The President s Helpers 1 2 EXECUTIVE

The President’s Helpers 1

2

EXECUTIVE BRANCH President of the United States • • Executive Office ____ PRESIDENT ON POLICY “_______ OF THE PRESIDENT” _____HOLDOVERS FROM PREVIOUS PRESIDENCIES ____approved by the Senate • • CABINET _____ FEDERAL GOV’S POLICY WORKS MORE _______ HOLDOVERS / MORE POLITICAL Must be ____ by the Senate 3

EO or CAB? • ______is the President's principal forum for considering national security and foreign policy matters with his senior national security advisors and cabinet officials. Since its inception under President Truman, the function of the Council has been to advise and assist the President on national security and foreign policies. The Council also serves as the President's principal arm for coordinating these policies among various government agencies. 4

EO or CAB? • “Chinese Nationals Sentenced in New Mexico for Conspiring to Violate Arms Export Control Act” Bo Cai, 29, of Nanjing, China, was sentenced to 24 months in prison and his cousin Wentong Cai, 30, of Chifeng, China, was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison. Both will be deported after completing their prison sentences. 5

EO or CAB? The ____________’s mission is to provide the military forces needed to deter war and to protect the security of our country. ” The departments under this agency include the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines. 6

EO or CAB? • The_____ ‘s objective is to shape a freer, more secure, and more prosperous world through formulating, representing, and implementing the President’s foreign policy. It will represent the US overseas and convey US policies to foreign governments, host official visits, and conduct negotiations on issues ranging from trade to nuclear weapons. 7

EO or CAB? • Estimating changes reduce outlays for Social Security by $6 billion in 2014 and by an additional $15 billion over the next 10 years. Reductions in 2014 in both the Old Age and Survivors’ Insurance (OASI) and Disability Insurance (DI) programs are primarily due to lower-thanexpected numbers of beneficiaries in recent data. 8

OBSERVATIONS / THOUGHTS ABOUT “our largest functioning federal bureaucracy” • PROS 1. • CONS 1. 2. 3. 9

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OR CABINET? • ENFORCES GOVERNMENT POLICY • ADVISES PRESIDENT ON POLICY • LESS HOLDOVERS • MORE POLITICAL • WORKS MORE INDEPENDENTLY • MORE HOLDOVERS FROM PREVIOUS PRESIDENCIES • “RIGHT ARM OF THE PRESIDENT” • LESS POLITICAL 10

“The Situation Room” • • • • (USA Today) The following people are pictured, from left to right: (seated) Brigadier General Marshall B. "Brad" Webb, Assistant Commanding General, Joint Special Operations Command Denis Mc. Donough, Deputy National Security Advisor Hillary Rodham Clinton, Secretary of State Robert Gates, Secretary of Defense (standing) Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Tom Donilon, National Security Advisor William M. Daley, Chief of Staff Tony Blinken, National Security Advisor to the Vice President Audrey Tomason, Director for Counterterrorism for the National Security Council. [5] John O. Brennan, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism James R. Clapper, Director of National Intelligence A man in a black suit with a white tie: "John", a CIA analyst who was "the first to put in writing [in summer 2010] that the CIA might have a legitimate lead on finding bin Laden". [6] 11

• What are the reasons behind having the Electoral College system? • How does the Electoral College work? • Why are the chances of abolishing the EC so slim? • How do you feel about the Electoral College system?

ELECTORAL COLLEGE SYSTEM 12 TH AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION “The Electors shall meet in their respective states, and vote by ballot for President and Vice President…The person having the greatest number of votes shall be President…the representation of each state having one vote…”

Electoral College Calendar 1. Spring of election year: Each political party chooses electors and according to the number of electors for that state. This is usually done at a state convention. 2. November (1 st Tuesday after the first Monday): Popular vote in each state to determine which party's electors go to the Electoral College. 3. December: Electoral College meets in each State Capital and in D. C. to cast votes. 4. January: When Congress opens, the electoral votes are counted and the election is official if both the presidential and the vice-presidential candidate have 270 votes. If no presidential candidate gets the needed 270 votes, the election is decided in the House of Representatives with each state delegation having one vote.

CHANGE? • What are some alternatives to the Electoral College system? • • • 1. Direct Pop. Vote (amend) 2. Be a Parliament! (amend) 3. Proportional Rep (state leg. ) 4. Interstate Compact / National Pop Vote 5. • Many would like to change this system BUT change is very unlikely. WHY?

TICKET IN… • I feel the Electoral College should or will _______ in the future because _______. • 5 line response!