  that would have created Woodrow Wilsons
  brainchild, the League of Nations.

11
Executive Agreements

• Unlike a treaty, an executive agreement cannot
  supersede U.S. law, and it remains in force as
  long as the parties find their interests well
  served by it.
• Example 1940 FDR used one to circumvent a Senate
  adamant about staying out of war in Europe. Under
  the agreement we supplied England with naval
  escorts to help British ships fend off German
  attacks.
• These agreements, rather than treaties, are the
  mainstay of our international relations.

12
The President As Chief Executive

• Article II of the Constitution, the executive
  power shall be vested in a president of the
  united states of America.
• Does not define this power.
• Not until section 2 does it confer any real
  administrative power appointment of government
  officers.

• There is no provision for executive departments
  or their administrative heads who later would
  constitute the cabinet.
• Rather the Founders allowed Congress to create
  the executive branch.

13
The President As Chief Executive

• Congress intruded on presidents executive
  discretion by challenging what has come to be
  called executive privilege.
• This refers to the presidents right to withhold
  information from Congress and the courts.
• Constitution gives no guidance in this area.
• Why would a president assert executive privilege
  both now and then?
• Why is United States v. Nixon (1974) important?
• What recent event involved executive privilege?

14
The President As Chief Executive

• Another area in which the presidents missing
  administrative authority was troublesome had to
  do with the removal of presidential appointees.
• Andrew Johnson and his dismissal of his secretary
  of war led to an impeachment.
• Today, Congress no longer prevents presidents
  from dismissing executives they have appointed.
• What is the exception?

15
The President As Chief Executive

• Until the twentieth century, presidents found
  themselves ill-equipped to intrude upon
  administrative practices.
• Congress exercised oversight of the bureaucracy,
  assigning its committees jurisdictions that
  matched those of the federal departments.
• Presidents stayed in the background and attempted
  to influence policy through political appointees
  or the issuance of executive orders.

16
Executive Orders

• Formal instructions from the president. Has the
  force of law until the president or a successor
  retracts it, Congress nullifies it, or a federal
  court rules it unconstitutional.
• The vast majority arise from the authority and
  responsibility delegated the president by law.
• Used most frequently to establish an executive
  branch agency, modify bureaucratic rules or
  actions, change decision-making procedures, and
  give substance and force to statutes.

17
Executive Orders

• A much smaller class of executive orders is based
  on the presidents assertions of authority
  implicit in the Constitutions mandate that the
  president take Care that the Laws be faithfully
  executed.
• Not seriously considered as an option until the
  twentieth century. Teddy Roosevelt initiated this
  more expansive view of the office.
• Executive power was limited only by specific
  restrictions and prohibitions appearing in the
  Constitution or imposed by Congress. TR

18
Take Care Clause

• The doctrine based on the take care clause
  bears some resemblance to the implied powers of
  Congress generated by the necessary and proper
  clause.
• The big difference . . . for Congress it is
  EXPLICITLY stated . . . Congress shall have
  Power. . . . No such powerful wording in the
  take care clause.

19
The President As Legislator

• The Constitution gives presidents only a modest
  role in the legislative arena.
• May call Congress into special session.
• Veto laws.
• Must report from time to time to Congress with
  State of the Union address.
• Yet modern presidents attempt to direct American
  policy by promoting a legislative agenda.
• They must use their few constitutional tools as
  well as their ability to mobilize public support.

20
The President As LegislatorState of the Union

• Until the 20th century, presidents routinely
  delivered their State of the Union to Congress
  via courier, where it was read to an inattentive
  audience.
• Today it is a prime-time opportunity for
  presidents to mold public opinion and steer the
  legislative agenda on Capitol Hill.
• What are some of the things the president does
  during the State of the Union?

21
The President As LegislatorThe Veto

• Perhaps the presidents most formidable tool in
  dealing with Congress is the veto.
• Constitution defines the veto precisely.
• Used relatively rarely most used by Gerald
  Ford. In the past 50 years, the average is fewer
  than 10 vetoes a year.
• The veto allows the president to block
  congressional action, but does not allow the
  president to substitute his own policy
  preferences.

