Unit 5 Mastery Project: Danielle Dirksen Silver 6

Unit 5 Mastery
Project
Danielle Dirksen
Silver 6
1: Identify and explain the organization

of the Executive
The President of the United States, or the POTUS, is the leader of the
country. Beneath the POTUS are the Executive Office, Vice President, and
Cabinet.
Exec Office:
Includes Office of Management and Budget
4 main positions/divisions are the Chief of Staff, National Security Adviser,
Council of Economic Advisers, and the Senior Domestic Policy Advisers.
VP:
Main duty is to take over presidency in event of death; also serves as president
of the Senate
Picked more based on political stance rather than as a result of decision-making
Cabinet
Group of 20+ people who serve as the presidents advisers
Mainly used to centralize control; does not necessarily function efficiently
2: Identify and provide an example of the powers

of theExecutive, both formal and informal.
Formal powers within the executive branch are those that

are specifically delegated to the president. Two examples
include:
Vetoing certain bills
Pardoning individuals found guilty of misc crimes
Informal powers are seemingly implied and/or associated

with the presidents influential position. A couple examples
are:
Utilizing the power of persuasion to guide certain
propositions/issues in a desired direction
Making executive agreements, an informal way of holding the
president and another party responsible for carrying out a duty
3: Identify and explain howExecutiveshares powers

with the Congress, Judiciary, and bureaucracy.
Checks and balances were instigated in the first place for the purpose of keeping
the government fair and democratic.
Executive & Congress:
Congress has a handle on the budget, must approve or deny presidential nominations,
can override the presidential veto, and is able to impeach the president if necessary.
On the other hand, the president can veto (or approve) legislation passed in Congress.
Executive & Judiciary:

The Supreme Court has the power to declare presidential acts (or possibly actions)
unconstitutional, while the president has the duty of nominating judges.
Executive & Bureaucracy:

The bureaucracy must execute policy decisions reached by the president (and
Congress). The president has much control over the bureau, as they appoint the bulk
of the employees, obviously with senatorial approval. However, the bureau has some
independence from POTUS in that it is able to use task specialization to finish its
endless duties (and the president is not an expert in most of these fields)!
4: Discuss the implications ofExecutivesharing

powers with each of the following: Congress, Judiciary,
and bureaucracy.
Congress:
Budget disagreements may ensue
2/3 vote in each house to override veto may lead to tensions in houses
Presidential veto may be frustrating; result from differing ideologies
Judiciary:
Declaring an act unconstitutional will result in either public disapproval of
the conclusion or disdain towards presidents (no reelection)
If judges are put in office, they are there to stay
Bureaucracy:
Bureaucrats may disagree with policy decisions but must obey
presidents wishes not in every case, though
President may be forced to comply with bureaus chosen course of action
5: Discuss the functions

thatExecutiveperforms.
Chief Legislator = Propose legislation, veto legislation; Bully pulpit
Chief Executive = Make laws, treaties; Design/carry out executive

orders
Commander in Chief = Leader of armed forces but cannot declare

war
Chief Diplomat = Negotiate treaties
Chief of State = Leader of country; represents USA in times of chaos

or crisis
Chief Jurist = Nominates judges, appoints other officials; Grants

pardons
Chief of Party = Aids members from same partisanship to succeed in

election
6: Identify how the power of

theExecutivehas/may evolve gradually.
POTUS formal powers have expanded greatly. They are:
Faster/more likely to exercise their veto power

More involved in the USAs policy agenda (such as with State of the Union)
More powerful in terms of being com. in chief
More secretive (negative) 9/11 issues, Bush and NSA wiretapping
Inherent powers have expanded as well, especially in the form of

executive orders.
POTUS power also increases when they score a victory in a battle
against Congress.
POTUS power may continue to evolve based on what the people
want, how the government infrastructure changes, and how
democracy continues to be interpreted. Personally, I think executive
power will decrease because of increasing awareness of corruption.
7: Identify how the power of theExecutivehas/may

changes dramatically as a result of crisis.
In the event of a crisis a set of guidelines is followed to determine the

steps POTUS needs to take:
1. Exercise proper judgment and present analysis of situation in a
debate.
2. Hear out the cabinets opinions, as well as listen to any
professional advice.
3. Refrain from acting hastily/rashly.
4. Analyze the reasoning behind each option and assess for
correctness; then proceed to take action.
. Ex: 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis
Thus the above list suggests that executive power may increase with
disaster because they must lead the country and do something;
however, they may be overshadowed by the rest of the government
and get lost in the chaos if they fail to act at a reasonable pace.
8: Identify and discuss the ties between

theExecutiveand political parties.
POTUS must appeal not only to voters of

their own political party, but to
independent voters and possibly to on the
other side of the scale. Because we vote in
an indirect sense, political party really
matters as far as what side the state as a
whole leans toward (and its electoral
college voters).

theExecutiveand interest groups.
Elections and interest groups, in short,

make carrying out the presidency even
more difficult because one cannot possibly
please everyone and every group. This
brings into play the majoritarianism versus
pluralism dispute. Being vague in policy
stance helps lure some voters without
offending other voters. After the election, a
majoritarian interpretation is often resorted
to.

theExecutiveand media.
POTUS enjoys extensive media coverage,

but it is not always in positive light. The
president must use the media to their
advantage to increase publicity and
popularity, so as to positively affect their
influence. When the media uses its political
bias to discuss the president, voters will use
this to influence their voting decision. Thus
POTUS must be very careful around the
media.

theExecutiveand state and local governments.
Executive authority obviously tops state and

local government authority. However, they
must all work together in order to
emphasize the true extent of democracy.
Because the president enforces laws, he
must establish his authority firmly. For
example, take the Little Rock 9; presidential
action was required to force both the state
and local government to listen and abide by
the law.

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Unit 5 Mastery

1: Identify and explain the organization

2: Identify and provide an example of the powers

Formal powers within the executive branch are those that

Informal powers are seemingly implied and/or associated

3: Identify and explain howExecutiveshares powers

Executive & Judiciary:

Executive & Bureaucracy:

4: Discuss the implications ofExecutivesharing

5: Discuss the functions

Chief Legislator = Propose legislation, veto legislation; Bully pulpit

Chief Executive = Make laws, treaties; Design/carry out executive

Commander in Chief = Leader of armed forces but cannot declare

Chief Diplomat = Negotiate treaties

Chief of State = Leader of country; represents USA in times of chaos

Chief Jurist = Nominates judges, appoints other officials; Grants

Chief of Party = Aids members from same partisanship to succeed in

6: Identify how the power of

POTUS formal powers have expanded greatly. They are:

Faster/more likely to exercise their veto power

Inherent powers have expanded as well, especially in the form of

7: Identify how the power of theExecutivehas/may

In the event of a crisis a set of guidelines is followed to determine the

8: Identify and discuss the ties between

POTUS must appeal not only to voters of

9: Identify and discuss the ties between

Elections and interest groups, in short,

10: Identify and discuss the ties between

POTUS enjoys extensive media coverage,

11: Identify and discuss the ties between

Executive authority obviously tops state and

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