The President
Article 2, section 1 of the constitution states that "the executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America." It also states the president must be a natural born citizen, 35 years old, and must have lived in the country for 14 years before becoming President.
The President makes $400,000 per year and is limited to two, four year terms. Prior to the 22nd amendment, the president could serve for as many terms as they win. Only Franklin D. Roosevelt served for more than two terms. |
Roles of the President
Chief of State
The President has the role of being an example for the American people. The Chief of State is responsible for celebrating holidays and presenting awards on behalf of the white house.
Chief Executive
The President is the boss of many government employees. The Chief Executive is responsible for holding cabinet meetings and appointing officials to run the executive branch
Chief Diplomat
The President has to work with other countries to complete goals. The Chief Diplomat appoints and accepts ambassadors of other countries.
Commander-in-Chief
The president is in charge of the United States Armed Forces. The Commander-in-Chief is responsible for deploying troops and controlling the United States nuclear arsenal.
Chief Legislator
The President can influence the things that congress passes. The Chief Legislator is responsible for giving a speeches to congress or signing/vetoing bills.
Chief of Party
The President must work to get more people in government from his party. The Chief of Party works by appointing members of their party to different positions.
The President has the role of being an example for the American people. The Chief of State is responsible for celebrating holidays and presenting awards on behalf of the white house.
Chief Executive
The President is the boss of many government employees. The Chief Executive is responsible for holding cabinet meetings and appointing officials to run the executive branch
Chief Diplomat
The President has to work with other countries to complete goals. The Chief Diplomat appoints and accepts ambassadors of other countries.
Commander-in-Chief
The president is in charge of the United States Armed Forces. The Commander-in-Chief is responsible for deploying troops and controlling the United States nuclear arsenal.
Chief Legislator
The President can influence the things that congress passes. The Chief Legislator is responsible for giving a speeches to congress or signing/vetoing bills.
Chief of Party
The President must work to get more people in government from his party. The Chief of Party works by appointing members of their party to different positions.
THe Vice President
The Vice President has few official roles in the government. The 25th amendment established presidential succession which officially put the Vice President as second in line for the office of President. The Vice Presidents also has an official position as president of the senate, although he only usually votes during a tie.
The scope of Vice Presidential power has increased in recent history. Although the Vice President has not gained a lot of constitutional power, he has become more important in less official roles, such as being an adviser to the President. |
Succession
The Electoral College
The electoral college is responsible for electing the president. The Framers believed that the general public was not smart enough to elect a good president so they left that responsibility to the electoral college.
Every state receives the same amount of electoral votes as the amount of representatives plus the 2 senators. For example, Wisconsin has 8 members in the house and 2 senators therefore Wisconsin has 10 electoral votes. This accounts for 535 electoral votes, three more are added from the Washington D.C. area totaling 538 votes. A candidate must receive 270 votes in order to win, if no candidate receives 270 votes, then the house of representatives votes for the winner.
Every state receives the same amount of electoral votes as the amount of representatives plus the 2 senators. For example, Wisconsin has 8 members in the house and 2 senators therefore Wisconsin has 10 electoral votes. This accounts for 535 electoral votes, three more are added from the Washington D.C. area totaling 538 votes. A candidate must receive 270 votes in order to win, if no candidate receives 270 votes, then the house of representatives votes for the winner.