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What are three defining features of a bureaucracy?
- Hierarchical authority: There is a chain of command that runs from a few people at the top down to many workers at the bottom
- Job specialization: Each worker in the organization has specific duties and responsibilities
- Formalized rules: Work is guided by a large number of written rules and regulations available to all employees
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What is key difference between staff and line agencies
- Line agencies: PResident gives them goals to meet
- Staff agencies: Help line agencies meet these goals - Also held president
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What are commonly used titles for units in the executive branch
- Agency, Administration: Refer to major units
- Commission: Refer to units that regulate business
- Corporation, Authority: Units that have business functions
- Bureau, Service, Office, Branch, Division: Others
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Which agency in the Executive Office of the President has the largest impact on foreign affairs?
National Security Control - Domestic, foreign and military matters that relate to national security, Gives direction to U.S. intelligence agencies
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Describe the major duties of the Office of Management and Budget
- Prepares the federal budget submitted by president to congress each fiscal year (October 1-Sept 30)
- Monitors the work of all agencies to ensure their policies agree with the President
- Helps President prepare executive orders and veto messages
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How can the federal budget be used to advance the President’s agenda?
Can advance the president’s agenda because the OMB reviews and adjusts it to fit the President’s overall policy and budget plans
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Factors of the federal budget and advancing the president's agenda
- What Americans wants
- What Presidents want
- What Government can spend
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How were the executive departments created?
- First Congress created the Departments of State, Treasury and War in 1789
- Over time, depts. Have been added, abolished, divided and combined to meet country’s needs
- There are currently 15 exec dept.
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How are executive department secretaries and attorney general selected?
- They are appointed by the President
- Attorney General (Department of Justice)
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How have various Presidents differed in their reliance of the Cabinet?
- Heads of 15 Executive Departments
- President appoints them all (Must be confirmed by Senate)
- Their role has decreased over the years
- -Due to the growth of the Executive Departments
- -No President has suggested getting rid of them; however, they rely more on their unofficial advisers lately
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WHy has Congress created independent agencies?
- Operate outside executive departments
- Perform work that does not fit easily into any existing executive department
- Protect them from partisan politics or to satisfy desires of interest groups
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What is the spoils system and what has replaced it?
- Spoils System- REwarding political supporters with public offices
- Civil Service System replaced it in late 1800s (Pendleton Civil Service Act of 1883)
- IT is a merit system based on scores on examinations
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How do independent regulatory commissions differ from the many other independent agencies?
- They have quasi legislative and judicial powers
- -Make rules and regulations with force of law
- -Decide disputes
- Are an exception to the idea of separation of powers
- Ensures stability of nation’s economy
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Presidents can grant pardons and reprieves in federal cases
- Pardon: excuse someone from trial
- -Gerald Ford pardons Nixon (1974)
- -A person must accept pardon before it's put into effect (1915)
- Reprieve: Postponement of a trial
- Commutation: Reduction of a sentence
- Amnesty: Pardon for a group of people
- -Benjamin Harrison pardoned Mormons for polygamy laws (1893)
- -Jimmy Carter pardoned Vietnam War draft evaders (1977)
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Timeline for Presidential elections?
- Fundraising
- Primaries and Caucuses
- National Convention
- Debates
- Election Day
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2000 Presidential Election
- Al Gore narrowly won the popular vote
- Bush won electoral college by one
- Florida’s popular vote is disputed- leads to a recount. Stopped at a 5-4 decision
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Electoral College
- Expected to be more knowledgeable than general public
- Same amount of State’s Congress
- Winner takes all: Gives ALL electoral votes to winner of popular vote
- Are not required to vote for the winner of popular vote
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Constitution and Jobs given to the President
- Article II of the Constitution gives the powers to
- -Command armed forces
- -Make TreatiesApprove or veto acts of Congress
- -Send or Receive Diplomats
- -Take care that the Laws are faithfully executed
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What has grown presidential power?
