CH. 14-4 LEGISLATIVE AND JUDICIAL

POWERSADVANCED AMERICAN GOVERNMENT

LEGISLATIVE POWERS• President has considerable influence on the actions of Congress

• RECOMMENDING LEGISLATION• “shall from time to time give to the Congress Information on the

State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as she shall judge necessary and expedient…”—Article II, Section 3

• Referred to as “The State of the Union” speech

• President regularly sends 3 major messages to Congress annually• 1) State of the Union speech before a joint session of

Congress• 2) Message on the budget• 3) annual economic report

• THE VETO POWER

• Constitution mandates that all bills, orders, and resolutions…shall be presented to the President

• President has 4 options when dealing with a measure passed by Congress

• 1) Sign the bill

• 2) Veto the bill – may be overridden by Congress on a 2/3 vote

• 3) Bill becomes law by not acting on it within 10 days (not counting Sundays) (Very rare)

• 4) Pocket Veto – used only at the end of the Congressional session. If Congress adjourns within 10 days of sending a bill to the President and it is not signed, the measure dies

• THE LINE-ITEM VETO

• President must veto the entire bill

• Opponents feel the line-item veto would give too much power to the executive branch

• Many chief executives has expressed interest in having the power to veto only parts of bills

• 1996—Congress passed a Line-Item Veto Act

• Supreme Court ruled in CLINTON V. NEW YORK that the law was unconstitutional. Congress did not have the power to give the President this option. It could only come from a constitutional amendment

• OTHER LEGISLATIVE POWERS• President can call a special session of Congress• Last one—President Truman in 1948 – dealt with economic

measures after WWII• Prorogue—President can end the congressional session if both

houses can’t agree on a date (never used)

JUDICIAL POWERS• “…Grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against the United States, except

in Cases of Impeachment.” – Article II, Section 2, Clause 1

• Reprieve—the postponement of the execution of a sentence

• Pardon—legal forgiveness of a crime

• President’s power is absolute

• Clemency—(mercy or leniency) may be used only in cases involving federal offenses

• Most noteworthy pardon issued—President Gerald R. Ford gave Richard Nixon “a full, free and absolute pardon…for all offenses against the United States which he…has committed or may have committed or taken part in during the period from January 20, 1969 through August 9, 1974.

• Pardon must be accepted by the person being pardoned

• Accepting the pardon before someone is actually charged could be viewed as an admission of guilt

• Commutation—the power to commute (reduce) the length of a sentence or a fine imposed by the court.

• Amnesty—blanket pardon offered to a group of law violators

• Example—President Carter granted amnesty to Vietnam War draft evaders in 1977.

• THE END