President of the United States

D

Military Leadership

As commander in chief of the armed forces, the president has the power to formulate and direct military strategy and actions in times of war and peace. As the country’s principal military commander, the president is responsible for the nation’s security and the safety of its citizens. Although the Constitution grants Congress the power to declare war, historically the president has had nearly total freedom to send troops into combat. In the second half of the 19th century, many presidents sent U.S. forces into Latin American countries to defend American business interests. Harry Truman made a much more substantial commitment of American soldiers in 1950 when he decided to fight the Korean War (1950-1953). A series of presidents—Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and Richard Nixon—waged war in Vietnam without a formal declaration of war from Congress (see Vietnam War). Since the establishment of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in 1947, nearly every president has used executive power to order the agency to conduct covert military operations abroad.

E

Appointive Powers

Subject to confirmation by a majority of the Senate, the president appoints the members of the Cabinet, the heads of independent federal agencies, and a large number of the administrative personnel of the federal executive departments and agencies. The president also appoints federal judges, including the justices of the Supreme Court of the United States; many federal employees; and the diplomatic representatives of the United States. The president also commissions, subject to congressional confirmation, all officers of the armed forces.

The appointive powers of presidents include the freedom to spend substantial sums of money to facilitate their administration of the government and the exercise of their constitutional powers. Franklin Roosevelt, for example, authorized the Manhattan Project—a massive federal project to build an atomic bomb during World War II. Since the end of World War II, presidents have used their budgetary authority to support the CIA’s secret projects.

VI

The Executive Branch

A

Administrative Organization

The president leads the executive branch of the federal government, although he or she delegates much of this authority. The executive branch consists of 15 departments: agriculture, commerce, defense, education, energy, health and human services, homeland security, housing and urban development, interior, justice, labor, state, transportation, treasury, and veterans affairs.

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The president also directs numerous independent agencies. These include the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Export-Import Bank, Farm Credit Administration, Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Federal Election Commission, Federal Maritime Commission, Federal Reserve System, Federal Trade Commission (FTC), General Services Administration, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities, National Labor Relations Board, National Science Foundation, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Small Business Administration, Tennessee Valley Authority, United States Information Agency, and the Postal Service.

B

Executive Supervision

The president formally supervises more than 4,000 employees of the executive branch but delegates nearly all of this authority to staff members. The president’s executive office consists of several divisions, including the White House Office, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the Council of Economic Advisers, and the National Security Council. Through the personnel of the White House Office, often called the White House staff, the president maintains communication with Congress, heads of the executive departments and agencies, and the media. The president relies on the OMB to help prepare the federal budget and to supervise federal spending. Similarly, the president turns to his Council of Economic Advisers to research and write an annual economic report for submission to Congress, and to help assess the state of the economy and recommend economic policies.

C

Party Responsibilities

Presidents lead their political party. A popular president often uses this power to campaign for the party’s congressional candidates. The president’s vote-winning ability enables the candidates to use this leverage to demand support for their own legislative programs. In addition, popular presidents can sometimes use their national support to win control of Congress for their party. A president whose party has majority control of both houses of Congress stands in a much stronger position to make legislative gains than a president contending with a hostile Congress dominated by the opposition party.