According to Webster Dictionary, executive privilege can be defined as “exemption from legally enforced disclosure of communications within the executive branch of government”. In more colloquial terms executive privilege is described as the president having the “right” to harbor secrets from congress, the courts, and public when the circumstance presents itself. The circumstance must be involving national security needs, along with keeping the integrity of behind the scenes discussions that occur within the White house. Although, this power is not directly stated within the constitution it’s often referred to as an implied power of the president. Every president of the United States has called upon executive privilege in their term thus creating
a country wide concern of its constitutionality and the power it gives the executive branch. Throughout the United States’s history many instances can be viewed involving the use of executive privilege. When reviewing George Washington’s presidency there are two well-known applications of executive privilege; a military operation against Native Americans and the Jay Treaty. Washington left the presidency with many precedents in place such as the two term limit, presidency title Mr. President, and the use of executive privilege. Although, Washington attempted to use the privilege he eventually released all documents to Congress. This emphasizes that although Washington set the precedent he did not follow through with it due to the excessive amount of power it could potentially give to the executive branch. The sole purpose of having a three branch government was the ability for each branch to check the others. Executive privilege is not listed in the constitution purposely due to the the judicial and legislative branches’ inability to check the executive branch. The abuse of executive privilege can be seen through Richard Nixon’s attempt to cover up his unlawful involvement in the Watergate Scandal. The attempted use by Nixon to prevent incriminating documents from being used in a government investigation causes the American people fear of what presidents are covering up when the privilege is being used. Although others might state that the privilege is detrimental to ensure that cabinet advisors to the president can speak their ideas without any concern of public disclosure. In most cases congress will not ask for the undisclosed information of the executive branch unless an event has occurred where the information is detrimental to the nation’s health, or an investigation thus eliminating that argument. The concern of what might be protected under this privilege outweighs the individual cabinet members interest when accounting for the safety of the world’s strongest democracy.
As the President of the United States, a president have powers that other members of the government do not. Presidential power can be defined in numerous ways. Political scientists Richard Neustadt and William Howell give different views on what is presidential power. These polarized views of presidential powers can be used to compare and contrast the presidencies of George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
Of the most powerful people in the world, the President of the United States of America hits the top of the list. Even though the policy agendas that presidents set as they take office often go unfulfilled, the office of President is still one of the most envied spots to have. But why could this be? It is because the United States is the most powerful nation in the world and with the President as the leader, he is said to have the most power in the world ("Top Ten Most Powerful Countries in the World"). With power comes responsibility and with this position he must govern a country while abiding by the rules.
The Constitution's bestowing of executive power to a single president by Article II of the United States Constitution
An executive order is when a rule or order issued by the president to an executive branch of the government and having the force of law. United States presidents issue executive orders to help officers and agencies of the executive branch manage the operations within the federal government itself. Obama has less executive order throughout his presidency but just as many per year as those who have more.
" 2. The court said that it was difficult decide with the argument of executive privilege because there was no real claim to protect military, diplomatic, or sensitive national security secrets. 3. The court stated: "We conclude that when the ground for asserting privilege as to subpoenaed materials sought for use in criminal trial is based only on the generalized interest in confidentiality, it cannot prevail over the fundamental demands of due process of law in the fair administration of justice. The generalized assertion of privilege must yield to the demonstrated, specific need for evidence in a pending criminal trial.
The President of the United States holds ultimate authority over any piece of legislation. This right is given by the U.S. Constitution through the power of the Presidential veto. The Constitution states that after a bill is passed through both the House of Representatives and the Senate, it is to be given to the President for what is essentially the final OK. If the President approves of the bill and its contents, he is to sign the bill within ten days, thus passing it as a law. If he does not sign the bill within ten days it is considered approved and the bill is passed (the exception to this being the pocket veto which will be discussed below). Should the President disagree with the bill, he has the power to stop it by using either a veto or a pocket veto. If the President uses a veto, he is directly shutting down the bill, leaving it up to a two-thirds vote from both Houses to override this decision. Once vetoed the bill is sent back to the House it was born in with an explanation from The President on why it was vetoed and the voting begins. A pocket veto is only used when Congress is adjourned, the President simply does nothing, ten days go by and because Congress is not in session the bill is automatically vetoed without an override vote by the Houses.
In the position of President of the United States, stressful and important decisions are put in front of the President on a daily basis. Due to the stressful situations, the president has a personal White House staff that helps him or her with these every day decisions. The staff has a pretty big influence on the President. The staff does not make the final decisions however. They help the President understand each situation to the fullest and make sure that the each side of his decision is realized, and also that the consequences of a decision is
Richard E. Neustadt, the author of Presidential Power, addresses the politics of leadership and how the citizens of the United States rate the performance of the president's term. We measure his leadership by saying that he is either "weak or "strong" and Neustadt argues that we have the right to do so, because his office has become the focal point of politics and policy in our political system.