22
The Veto Game

• Assumptions
• Preferences are made clear
• Status quo
• Congress cannot muster the 2/3 vote required to
  override a veto

23
Scenario 1 President and Congress have sharply
different policy preferences
President prefers the status quo May Result in a
Veto (or a tacit veto) Costly for Congress may
not even create the legislation
24
Scenario 2 Congress favors a more drastic change
than the President
Both want to change the Status Quo President
prefers SQ and may veto Congress does not have to
give in (can alter prefs and make it more
attractive to the pres) Pres signs b/c he also
favors altering the SQ
25
Scenario 3 President favors a more drastic
change than the President
Flip-flop of Scenario 2 Congress can almost get
what it wants (as both want to change the SQ in
the same direction) The veto is worthless here.
Why?
26
The Nineteenth- Century Presidency

• During the republics first century, presidents
  typically assumed a small role, thus in step with
  the Framers expectations.
• They did not play a leadership role in domestic
  policy formulation.
• Thus their accomplishments were limited to their
  responses to wars, rebellions, or other national
  crises.

27
The Era of Cabinet Government

• Department secretaries played an important role
  during this period.
• When a president had a question about a policy,
  needed clarification on complaints, or needed
  advice on whether to sign or veto a bill he
  consulted his cabinet.

28
The Era of Cabinet Government

• The relationship between a president and his
  cabinet at this time was one of reciprocity, not
  loyalty.
• Cabinet members helped the president achieve his
  political goals and, through the cabinet
  appointment, he gave them opportunities to pursue
  theirs.

29
The Modern Cabinet

• The cabinet today has lost much of its luster as
  an attractive office -- has only limited
  political clout.
• Control over policy and even of department
  personnel has gravitated to the White House.
• Cabinet tenure today is not a stepping stone to a
  more powerful political position but rather a
  suitable conclusion to a career in public service.

Cabinet seating chart from Ford administration --
Ford Presidential Library.
30
Parties and Elections

• During the 19th century, politicians generally
  attached as much importance to the political
  party that controlled the executive as it did to
  the person himself.

31
Parties and Elections

• Presidential elections were the focal point for
  the national parties efforts. And it was the
  time when the presidential candidate was given
  center stage (unlike most other times when
  Congress dominated the news and governing
  process).
• Winning the presidency usually meant the party
  took over Congress as well.

32
19th Century Presidents

• Were generally thought to be glorified clerks .
  . . Congress held the spotlight.
• So what does the 19th century presidency say
  about the modern one?
• They remind us that the Constitution does not
  thrust leadership on the president, but it hints
  at the potential the presidency has for a larger
  role.

33
Emergence of the Modern Presidency

• As government expanded during the 20th century so
  did the workload of the president.
• With additional responsibilities, the chief
  executive gained discretion both in hiring
  personnel to administer these programs and in
  deciding what specific activities and regulations
  were necessary to achieve the mandated objectives.

34
Modern Presidents As Administrators

• As the obligations of government grew, oversight
  of the executive began to tax Congresss time and
  resources and its ability to do its work.
• Congress found its own interests served by
  delegating to the White House a sizable share of
  administrative duties and the policy discretion
  that went with it.

35
Delegation

• By delegating to the president and the appointed
  executive branch the discretion to decide how
  best to implement and adjust policy to achieve
  its objectives, Congress shares its lawmaking
  powers with the president.
• When members of Congress write public laws, they
  can decide to delegate a little or a lot of
  rulemaking authority to the president.

36
Delegation

• At times Congress delegates less from
  programmatic necessity than to gain political
  advantage.
• When would they do this?
• When they agree on the goals of a bill but
  disagree on its specifics. Thus they make the
  language vague and the executive branch has great
  leeway in how it implements the law.
• Example Congress delegated to the U.S. Fish and
  Wildlife Service discretion to establish rules
  for classifying species as endangered and
  threatened.

