The Presidency in Focus: Roles and Responsibilities Explained

1. STANDARD(S) ADDRESSED:12.4 Students analyze the unique roles and responsibilities of the three branches of government. CH 13-SEC 1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES/ GOALS/ SWBAT • Describe the President’s many roles. • Understand the formal qualifications necessary to become President. • Explain how the President’s term of office has changed over time. • Describe the President’s pay and benefits.

2. A BULLDOG ALWAYS Commitment Attitude CARES Respect Encouragement Safety

3. QUIZ! First & Last Name Fill in your ID NUMBER! CH-13-1

4. Key Terms chief of state:the ceremonial head of government chief executive:the leader of the executive branch and holder of executive power under the Constitution chief administrator:the director of the executive branch chief diplomat:the main architect of the nation’s foreign policy and its chief spokesperson to the world

5. Key Terms, cont. commander in chief:the leader of the nation’s armed forces chief legislator:the main author of the nation’s public policies chief of party:the leader of the political party controlling the executive branch chief citizen:the representative of all the people and the champion of public interest

6. THE CONSTITUTION Article 2 of the United States Constitution is broken down into four main sections. These sections are further broken down even more into clauses. Section 1 has 8 different clauses that all describe the rights and role of the President and Vice President of the country. Section 2 has three different clauses that talk about the powers given to the President. Section 3 has five different clauses that talk about the responsibilities of the President. Section 4 is this section talks about impeachment of the President, Vice President, or any civil officers like Cabinet Secretaries or judges. 

8. Naturalized vs Natural Born • Law of Sanguineous • Law of Solis

9. Formal Qualifications Checkpoint: What are the three requirements a potential President must meet to be eligible for office? • The President must be at least 35 years of age. • The President must be a natural born citizen of the United States. • The President must have been a U.S. resident for at least 14 years.

10. Guided Reading:

11. Terms in Office The Constitution sets no term limits for the presidency.

12. Terms in Office George Washington set the custom of serving two terms. 1789-1793 1793-1797 8 years and he was out!

13. Terms in Office Franklin Roosevelt broke this custom by being elected to four terms 1933 -1937 1937-1941 1941-1945 1945-1949 Died April 12, 1945

14. Terms in Office, cont. The 22nd Amendment, ratified in 1944, limits Presidents to no more than two full elected terms in office. If a President succeeds to the office after the middle of a term, he or she can still seek two full terms. No President can serve more than 10 years in office.

15. Views on Term Limits Many people, including some Presidents, have argued that the two-term rule unfairly limits the right of the people to choose their President. Some say it also weakens a President’s influence at the end of the second term in office. Supporters say the 22nd amendment protects against abuse of executive power. Some have argued for a single six-year term, which would free the President from worrying about reelection.

16. Guided Reading:

17. Pay and Benefits Congress decides the President’s annual salary. This salary cannot be changed while a President is in office. The current salary, set in 2001, is $400,000 a year plus $50,000 a year for expenses. The Constitution forbids the President from receiving any other pay from the government or the States while in office. The pension is currently $166,700 per year.

18. Pay and Benefits, cont. • The President also receives many benefits, including the • White House, • Air Force One, • Camp David, • a fleet of cars, • a large staff, • a suite of offices, • excellent healthcare, and many other fringe benefits.

19. Guided Reading:

20. Roles of the President • What are the roles of the office of the President? • The President’s roles include: • Chief of state • Chief executive • Chief administrator • Chief diplomat • Commander in chief • Chief of the Party • Chief legislator • Chief citizen • The President does all of these jobs at the same time

21. Presidential Roles The President acts as chief of state, the ceremonial head of the U.S. government and the symbol of the American people. • 7. B

22. Presidential Roles The President is the chief executive, holding the nation’s executive power in domestic and foreign affairs. • 8. H

23. Presidential Roles The President is the chief administrator, directing the more than 2.7 million civilian employees of the executive branch. • 9. D

24. Presidential Roles, cont. The President is the nation’s chief diplomat, the main architect of American foreign policy and the nation’s chief spokesman to the rest of the world. • 10. E

25. Presidential Roles, cont. The President is the commander in chief of the 1.4 million men and women of the nation’s armed forces. • 11. G

26. Presidential Roles, cont. The President is the chief legislator, proposing laws that set the congressional legislative agenda. • 12. A

27. Presidential Roles, cont. The President is the unofficial head of the political party (Party Chief) that controls the executive branch. • 13. F

28. Presidential Roles, cont. The President is the unofficial chief citizen, expected to champion the public interest and be the representative of all the people. • 14. C

29. “The power to grant pardons and commutations… embodies the basic belief in our democracy that people deserve a second chance after having made a mistake in their lives that led to a conviction under our laws.” Obama

30. 8 years later

31. Review Now that you have learned about the roles and qualifications of the office of President...

33. QUIZ! First & Last Name Fill in your ID NUMBER! CH-13-1