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The President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by influence and recognition. The President leads the executive branch of the federal government; his or her role is to enforce national law as given in the Constitution and written by Congress. Article Two of the Constitution establishes the President as commander-in-chief of the armed forces and enumerates powers specifically granted to the President, including the power to sign into law or veto bills passed by both houses of Congress. The President also has the power to create a cabinet of advisers and to grant pardons or reprieves. Finally, with the "advice and consent" of the Senate, the President is empowered to make treaties and appoint federal officers, ambassadors, and federal judges, including Justices of the Supreme Court. As with officials in the other branches of the United States government, the Constitution restrains the President with a set of checks and balances designed to prevent any individual or group from taking absolute power.
The President is elected indirectly through the United States Electoral College to a four year term, with a limit of two terms imposed by the Twenty-second Amendment to the Constitution, ratified in 1951. Under this system, each state is allocated a number of electoral votes equal to the size of the state's delegation in both houses of Congress combined. The District of Columbia is also granted electoral votes, per the Twenty-third Amendment to the Constitution. Voters in nearly all states choose, through a plurality voting system, a presidential candidate who receives all of that state's electoral votes. A simple majority of electoral votes is needed to become President; if no candidate receives that many votes, the election is thrown to the House of Representatives, which votes by state delegation.
Since the adoption of the Constitution, forty-two individuals have been elected or succeeded into the presidency, serving fifty-five four-year terms altogether. Grover Cleveland served two non-consecutive terms and is counted as both the 22nd and the 24th president. Because of this, all presidents after the 23rd have their official listing increased by one. Current President George W. Bush, the forty-third President, was inaugurated on January 20, 2001 to a first term and on January 20, 2005 to a second. His second term expires at noon on January 20, 2009, after which he will be succeeded by Barack Obama, the president-elect from the 2008 presidential election.
The White House in Washington, D.C. serves as the official place of residence for the President; he is entitled to use its staff and facilities, including medical care, recreation, housekeeping, and security services. One of two Boeing VC-25 aircraft, which are extensively modified versions of Boeing 747-200B airliners, serve as long distance travel for the President, and are referred to as Air Force One while the president is on board. A salary of $400,000, along with other benefits, is paid to the President annually.
After World War II, the United States' status as a superpower transformed the American President into one of the world's most well-known and influential public figures. The appellation "leader of the free world", frequently used in reference to Presidents since the Cold War, symbolizes the President's elevated role in world affairs. The official presidential anthem is "Hail to the Chief"; preceded by "ruffles and flourishes", it is primarily played to announce the President at state functions.
Origin
The Treaty of Paris in 1783 left the United States independent and at peace but with an unsettled governmental structure. The Second Continental Congress had drawn up Articles of Confederation in 1777, describing a permanent confederation but granting to the Congress—the only federal institution—little power to finance itself or to ensure that its resolutions were enforced. In part this reflected the anti-monarchy view of the Revolutionary period, and the new American system was explicitly designed to prevent the rise of an American tyrant to replace the British King.
However, during the economic depression due to the collapse of the continental dollar following the Revolutionary War, the viability of the American government was threatened by political unrest in several states, efforts by debtors to use popular government to erase their debts, and the apparent inability of the Continental Congress to redeem the public obligations incurred during the war. The Congress also appeared unable to become a forum for productive cooperation among the States encouraging commerce and economic development. In response a Constitutional Convention was convened, ostensibly to reform the Articles of Confederation but that subsequently began to draft a new system of government that would include greater executive power while retaining the checks and balances thought to be essential restraints on any imperial tendency in the office of the President.
Individuals who presided over the Continental Congress during the Revolutionary period and under the Articles of Confederation had the title "President of the United States in Congress Assembled," often shortened to "President of the United States". The office had little distinct executive power. With the 1788 ratification of the Constitution, a separate executive branch was created (President of the United States).
The President's executive authority under the Constitution, tempered by the checks and balances of the judicial and legislative branches of the federal government, was designed to solve several political problems faced by the young nation and to anticipate future challenges, while still preventing the rise of an autocrat over a nation wary of royal authority.
