The Presidency: The Leadership Branch
7. The Presidency: The Leadership Branch?
President George W. Bush
George W. Bush won the 2000 presidential election after a drawn-out battle with Al Gore, and was inaugurated January 20, 2001.
Research indicates that the first person that most American children remember beyond their immediate circle of family and friends is the President of the United States.
Who is this person that creates such a strong impression on children, arguably the most powerful individual in the world today? But the founders certainly did not intend to create such a powerful presidency. They saw the presidency as a "necessary evil," or an executive to carry out and coordinate decisions made by Congress. What is the nature of the modern presidency, this office so powerful and yet so limited?
Presidential Qualities
George Washington
George Washington's warnings against party politics and entangling foreign alliances still permeate American political culture.
7a. The Evolution of the Presidency
Mt. Rushmore
South Dakota's Mt. Rushmore memorializes four of America's greatest Presidents. Washington, Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Lincoln are carved into this spectacular monument.
The 21st century dawned on a very different presidency than the one created at the end of the 1700s. Constitutional provisions limited the early presidency, although the personalities of the first three — George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson — shaped it into a more influential position by the early 1800s. However, throughout the 1800s until the 1930s, Congress was the dominant branch of the national government. Then, in the past seventy years or so, the balance of power has shifted dramatically, so that the executive branch currently has at least equal power to the legislative branch. How did this shift happen?
Constitutional Qualifications and Powers
Article II of the Constitution defines the qualifications, benefits, and powers of the presidency. The President must be at
President George W. Bush
George W. Bush won the 2000 presidential election after a drawn-out battle with Al Gore, and was inaugurated January 20, 2001.
Research indicates that the first person that most American children remember beyond their immediate circle of family and friends is the President of the United States.
Who is this person that creates such a strong impression on children, arguably the most powerful individual in the world today? But the founders certainly did not intend to create such a powerful presidency. They saw the presidency as a "necessary evil," or an executive to carry out and coordinate decisions made by Congress. What is the nature of the modern presidency, this office so powerful and yet so limited?
Presidential Qualities
George Washington
George Washington's warnings against party politics and entangling foreign alliances still permeate American political culture.
7a. The Evolution of the Presidency
Mt. Rushmore
South Dakota's Mt. Rushmore memorializes four of America's greatest Presidents. Washington, Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Lincoln are carved into this spectacular monument.
The 21st century dawned on a very different presidency than the one created at the end of the 1700s. Constitutional provisions limited the early presidency, although the personalities of the first three — George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson — shaped it into a more influential position by the early 1800s. However, throughout the 1800s until the 1930s, Congress was the dominant branch of the national government. Then, in the past seventy years or so, the balance of power has shifted dramatically, so that the executive branch currently has at least equal power to the legislative branch. How did this shift happen?
Constitutional Qualifications and Powers
Article II of the Constitution defines the qualifications, benefits, and powers of the presidency. The President must be at