1. Unit 5 – the presidency, the bureaucracy and the judiciary
PPT 2

2. Running the Government: The Chief Executive
Presiding over the administration of the government
Power to recommend budgets to Congress according to the Budgeting and Accounting Act of 1921.
The Vice President
Cabinet and Executive Departments
Today, there are 13 secretaries and the attorney general that head the executive departments

3. Executive Office of the President
Established in 1939; loosely grouped collection of offices and organizations.
Some offices are created by legislation (such as the Council of Economic Advisors)
Others are organized by the president
The Executive Office includes three major policymaking bodies
National Security Council
Council of Economic Advisors
Office of Management and Budget

4. National Security Council (NSC)
Key military and foreign policy advisors
Provide the president with information and policy recommendations on national security
Aid the president in national security crisis management
Coordinate agency and departmental activities bearing on national security
Monitor the implementation of national security policy

5. Council of Economic Advisers (CEA)
Three members; each appointed by the president
Advise the president on economic policy
Prepare the Annual Report of the Council of Economic Advisors
Help the president make policy on inflation, unemployment and other economic matters

6. Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
Has the responsibility of preparing the president’s budget
Presidents use the OMB to review legislative proposals from the cabinet and other executive agencies to they can determine whether or not they want an agency to propose them to Congress.
OMB assesses the proposals’ budgetary implications and advises the president on the proposals’ consistency with the administration’s overall program.

7. White House Staff Key aides that the president sees daily
Chief of Staff
Congressional liaisons
Press secretary
National security advisor

8. White House Office An agency of the Executive Office of the President
Provides a wide variety of services
Travel preparations
Answering letters

9. The First Lady Not an official government position
Historically, they have been occasionally involved in policymaking
Currently, they have been more active in policymaking and also advocate for their own agendas
Education
Literacy
Fitness and Nutrition

10. Chief Legislator
President is also known as the Chief Legislator = emphasizes the executive’s importance in the legislative process
Constitution requires that the president report to Congress in the State of the Union
The Constitution gives the president the power to sign or to veto congressional legislation
May also decide not to take any action at all = if Congress adjourns within 10 days of submitting a bill, the bill will die if no action is taken (pocket veto)

11. Party Leadership
Party leadership in Congress is every president’s principle task when countering the natural tendencies toward conflict between the executive and legislative branches.
For most senators and representatives, being in the same political party as the president creates a psychological bond

12. Presidential Coattails
Refers to voters casting their ballots for congressional candidates of the president’s party because those candidate support the president.
Thus, the symbolism was that the candidates would “ride into office on the president’s coattails”
Recent studies show a diminishing connection between presidential and congressional voting

13. Midterm Elections President’s party typically loses seats
1994 – the Democrats lost 8 Senate seats and 53 House seats, losing control of both houses in the process
1998 – election was the exception; Democrats gained 5 seats in the House

14. Mandates
An electoral mandate – the perception that the voters strongly support the president’s character and policies – can be a powerful symbol in American politics.
It accords added legitimacy and credibility to the newly elected president’s proposals.
Merely winning an election does not provide the president with a mandate
Richard Nixon in 1972
Ronald Reagan in 1984