- Unified office with one leader, capable of quicker decisions
- Grown to enduring wars, hardships, etc
- Delegated Authority: Congress has a duty to pass many of the laws
- Size of Staff: Allows involvement in more areas of government
- Mass Media: Radio, Television, Internet- to attract attention to policies and goals
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Roles of the President
- Chief of State: Ceremonial head of U.S. Government and symbol of Americans
- Chief Executive: Controls domestic and foreign affairs
- Chief Administrator: Directing 2.7 million civilian employees in executive branch
- Chief Diplomat: Main architect of American foreign policy; spokesperson of U.S, to rest of the world
- Commander in Chief: Controls 1.4 of nation’s armed forces
- Chief Legislator: Proposes laws that set the congressional legislative agenda
- UNOFFICIAL: Head of political party that controls executive branch
- UNOFFICIAL: Chief Citizen: Representative of the people
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22nd Amendment: Ratified in 1944-
Limits Presidential terms to only 2Succeeds the office after the middle of term, they can seek 2 elections (Limit is 9 years, 364 days)
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25th Amendment: Adopted in 1967-
- Vice President now formally assumes office of President
- President informs Congress, in writing, that they can no longer carry out their duties
- Vice President and majority Cabinet inform Congress, in writing, President is incapacitated
- President can fill a vice presidential vacancy by nominating a Vice President to be approved by both houses and Congress
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12th Amendment: Ratified in 1804-
Separates the Vice Presidential and Presidential electionsEach Presidential elector now casts one vote for each office
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6th Amendment:
Outlawed Executive Power if it was used to withhold information in Criminal cases- 1974
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2016 Presidential Election Facts (electoral votes, delegates, etc)
- Republican Delegates- 2472
- Democratic Delegates- 4765
- Electoral Votes- 217 (D) 191 (R) 270 to win
- PA- 20
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Executive Powers
- Executes and interprets law of the land
- -Interpret intent of law
- Issues Executive orders
- -Ordinance Power
- Appoint many public officials
- -Cabinet Members, Ambassadors, Independent Agencies, Federal Judges, U.S. Marshals, Attorneys, U.S. Armed Forces
- -Make Recess Appointments
- Removes appointed officials
- Can use Executive privilege to withhold information from Congress and Federal Courts
- -Have refused to reveal certain information to Congress
- -Never Officially Recognized
- -United States v. Nixon (Watergate): Cannot be used to prevent evidence being heard in a criminal proceeding (6th Amendment)- 1974
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Treaties
- Same legal status as act of Congress
- Formal agreements between two or more sovereign states
- Cannot conflict with any part of the Constitution
- -If Treaty conflicts with federal law, most recently passed wins
- Two-thirds majority of Senate must approve treaties
- -Senate Minority can kill a treaty (Treaty of Versailles/ League of Nations)
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Presidential Information
- George Washington- Set the custom of serving two terms
- FDR- Elected to four terms
- John Tyler replaced William Harrison (1st Replacement)- Shortest Term
- Woodrow Wilson suffered stroke in 1919 and was too ill to meet with Congress
- Eisenhower had three serious but temp. Illnesses
- Reagan was badly wounded in assassination attempt (1981)
- -Ordered invasion of Grenada
- Thomas Jefferson narrowly losing to John Adams caused separate elections
- -Adams had Navy fight French warships
- Harry Truman could not use commander in chief to overtake steel mills during Korean War
- George W. Bush could not use military tribunals to prosecute enemy combatants
- -Signed record number of signing statements
- Theodore Roosevelt (Broad Powers) vs William Taft (Limited Powers)
- -Roosevelt once sent U.s. Navy halfway around world without telling Congress
- Andrew Johnson: Failed to get removal power taken away from him
- Nixon: Executive Power (Notes above)
- John Tyler and William McKinley overcome senate rejections (Texas and Hawaii)
- George H.W. Bush order ouster of Panamanian dictator
- Clinton sent troops to Balkans
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Vice President’s formal duties
- Preside over Senate
- Decide if Present is disabled
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Pro of Widely Used Presidential primary system
candidates to prove their political abilities before moving on in the nominating process
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How do State laws affect primary system?
- Details of delegate-selection vary state-to-state
- Presidential primary chooses party delegates to the national convention
- Expresses a preference among presidential contenders
- Some states do both but many chooses early dates
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First and Second sets the tone for caucus?
Iowa and New Hampshire:
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Conventions have three key goals
- Naming presidential and vice presidential candidates
- Using party factions and leaders in one place for common purpose
- Adopt party platform, stating its basic principles, and objectives for campaign and beyond
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Direct Popular (against Electoral College)
- Take a Constitutional amendment to get rid of electoral college
- Make individual states less important
- It would force candidates to campaign everywhere
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The Chief Executive
- Oath of office: requires President to “faithfully execute the Office of President” and protect and defend the Constitution”
- Constitutional Requirement: “Take are that the LAws be faithfully executed”
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Executive Agreements
- Presidents can make them without Senate approval
- Agreements cannot overrule state or federal law
- Do not become part of American law. Only those agreements made by the current President remain in force
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War Powers Act (President can only commit military forces to combat only)
- If Congress has declared war
- Has authorized military action
- If an attack on the nation or its armed forces has taken place. Congress must be notified within 48 hours
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President check actions of the legislative and judicial branches
- By using the message power to influence Congress to pass desired legislation
- Vetoing bills passed by Congress
- Issuing Signing Statements
- Pardoning citizens accused or convicted of crimes
- Reducing fines or the length of sentences
- Granting amnesty to groups of people
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Three major messages a year
- State of Union: Delivered to a joint session of Congress
- President’s budget message
- Annual Economic Report
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Veto Power
- Sign the bill into law
- Veto the bill
- Allow the bill to become law by not acting upon it within ten days
- Exercise a pocket veto at the end of a congressional session by not acting on the bill before Congress adjourns in under 10 days
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Republican National Election is in Cleveland, OH (Democrat in Philly)
- Largest Executive Group: Dept of Defense
- What is President’s salary: 25000
- What is new supreme judge’s name: Antonin Scalia
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Dates in order
- 1804- 12th Amendment Ratified
- 1893- Benjamin Harrison pardoned Mormons for polygamy laws
- 1915: A person must accept pardon before it's put into effect
- 1919: Woodrow Wilson suffered stroke and was too ill to meet with Congress
- 1944: 22nd Amendment Ratified
- 1967: 25th Amendment Adopted
- 1974: 6th Amendment shoots down Presidential amendment (Watergate)
- 1977: Jimmy Carter pardoned Vietnam War draft evaders
- 1981: Reagan gets shot
- 2000 Presidential Election
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There is a chain of command that runs from a few people at the top down to many workers at the bottom
Hierarchical authority:
-
Each worker in the organization has specific duties and responsibilities
Job specialization:
-
Work is guided by a large number of written rules and regulations available to all employees
Formalized rules:
-
Refer to major units
Agency, Administration:
-
Refer to units that regulate business
Commission:
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Units that have business functions
Corporation, Authority:
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