37
Budgeting

• The formulation and presentation of the annual
  budget to Congress is one of the presidents most
  important clerical tasks.
• Offers presidents an opportunity to set the
  spending priorities of the federal government.
• Authority comes from the delegation of duty from
  Congress -- 1921 Budgeting Accounting Act.
• Until the 1920s, agencies sent their budget
  requests directly to House Appropriations.

38
Budgeting

• The presidents annual budget, submitted to
  Congress on the first Monday in February, takes
  months of work. Why?
• Assembling and negotiating requests from
  agencies.
• Bringing them into conformity with WH policy
  goals.
• Sometimes sails through other years replaced
  with congressional budget.
• Provides Congress with valuable information.
• Represents the presidents opening bid on how
  much will be spent for what and where the money
  will come from.

39
Presidential Assertions of Authority

• Presidents have also tried to pull authority into
  the White House.
• Theodore Roosevelt issued an executive order
  (1902) prohibiting all federal employees from
  communicating with Congress either directly or
  indirectly, individually or through associations
  or to attempt to influence in their own interest
  any other legislation.

40
Presidential Assertions of Authority

• Taft extended the rule to cover any congressional
  action. Even information requests were denied
  unless authorized by department head.
• How would the gag rule help the president?
• Congress rejected these efforts to centralize
  power and passed legislation to block it.
• Free flow of information was protected.

41
Presidential Assertions of Authority

• 1939 FDR managed to take control of the
  bureaucracy by issuing an order that all
  department communications to Congress that could
  affect future budgets first be cleared as
  consistent with the presidents policy by the
  Bureau of the Budget (todays OMB).
• The rule endures and has helped the president
  prevent agencies from communicating to Congress
  their policy differences with the president.

42
Presidential Assertions of Authority

• President Reagan issued an executive order in
  1980 instructing all federal agencies to submit
  any new regulations or rules to OMB for a
  cost-benefit analysis.
• Impact curbed the number of new rules.
• After Congress responded negatively, the
  clearance process was relaxed.
• Overall, presidents can pull in authority, but
  they cannot overreach.

43
Modern Presidents As Legislators

• Today, Congress gives the presidents legislative
  proposals serious consideration.
• Lawmakers expect the president to advise them
  about problems with current policy and
  administration and to recommend adjustments to
  improve performance.
• Because of the presidents role administering the
  laws, a major role in the legislative process is
  ensured.
• 90 percent of presidents initiatives are
  considered by some congressional committee or
  subcommittee.

44
Modern Presidents As Legislators

• In assembling support for their legislation,
  presidents begin with their party allies in
  Congress. They cultivate this support by
• advocating spending on programs and public works
  for a district or state
• appointing a members congressional aide as an
  agency head, and
• visiting a lawmakers district to generate
  support for the the next reelection campaign.
• These fellow partisans do what they can to
  support their leader.

45
Modern Presidents As Legislators

• Incentives for partisans in Congress and the
  White House are powerful.
• During George W. Bushs first year, his fellow
  Republicans in the House supported him 86 percent
  of the time, and in the Senate -- 94 percent of
  the time.
• Opposition partisans lack incentives to cooperate
  with the president.
• They have a stake in defeating his
  administration. Not helping it carry out policy
  objectives.

46
Unified versus Divided Control of Government

• When presidents find their party in majority
  control of the House and Senate, they have
  excellent prospects for passing their legislative
  agenda.
• Examples New Deal and Great Society.
• However, during divided government (when the
  presidents opposition party controls either or
  both legislative chambers), the president
  confronts majorities with different preferences.
• Why does gridlock result?

47
Unified versus Divided Control of Government

• During the past half century, unified party
  control has occurred less frequently than divided
  government.
• How do presidents deal with this situation?
• pull decisions into the White House
• carefully screen appointees to federal agencies
• utilize the veto
• go public (engaging in intensive public relations
  to promote their policies to voters).