...ers carry the full force of the law. They can be major policy changes like withholding federal contracts from businesses that have engaged in racial discrimination, or they can be as simple as enacting days such as Earth Day. Executive privilege would be the right to confidentiality of executive communications, especially relating to national security. Impoundment is the power to send armed forces into hostilities; and the authority to propose legislation and work actively to secure its passage by Congress.
Impeachment is “ a criminal proceeding instituted against a public official by a legislative body.” (Impeachment). This does not mean automatic removal from office, which is a common misconception. the article goes on to explain how in the United States, the reason impeachment is so rare at the presidential level is because it is quite a long process and keep the Congress occupied for months; due to this impeachment in only employed in the gravest of circumstances. Furthermore, it is not just presidents or federal officials who can be impeached, as 49 states (all but Oregon) have an impeachment procedure in place. Impeachment is considered to be an important part of the checks and balances that make the US government unique, however due to the complicated and time consuming process it is.
When looking at the powers of different presidents, you have to look at their responsibilities and what power they actually have when it comes to decision making. Both the Iranian and American presidents have two different presidential powers, formal and informal. Formal powers are ones that are written into the constitution and have to be upheld by anyone who comes into power, for example both presidents can sign treaties with foreign countries. Informal power are not explicitly written into the constitution (1), but are done by the president, for example being persuasive, this is a power they need to use because that is how they will gain the presidential role, by persuading the public and to make international treaties they need to use the
Trump, head of the Executive branch, enforces the laws that the legislative branch creates. The requirement to be a president of U.S.A. is he/she has to be at least 35 years old, a natural born citizen of the U.S., and must be a resident of the U.S. for at least 14 years. The president is elected on the 1st Tuesday after the 1st Monday in November. A president's salary is $400,000 a year in wages. Chief justice usually administers the oath of office to the president. The four people in order to take over the presidency if our leader cease to be able to carry out his/her duties is vice president, speaker of the house, president pro-tempore, and secretary of state. The five categories that the powers of a president can be put into is Commander in Chief of the Armed Force, Chief Executive, Chief of State, Chief Legislator, and Chief of Party. Commander in Chief of the Armed Force responsibilities is to make all decisions regarding the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines. His job as a Chief Executive is to make sure his cabinet, staff stc are doing their jobs. Chief of State represents the U.S. board, acts as host to all foreign dignitaries, and make treaties subject to ⅔ approval by the Senate. Chief Legislator has the power to approve/veto laws, and can suggest certain laws be made through his supporters in the House and/or Senate. The president is head of his political party makes decisions regarding the makeup of his party is his role of Chief of Party. There are four divisions of the executive branch which is Cabinet Departments, Independent Agencies, Government Corporations,and Regulatory Commissions. George Washington created the Cabinet in 1789. There are 15 Cabinet departments and the title of each department is Secretary. Now, onto the final branch, the Judicial
The power of the Executive branch has expanded over time to become the most authoritative division of government. In contrast to the Constitution 's fundamental designer, James Madison, who predicted the Legislative branch would dominate due to it’s power in making laws and regulating taxes/spending, the executive powers have proven to be superior and ever broadening. From the birth of the Republic, the President has sought to protect his rights and seek beyond his restriction of power. Setting the precedent as early as 1795, George Washington refused to relay documents relating to the Jay Treaty to the House of Representatives and saw his actions as a justified act of “executive prerogative.” Moreover, weaving throughout the Nineteenth century, presidents such as Andrew Jackson and Abraham Lincoln conceived and added functions, such as the extensive use of the veto and the president’s direct and active role as Commander in Chief to their executive tool-belt. The Constitution communicates very little details regarding the President’s use of the power of veto and the role as Commander in Chief, but it was these presidents which established the major authority of the executive branch in these areas.
He must act as the official leader of our country, and decide what’s the best for our nation’s interests. He is to act as a chief of state. He brings moral, congratulations, and celebration of American achievement and award. He must make speeches that give hope and determination to the people, and be present for every crowning moment. The president must also act as the chief executive. He has the ultimate decision in how the law must be enforced and carried out. He appoints officials and advisors to help run the Executive Branch. He must be there for cabinet meetings, appoint the head of the CIA, and read reports of the issues with the FBI. Our president must also act as a chief diplomat. He decides our foreign policies and meets with the other countries’
Karl Weber, a sociologist and political economist, describes authority as a form legal domination. Followers comply with the rules of these individuals because they consider their authority to be legitimate. While the legitimacy of domination does not have to be rationality, right, or natural justice, it is legitimate because individuals accept, obey, and consider domination to be required. The president of the United States is considered a traditional, legal and charismatic authority, where the legitimate domination rests on the idea of the legality of enacted rules for these individuals elevated to their status to give commands. The news article Obama's Executive-Power Use Shows He Still Holds Some Cards by NPR.com shows the President Barrack Hussein Obama II, the 44th president of the United States, as a traditional, legal and charismatic authority figure based on the characteristics of domination defined by Karl Weber.