An Introduction to the Executive Branch
A substantial portion of the AP® US Government & Politics exam will test your knowledge of the three branches of government—executive, legislative and judicial—and how they interact, or ‘check’, each other’s powers. So let’s take a look at the Executive Branch—commonly thought of as the presidency.
The Executive Branch isn’t just the president, though. It’s the president, vice president, and the cabinet—the Secretaries of State, Defense, the Treasury, the Attorney General, and so on. These latter figures manage the bureaucracy.
For most intents and purposes, though, it’s OK to think of the Executive Branch as just the presidency—that is where almost all of its power lies.
Who can be President?
The president is selected by the Electoral College and, according to the Constitution, must be at least 35 years old, a native-born citizen of the United States, and a resident (in other words, living in the US) for at least 14 years.
Until 2009, when President Obama was sworn in, presidents have exclusively been middle-aged white men who served in the Senate or as governor of their state. Some presidents have previously served in the Cabinet.
Origins of the Presidency
Since they had just fought a war against King George, the Founding Fathers were naturally wary of placing too much power in a single, powerful leader. They originally envisioned an ‘executive officer’ who would implement congressional laws.
Gradually they settled on a slightly more powerful executive—a role they envisioned General George Washington filling, as he did—that would have substantial powers, contingent upon congressional involvement.
The Powers of the Presidency
Article II of the Constitution vests the president with the power to command the military, although he must go to Congress to request funding and seek its approval before beginning a war.
In practice, the presidency’s war powers have expanded considerably since the Constitution was written, with presidents often beginning military action in ‘emergency’ situations without consulting the Congress. This trend is quite controversial.
However, this is a key theme in the history of the Executive Branch: since the founding, the president’s powers have expanded considerably at the expense of Congress.
The president has the power to sign legislation into law after Congress has passed it. The president can also veto legislation, rendering it null and void.
The veto can be overridden only with two-thirds of the vote in each House of Congress. This means that a veto usually kills a bill—and a veto threat typically discourages a bill from even being brought to the floor.
In modern times, vetoes have rarely been issued because Congress doesn’t want to spend time on legislation it knows won’t become law. And of course, vetoes are more likely to occur when one party holds the presidency and the other party controls Congress. (Democratic President Obama’s most recent veto was of the Keystone XL pipeline passed by the Republican-controlled Congress.)
The president, with the advice and consent of the Senate, also signs treaties with foreign powers, nominates judges to the federal bench, including the Supreme Court, and nominates members of the Cabinet and for other federal offices.
The president can also pardon people, or commute their sentences, as many state governors can also do.
Administering the Laws
A substantial part of the presidency’s powers emanate from its Article II responsibility to administer federal laws. The president uses executive orders, proclamations and memoranda to do this.
When presidents are dealing with an uncooperative Congress, they can get a lot done on their own with these powers.
For example, President Lincoln freed the slaves in Confederate states with the Emancipation Proclamation. Recently, President Obama drastically changed immigration policy against the wishes of the Republican congress with an executive order. He has done the same thing to push his environmental and student loan agenda against the wishes of Congress.
Again, the modern presidency has come to rely more and more on executive orders, proclamations, and memoranda to get things done—expanding the executive’s power at the expense of Congress.
Other Powers of the Presidency
Many people don’t know the names of their senators or representatives, but almost everyone knows who the president is. For this reason, the president is said to have a‘bully pulpit’—in other words, what he says and does are paid attention to by the public and by the media.
The president can influence the public in various ways—via addresses from the Oval Office or Rose Garden, or in the State of the Union, for example—that other government officials can’t.
Also, the president is the unofficial leader of his or her party, and thus can influence—sometimes successfully, sometimes not—the legislative choices the party makes in Congress, and the message it delivers to voters.
In voters’ minds, the president is the face of his or her party.
Do not ignore the unenumerated powers of the presidency (the powers that aren’t spelled out in the Constitution) on the AP® US Government exam! They are often just as important as the powers given to the president in the Constitution.
How the Public Sees the President
The public holds the president to an extremely high standard of behavior. This has toppled some presidencies (Nixon) and nearly topped others (Reagan, Clinton).
The president’s popularity is often contingent on matters that are largely out of the executive’s hands, with the Number One issue being the state of the economy. Other domestic and international events, though (such as Hurricane Katrina) can affect how the public views the president.
The public often reacts negatively when presidents propose unpopular ideas or actions, such as Obamacare. However, history shows that Americans are usually willing to live with whatever these policies are after the fact.
A Sample Free-Response Question
Let’s take a look at a past free-response question about the Executive Branch and determine how we’d answer it:
Though the founders intended Congress to be the leading federal branch, presidents now find themselves with more power.
1. Identify and describe two ways this trend toward increased presidential power has occurred (excluding presidential authority over the federal bureaucracy).
2. Explain how presidential authority over the federal bureaucracy has increased executive powers.
For part (a) we’re asked to name two ways the president’s power has increased, but we can’t mention the federal bureaucracy. So we won’t mention executive orders or memoranda.
But we can mention how presidents—from Polk sending troops into Mexico to Obama bombing Syria—have gone to war without Congressional approval. We can also mention the increased influence of the ‘bully pulpit’ in the age of television—today, the presidency’s voice is louder than ever.
This is a good way to answer part (a)—with an example of hard power—launching a military action—and soft power—expanding the presidency’s rhetorical influence.
For part (b) you should discuss executive orders and memoranda. The president can use executive orders to direct federal agencies to do things within the scope of existing laws—which usually allows considerable leeway. He or she can use memoranda to ‘interpret’ laws for the bureaucracy—often in a way that is compatible with the president’s views. The Congress has no involvement in this process—even though it writes the laws.
Wrapping Up
The most important things to remember about the presidency are that its powers have increased considerably since the founding; that it has enumerated (listed in the Constitution) as well as unenumerated (‘soft’) powers; that presidents use memoranda, proclamations and executive orders to wield affect change without Congress’ input; and that the public holds the president to high, and often unattainable, standards.
These key points should hold you in good stead as you take the AP® US Government & Politics exam.
Let’s put everything into practice. Try this AP® US Government practice question:
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