48
Veto Bargaining

• The veto offers presidents a clear,
  self-enforcing means of asserting their
  preferences.
• The threat of a veto is a potent one as well.
  Presidents can use the threat to manipulate
  Congresss expectations about the likely result
  of alternative legislative packages, thereby
  inserting his policy preferences into legislation
  at an early stage of the process.

49
Veto Bargaining

• Whether the veto offers the president great or
  little influence over public policy often depends
  on how close the WHs priorities are to the
  status quo compared to those of Congress.

50
Going Public

• Presidents and members of Congress share
  constituencies.
• If the president can win the publics backing for
  himself and his policies, opponents in Congress
  may shrink from a fight because they do not want
  to offend voters.
• How can a president go public?

51
Going Public

• Today, presidents spend a great deal of their
  time, energy, and staff taking their message to
  the American people.
• Going on prime-time television.
• Mass communication has expanded and eroded the
  presidents command of the air waves. How?
• Public speeches, travel.

52
Emergence of the Institutional Presidency

• As an organization the presidency began modestly.
• Washington used his secretary of state,
  Jefferson, to help him with correspondence.
• By the early 1800s the number of staff working in
  and around the WH was less than a dozen.
• When FDR became president there were about 50
  staff members. (Maintenance, switchboard,
  mailroom duties.)

53
Emergence of theInstitutional Presidency

• In 1937 the Presidents Committee on
  Administrative Management (Brownlow Committee)
  concluded that the president needs help.
• Much like a CEO of a business, the president
  found himself in need of the tools to carry out
  the business of the nation.

54
Emergence of the Institutional Presidency

• The Brownlow report, however, ignored the fact
  that the Constitution withholds the kind of
  authority the presidency would need to command
  the federal bureaucracy if it were a business.

55
Emergence of the Institutional Presidency

• Congress initially rebuffed the recommendations
  of the report but two years later did agree to
  most of the proposals -- the Executive Office of
  the President was born.

56
Executive Office of the President

• Typically ten agencies that, together with the
  White House Office, make up the EOP.
• They work primarily with the president and his
  White House staff rather than with each other.
• They perform classic staff functions
• Gathering information (e.g., National Security
  Council)
• Maintaining the organization of the Executive
  Office itself (e.g., Office of the VP)

57
The OMB is one of the most important agencies in
the EOP

• It is responsible for
• creation of the annual federal budget,
• monitoring agency performance,
• compiling recommendations from the departments on
  enrolled bills (bills that have been passed in
  identical form in both chambers of Congress),
• and administering central clearance.

58
White House Office

• The WHO has grown in numbers and in complexity.
• What began as a small, informal group of aides
  has grown into a large, compartmentalized,
  multi-layered bureaucracy.
• While the WHO has varied in its nature with the
  managerial preferences of the presidents who have
  occupied the office, Jimmy Carters
  reorganization has crystallized somewhat into the
  standard organization of the office.

59
WHO Today

• The chief of staff heads up the WHO and
  relatively clear lines of authority flow from
  that position.
• In addition, specialists have replaced
  generalists. Tasks are much more predetermined
  because they result out of a routine division of
  labor rather than presidential assignment.

60
Presidents As Strategic Actors

• Through delegation and the successful assertion
  of authority, modern presidents are thoroughly
  enmeshed in administration of the governments
  vast bureaucracy.
• While today the president has more authority and
  responsibility than the Founders would have
  imagined, they still have too little authority to
  satisfy expectations for their performance.
• The demands of the job outnumber the resources.

61
Presidents As Strategic Actors

• In order to become a successful president,
  opportunity and skill are required. Some fail
  while others succeed.
• How presidents utilize their resources, such as
  the veto to deal with an opposition Congress, can
  make all the difference between success and
  failure.
• A presidents ability to succeed depends on luck
  and his skill as a politician.
• Framers mandated that presidents be leaders yet
  gave the the tools to be no more than clerks.