America and Arizona Government for Elementary Teachers Presentation 8: The Presidency

Presentation Objectives AEPA Objectives 0011 Understand the structure, organization, and operation of the federal government. AZ Social Studies Standard, Strand 3 Concept 2: Structure of Government

Who is the best president? Best PresidentRankingWorst PresidentRanking Abraham Lincoln1James Buchanan42 George Washington2Andrew Johnson41 Franklin D. Roosevelt3Franklin D. Pierce40 Theodore Roosevelt4William Henry Harrison39 Harry S. Truman5Warren G. Harding38 John F. Kennedy6Millard Fillmore37 Thomas Jefferson7George W. Bush36 Dwight D. Eisenhower8John Tyler35 Woodrow Wilson9Herbert Hoover34 Ronald Reagan10Rutherford B. Hayes33 Source: C-Span 2009 Historians Presidential Leadership Survey

The Job Description How many roles do you play in a given day?

The Job Description: Presidential Roles Head of State World Leader Party Leader National Leader CEO of the Executive Branch

Head of State

World Leader

Party Leader

National Leader

CEO of Executive Branch

President is at the top of a pyramid of powerBut at the bottom of a funnel of information

White House

CEO of Executive Branch White House staff Growth of White House Staff  Franklin D. Roosevelt: 47  Harry Truman: 200  Nixon: 555  Ronald Regan: 600  Bush Jr.: around 500  Obama: 487

Executive Office of the President

Cabinet

The Bureaucracy

The authority to do the job Formal powers Implied powers Informal powers

Formal Powers

Implied Powers

Informal Powers

History of the Presidency Modest Beginning The presidency was seen as a check on the congress. Washington as exemplar President as executor/clerk of Congress Nation was small, minor power

Exceptionally Strong Early Presidents James A. Polk Abraham Lincoln Thomas Jefferson

20 th Century Transformation Theodore Roosevelt  Saw the office as a “bully pulpit”  Broke monopolies and trusts

20 th Century Transformation Woodrow Wilson  Restructured economy  US as world leader

20 th Century Transformation Franklin Roosevelt  New Deal programs  Increased size of government  US global leadership  Personalized the office with Fireside Chats  1 st 100 days  Set the standard for modern presidents

What makes a president successful? Relationship with Congress  Congress has given power to president  Congress has limited power of the president  The president needs Congress  Divided government or not  Vetoes as a measure of influence Control of the Party

Control of Party and Congressional Gridlock

Presidential Approval

Conclusion

This Presentation This presentation is courtesy of Brian Dille, Professor of Political Science at Mesa Community College.