The Executive Branch

• The executive branch consists of the president, vice-president, & cabinet members.

• Cabinet – a group made up of the heads of the executive depts.

• The president is the head of the Exec. Branch & is the top political job in the U.S.

The American President• Washington took office in

1789, while Barack Obama took office in 2009.

• Theodore Roosevelt was the youngest president when he took office (42), & Ronald Reagan was the oldest (70).

• Obama is the 44th pres.

• Many of them were lawyers. All, except one, have been Protestant Christians.

Requirements for President

• Must be at least 35 years old

• Must be a native-born American citizen

• Must be a resident of the U.S. for at least 14 years

Electing a President• Presidential elections take place every 4

years.• The Constitution sets up an indirect

method of election called the Electoral College. It also says that each state “shall appoint” electors, who then vote for the major candidates.

• Each state has as many electoral votes as the total of its U.S. senators & reps. The total # in the EC is 538. (* Larger states have more votes.)

Electing a President (cont)• To be elected president, a candidate must

win at least 270 of the 538 electoral votes.

• Elections take place on the 1st Tuesday following the 1st Monday of November of even # years.

2012 Election Results

Term of Office

• The term for president is 4 years.

• When the Constitution was written, it didn’t limit how many terms a pres. could serve. They served 2 terms b/c of tradition. In 1940, Franklin D. Roosevelt ran a 3rd time, & 4 years later was elected a 4th term.

• In 1951, the 22nd Amendment was added to the Constitution It limits presidents to a

• maximum of 2 elected terms.

Salary & Benefits

• The president receives a salary of $400,000 a year plus a$50,000 allowance.

• Lives in the White House & has a full time staff.

• Has use of Camp David, a mt. retreat in Maryland.

• Use of Air Force One, a specially equipped jet

• POWER/RESPECT

• The states of MD & VA donated land for Washington D.C.

• It is 55,000 sq. ft. w/ 132 rooms & 35 bathrooms.

• There are 412 doors & 147 windows. • There are 5 full time

chefs.• There’s a tennis court,

bowling alley, movie theater, swimming pool, putting green, & a jogging track.

• The Oval Office is located in the West Wing.

The Vice President

• The qualifications of the VP are the same as for the pres.

• According to Article I in the Const., the vp shall preside over the Senate & vote in case of a tie.

- 9 VPs have become pres due to death or resignation of the pres.

- Joe Biden is the VP.

• (2004) The salary for the VP is $202,900.

• He/She receives a free residence…. a 9,150 sq. ft. house on the corner of 34th St. & Massachusetts Ave. in Washington, D.C.

• He also receives a large staff.

Presidential Succession

• In 1947, Congress passed the Presidential Succession Act, which tells who is in line to be pres. in case the pres. leaves office.

1. Vice President2. Speaker of the House3. Pres. Pro Tempore of the

Senate4. Sec. of State5. Sec. of Treasury6. Sec. of Defense7. Attorney General8. Sec. of Homeland Security9. Other Secretaries of Exec.

Offices

25th Amendment

• The 25th Amendment says that if the pres. dies or leaves office, the vice-pres. becomes pres.

• The new pres. then chooses another vp. Congress must approve the choice.

• This also gives the vice-president the authority to take over as pres. in the event that the pres. is unable to do the work.

• This has been used only 3 times

Section 2

Roles of the President

• 1. Chief Executive – pres. makes sure that laws are properly carried out & appoints cabinet members, as well as other gov’t officials.– The Pres. can issue an executive order, which is a rule or command

that has the force of law.• 2. Chief Diplomat – The pres. deals w/ other countries

– 1. appoint ambassadors – an official representative of a country’s gov’t– 2. make treaties – a formal agreement b/w 2 or more countries

• 3. Commander in Chief – The pres. has the final authority over the military• Congress & the pres. share the power to make war. Congress has the

power to declare war, but only the pres. can order American troops into battle. If the pres. sends them, he/she must notify Congress w/in 48 hours, & they must be brought home after 60 days unless Congress gives its approval/declares war.

• 4. Legislative Leader – The pres. has a hand in legislation. If he/she wants to introduce a bill, a staff member drafts it. A senator/rep introduces it.– He/She prepares the federal budget & approves or vetoes

bills.• 5. Party Leader – The pres. supports party members in election

campaigns & helps to unify his/her party.• 6. Judicial Leader – The pres. appoints judges to the Supreme

Court & other federal courts– can issue pardons, forgiveness & freedom of punishment.

He/She can also issue reprieves, an order to delay a person’s punishment until a higher court can rule on the case. Also, he/she can grant amnesty, a pardon toward a group of people.

• 7. Head of State – The pres. represents the whole nation. He carries out ceremonial functions & hosts foreign leaders.

20thAmendment • The 20th Amend. is known

as the “Lame Duck” Amend. It says that Jan. 20th is the Inauguration Day for the Pres.

• When we vote in a new pres., the old pres. is still in office from Nov-Jan 20th. He is known as a “lame duck”.

• Amend. 20th also states that Congress begin its session the first part of Jan.

Foreign Policy

• Foreign policy is a nation’s overall plan for dealing w/ other nations

• Goals for FP:

– 1. nat’l security

– 2. internat’l trade

– 3. promote world peace & democracy

Tools of Foreign Policy

1. Creating treaties2. Appointing ambassadors

– these are sent only to countries where the power of the gov’t is held legally.

3. Foreign aid – money, food, supplies, & military assistance

4. International trade – making agreements w/ other nations. Also includes trade sanctions & embargos, which are used to punish a nation 5. Military force

• John Kerry is the current Secretary of State.

• He took office Feb.1, 2013 & is the 68th person to hold this position.

• The Secretary carries out the President’s foreign policies.

• He has a law degree from Boston College Law School.

• He was a US Senator from Massachusetts & ran for president in 2004. He lost to Bush.

• He was born in Denver, CO.

Advisors

• Condoleezza Rice was the Sec. of State for Pres GW Bush.

• She took office Jan. 26,2005 & is the 1st African-Am. woman to hold this position.

• She was once a professor of political science at Stanford Univ. She was born in B’ham, AL.

• Ashton “Ash” Carter is the current Secretary of Defense.

• He took office on Feb. 17, 2015.

• He was appointed by Pres. Obama & is the 4th Secretary during Obama’s presidency.

• He was a Rhodes Scholar & studied theoretical physics at Oxford.

• He never served in the military.