Qualification, disqualification and common practice
Article Two of the Constitution sets the principal qualifications to be eligible for election as President. A Presidential candidate must:
- be a natural-born citizen of the United States;
- be at least thirty-five years old;
- have been a permanent resident in the United States for at least fourteen years.
Additionally, the Constitution disqualifies some people from the Presidency. Under Article One of the United States Constitution, the Senate has the option, upon conviction, of disqualifying impeached individuals from holding other federal offices, including the Presidency. Under the Twenty-Second Amendment, no one can be elected President more than twice. The Twenty-Second Amendment also specifies that anyone who serves more than two years as President or Acting President, of a term for which someone else was elected President, can only be elected President once. Under the Twelfth Amendment a person who is no longer eligible to be President may not be Vice President either.
Foreign-born Americans at the time the Constitution was adopted were also eligible to become President, provided they met the age and residency requirements.
The United States Government was non-partisan prior to 1792, so the Constitution says nothing about political parties. From 1796 to the Civil War, it was common for political parties to fracture and put forward more than one candidate. The classic example is the 1824 election, in which political parties officially played no role because all of the candidates were from the same party. This also was the only election in which the recipient of the most Electoral College votes (Andrew Jackson) did not become President (as he did not have a majority). The election was then decided by the United States House of Representatives, which elected John Quincy Adams instead.
The Civil War brought home how dangerous political fracture can be for the nation, with the result that the two largest parties at the time – Democratic and Republican – remade themselves into broad coalitions of liberals and conservatives. Consequently, all presidents since the Civil War have been nominees of one of these two major political parties.
Nevertheless, there have been seven important third-party candidates since the Civil War:
- In the 1892 election, James Weaver (Populist Party) won four states, taking twenty-two electoral votes
- In the 1912 election, third-party candidate, former Republican and former President Theodore Roosevelt (Progressive Party a.k.a. "Bull Moose Party") actually bested the losing major party candidate, taking six states and eighty-eight electoral votes, while sitting President William Howard Taft (Republican) took two states and eight electoral votes—and Democrat Woodrow Wilson took the White House.
- In the 1924 election, Robert M. La Follette, Sr. (Progressive) took one state, with thirteen electoral votes.
- In the 1948 election, Strom Thurmond (Dixiecrat) won four states, taking thirty-nine electoral votes
- In the 1960 election, Harry F. Byrd (Democrat) did not run for President but received fifteen electoral votes from three states. All eight of Mississippi's electors voted for Byrd as President and Strom Thurmond as Vice President; six of Alabama's electors did likewise, while one Republican elector from Oklahoma cast his votes for Byrd as President and for Barry Goldwater as Vice President.
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Alyssa K asks: "HELP!!!!"Clo is a smart Turkey replies: 'To tell the truth to the American people ! To stand by his words and to stop underestimating the people !'knowitall replies: 'The first responsibility is to keep citizens safe, to keep our military strong. To protect our sovereignty. To protect the constitution, and appoint judges to ensure our freedoms and protect our laws. The President represents our countries values and what we stand for. He or she leads in times of crisis and should have the ability to bring the country together during these times. I believe the President is there also to protect the most vulnerable of society such as the women and children who are unable to walk the streets at night or the children to play without fear. I wish McCain and Obama would talk more about crime in America, drugs, etc.'Melody B replies: 'Hi Alyssa. :] hahahahaha. I was doing some research, and you should try too for Tsichlis's class. Think about what branch he's under, and what the branch does.'kick your ass replies: 'hey is this alyssa from acky center?i'm bobby aka wenhao...i was searching for this answer too...well that's what i wrote:One major responsibilities of the president of the united states is to make sure that the laws made by congress are executed (carry out the law).The second major responsibility of the president is to approve/veto every bill passed by Congress. That means if the president signs the bill, the bill will become a law, if the president vetoes the bill and congress doesn’t override the veto by 2/3 of the votes, the bill dies.'Tony YAYO asks: "I was told that when Obama takes office, He will then be McCains boss. Is that true?"OhCanada replies: 'No Senators have to be voted out or they can be asked to step down by their party. This is expected to happen to Joe Liberman.'earthtodorks replies: 'No, it's not. Although each branch of government is SUPPOSE to hold each other accountable for their actions.'Ben replies: 'No he does not.'Rex replies: 'the power is in the people and politcs we address always do your best never settle for less'q answers replies: 'no it's not. It's like saying Bush was Obama's boss and could fire him'Judith replies: 'He will be McCain's president not his boss. The president is the executive branch and McCain is of the legislative branch. Only the people have the ability to "fire" their senator either by requesting him to resign or by not re-electing him.'m_brink replies: 'No, the two positions are on completely different branches of the federal government. IIRC, the only way a congressman can be forced out of office is by certain Congressional committees, such as the Senate Ethics Committee. Generally, they will be pressured by their own party to resign before that happens.'rowlfe replies: 'NO. Elected officials can NOT be fired as such by a President. However any APPOINTED official serves as the "pleasure" of the president and CAN be fired at any time for any reason, even as simple as "I do not like you." See the Dubya flap about appointed attorneys being fired en-masse' (sp?) from the Justice Department recently while Gonzales was Attorney General. Elected officials are RECALLED by vote. In the case of a US Senator, only the Senate can vote to recall a senator and remove a senator from office. Think Stevens in Alaska who was recently convicted of several felony crimes and what is going to happen to HIM. There is NO rule forbidding a felon from holding public office. IF McCain retains his seat as a senator, then YES, the President is effectively his boss to some degree.'RokinLatino84 replies: 'HMM OBAMA WILL BE PART OF THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH AND MCCAIN THE LEGISLATIVE SO NOOOO OBAMA WILL ADHERE TO THE LEGISLATIVE BUT SINCE IT IS MOSTLY DEMOCRATIC THIS TIME AROUND OBAMA WILL HAVE AN EASIER TIME ENACTING LAWS AND POLICIES. MCCAIN IS A SENATOR ONE OF TWO THAT REPRESENTS HIS STATE HIS BOSS WILL BE THE PEOPLE OF ARIZONA AND MAYBE THE GOP'rcaudill23 asks: "I used to know a cute little song that listed the US presidents in order...I cannot remember the last verse...I was wondering if anyone knows any other "president songs"?"Green T replies: 'there is a little song, you can listen to it on this website:hope that helped :D'indigo_river replies: 'well...i'm not american [sorry!] but i did find this thing on youtube that might help!!'eorehawk asks: "Please answer!"josephrosecarpenter replies: 'Nixon, It opened on October 1, 1971.'ziggy_brat replies: 'It opened in 1971 so I am going with Nixon.'Disney Fan replies: 'Nixon was president at that time.Entered office-January 20, 1969~Left office-August 9, 1974Hall of Presents opened- October 1st, 1971'Ayla Graham asks: "Any neat songs or word/ letter tricks? Thanks for the answers everyone, I appreciate the help!"attn deficiency. replies: 'You can't.'my2cents replies: 'websearch mnemonics for presidents u.s.'Dilleydally replies: 'There is a song that we learned in elementary school for a play that was the names of the presidents in order.'baz replies: 'someone asked a similar question before and here was a really good answer that was given:This is tough but not impossible, I will give you the links on how to do it and also the links of the presidents. There's only 43, easy peasy.Mnemonics.INTRODUCTION Mnemonics (pronounced "ne-mon'-ics") is the art of assisting the memory by using a system of artificial aids - rhymes, rules, phrases, diagrams, acronyms and other devices - all to help in the recall of names, dates, facts and figures........Basic mnemonics These mnemonics can be applied immediately, although it certainly pays off to practice them first. All of these mnemonics are based on elaboration and association, which why we start out with these. Elaboration adds more meaning to a word, while association makes sure that two words are thoroughly linked together in memory. ...USA Presidents .........GOOD LUCK'1111 replies: 'Tell your parents to cook you pumpkins. Scientists proved that eating pumpkins helps you memorize more work in a less amount of time. Hope this tip helps. If this didn't help, try connect presidents with something significant they did in their life time.'Byakuya replies: 'practice a lot.. have a list, but see how far you can get without looking.. then look if you get stuck.. keep doing that and you'll need to look less and less often untill you eventually get all of them..'dread pirate lavenderbeard replies: 'Good luck. Personally I'd point out to the teacher it's pointless as you will never ever have a need to know them all in your entire adult life outside of a trivia game show. In fact outside of the basics in school, such as reading, spelling and basic math, there is a good chance you won't need to know much more unless you aspire to be an astronaut or an astrophysisist.'Ramona M replies: 'well you can not use monica'Haley d replies: 'sing them in a song'sarah1892af replies: 'Come up with a series of goofy sentences like: Why are Jeeps my most adored jalopy?W = Washington (Why)A = Adams (are)J = Jefferson (Jeeps)M = Madison (my)M = Monroe (most)A = Adams (adored)J = Jackson (jalopy)And so on... I always had an easier time memorizing lists of things if I could come up things like this.Good luck!'Lawrence M replies: 'Hey there, Jonathan!! Now, I see that you are having trouble trying to memorize the Presidents of the United States. I have to do this in the sixth grade, as our teacher had required us to do. How he did it was that he had a complete list of all the Presidents, but he only gave us ten at a time. When I did it, I read those ten, several times. Next, I took a piece of paper and numbered from one to ten. From my memory, I wrote down what I remembered, and what I left blank or got mixed up, I either filled that blank in or corrected the order of the list that I written. I did this for about three days, trying to remember the Presidents in their prospective orders. When the day to recite the Presidents, many of the other students messed up. My teacher wasn't too thrilled because alot of people didn't take the time to try to remember or even do it. My turn came and with pride, I recited the Presidents in their correct order, with no problem. My teacher was escatic. He told me in front of everyone, because I was the only one to get it right, he did something special: He bought me lunch from McDonald's! The other kids were hot, but it was their problem, not mine!I remembered when I had to vote back in November, there was a couple of people standing behind me. They were trying to remember the Presidents in the correct order. I spoke up and said, First was George Washington, second was John Adams, third was Thomas Jefferson, fourth was James Madison, fifth was James Monroe, sixth was John Quincy Adams, seventh was Andrew Jackson, eighth was Martin Van Buren, ninth was William Henry Harrison, and tenth was John Tyler! THEY WERE COMPLETELY AMAZED!! They were like, "Wow, you are so smart!!" But memorizing things was easy, so as long as you make it easy!! Again, if it helps you, study the Presidents in their prospective order, and write them down on a piece of paper and after doing so, filled whatever you left out or messed up!! And study from that list!! That would really help you to learn from your mistakes!! After you got the first set of the first ten Presidents, move onto the second set of Presidents and do the same thing!! You'll be amazed by this trick!!!'
Presidents of the United States
Brief biographies of all the presidents from the official White House web page.President of the United States - Wikipedia
Hyperlinked article on the executive branch of the United States Government.List of Presidents of the United States - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Robert S.Summers, "POTUS: Presidents of the United States".. Hugh S.Sidey, "The Presidents of the United States".Internet Public Library.The White HouseThe Presidents of the United States
View these historical photographs of the presidents and first ladies in rooms of the White House .Of the 42 presidents, only 17 have occupied the Oval Officelist of Presidents of the United States: Information from Answers.com
Presidents of the United States President Political Party Dates in Office Vice President(s) George Washington 1789–97 John Adams John AdamsPresidents of the United States [presidentsusa.net]
Provides statistical information including assassinations, biographies, birth and death dates, coins, and more.POTUS -- Presidents of the United States
Comprehensive site on the American presidency includes biographies, speeches and writings, election results, odd facts and presidency highlights.5 Black Presidents - Black People And Their Place In World History
Dr.Leroy Vaughn uncovers evidence that the United States has had at least 5 Black presidents. five former presidents of the United States had Black peoplePresidents of the United States
Biographical information on the 43 U.S.presidents, election results, inaugural Photos/pictures of all presidents and most of the spouses! Inside scoop onPresidents of the United States America | Music Artist | Videos, News
Stay current on the latest Presidents of the United States of America music videos, news, tour dates, ringtones and more on MTV - the leader in music news, video