American Government Lecture Three

There are three branches of government: legislative, executive and judicial. Last week we learned about the legislative branch, which for the United States (federal) government is Congress. This week we learn about the executive branch.

The top official in the executive branch is the president. He is mentioned on the news more than anyone else, not because he is necessarily the most influential, but because it is easiest for news sources to put one reporter and one camera outside the White House (his home) to speculate about what the president thinks, or what he is going to do about something, or why the executive branch made a particular decision, and it easiest to refer to the entire executive branch as the "[president's name] Administration" regardless of whether the president has any involvement in the issue. It is far more difficult (and more expensive) for the media to report on and explain what Congress is doing, and even harder still to describe an important case being decided by the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court has nine people who jointly make decisions, and it does not help television ratings to place all nine pictures on the screen!

The president is not a king. His powers are limited and enumerated. He lacks a special title, and is called simply “Mr. President.” Under the 22nd Amendment, the President of the United States of America|president may not be elected more than two terms. But often a president serves only one term, and is defeated for reelection (examples include Jimmy Carter and the first President Bush, George H.W. Bush).

The president is often, but not always, the leader of his own political party which nominates him. Certainly his approval rating (the percentage of Americans who approve of the job he is doing) affects the positions and fortunes of his entire political party. If his party is in control of Congress, then the president can exert enormous influence over it. If the opposing political party controls Congress, then it devotes its time to opposing his policies as much as possible. Either way, the political party of the president controls the political agenda.

Beyond politics, historians debate how much influence a president really has over the nation. But the president his is held responsible regardless of whether he is at fault. When Iranian students captured the U.S. Embassy in 1979 and held American diplomats hostage for a year, president Jimmy Carter was held responsible. Was it his fault? Voters held him responsible and 60% voted against him in the next election.

Economists say that the outcome of every presidential election can be predicted by how well the economy is doing on Election Day. Can the president control the economy? Not completely, but he can have an influence. Voters typically reelect him if the economy is doing well, but elect someone else if it is doing poorly.