The President and the Executive Branch The

“The President and the Executive Branch”

The President’s Job l The job of the President of the United States is often considered the most important job in the world.

Constitutional Qualifications l Must be at least 35 years old l Must be a natural born US citizen l Must be a U. S. resident for at least 14 years.

Presidential History l Until 2008, every other U. S. president had been a white male. l With only one exception, all have also been Protestant Christians.

Presidential History l Most also have a college degree, have been a lawyer, and are from states with a large population.

Presidential “Firsts” John F. Kennedy was our first elected Catholic president and our youngest president elected (1960) – (Teddy Roosevelt was the youngest to serve (took over after Mc. Kinley) Geraldine Ferraro was our first female vice presidential candidate (1984) Jesse Jackson was our first African American presidential candidate (1988) to narrowly miss his party’s nomination.

Presidential “Firsts” Joseph Lieberman was our first Jewish vice presidential candidate (2000). Barack Obama became the first African American President of the United States of America (2008) Hilary Clinton was the first woman to run as the Presidential nominee of one of the two major parties

Electing the President

Electing the Presidential elections take place every four (4) years. l These years are all divisible by the number four (4). l Ex. 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016 etc. l

Electing the President l Presidents are NOT elected by people called the popular vote! l They are actually elected indirectly by the “Electoral College”.

Electing the President l Voters vote in the Presidential election but this is just to indicate their preferences to the “electors”--- people appointed to vote in presidential elections l Each state gets the same number of electors as they have representing them in Congress.

Electing the President The Electoral Voters are determined by the number of Representatives and Senators in each state. l There a total of 538 electors who vote (435 Representatives and 100 Senators in Congress = 535) l Washington DC is also given three (3) electors. (23 rd Amendment) l Grand total = 538 l Bad intern, no donut.

Electing the President l In most states, it is a “winner take all” system. ( exceptions – Nebraska and Maine) If the candidate wins the popular vote of that state, they normally get all the electoral votes as well. l 2016 – Clinton leads by 1. 7 million popular votes but Trump has won the Electoral Votes l As of 11/22, Trump has 290 votes to Clinton's 232, with Michigan outstanding. Even if Clinton wins there – a possibility despite Trump's lead since election night – she still would trail, 290 -248.

Electing the President l Candidates need to win at least 270 electoral votes (out of the 538)

Electing the President l The Electoral College system makes it difficult for third parties to win the presidency.

Electing the President l The results of the “Electoral College” are NOT official after the election in November. l They are official in the month of December and they’ve been confirmed by Congress. l This is one example of checks and balances.

l Landmark Supreme Court Case Bush v. Gore (2000) – Because the election was too close to call and there was controversy in several districts in Florida, a recount of the Florida popular votes was called for. – After a series of lawsuits, banter and media pressure, the US Supreme Court decided to take over the case because of its national concern; the case would eventually be sent back to Florida for action…. in the end – it was realized that there would not be a fair and equitable way to recount the votes (deemed the recount unequal and therefore, unconstitutional) and as a result, Bush won the 2000 Election even thought Gore won the national popular Vote – How did this impact voting the US?

Presidential Terms l Presidents serve four (4) year terms. l Most early Presidents followed George Washington’s example and served only two terms (8 years)

Presidential Terms l Only Franklin D. Roosevelt served more than two (2) terms (1932 -1945). l He was elected to four terms, mainly due to World War II.

Presidential Terms l Today, the “ 22 nd Amendment” limits the President to only two (2) terms in office. l There is a maximum of ten (10) years in office.

Presidential Salary l The President of the United States earns an annual salary of $400, 000 (plus benefits and expenses).

Presidential Residences l The President lives and works in the White House in Washington DC (“ 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue”)

Presidential Residences l The President also has access to “Camp David”, a beautiful retreat in the mountains of Maryland. l It has been the site of many important meetings.

Presidential Transportation l The President travels on “Air Force One” (the Presidential plane) l They also have access to cars, helicopters, and other forms of transportation.

Role of the Vice President l The Constitutional qualifications for Vice President are identical to that of the President l The only real role of the Vice President is to preside over the U. S. Senate (can break a tie vote if necessary). l The most important role is to assume the job of President if necessary (9 times in our history)

Presidential Succession l The first Vice President to assume the role of President through death or illness was John Tyler in 1841 (took over for William H. Harrison after his death)

Presidential Succession l In 1947, the “Presidential Succession Act” established the official presidential succession (and the order of who takes over)…. . But we still felt that we more direction… bad intern, no donut.

Presidential Succession l The “ 25 th Amendment” sets up Presidential Succession and states that the Vice President who assumes (becomes) the role of President may select their new Vice President. l This must be approved by Congress.

Presidential Succession l This amendment also gives the Vice President some authority to determine if the President is disabled or unable to do the job. l This amendment has only been used 3 times (1973, 1974, & 1985)

Presidential Succession l The Speaker of the House follows the Vice President, followed by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate.