Deck 7: The Presidency

Question 1

The most important constitutional limitation on the President's leadership in foreign affairs is which of the following?

A) the requirement that a two thirds majority of the House ratify treaties
B) the requirement that a two thirds majority of the Senate ratify treaties
C) the requirement that a two thirds majority of both the House and the Senate ratify treaties
D) the War Powers Act

Answer 1

B

Question 2

How does divided government affect the normal state of affairs in Washington?

A) It has had no effect since divided government has long been a feature of American politics.
B) Presidents are forced to work harder in their negotiations with Congress.
C) There is a zero-sum game as each side profits from the other side's failures.
D) Presidents are less likely to rely on their unilateral powers since Congress can easily overturn such actions.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which of the following requires the president to inform Congress within forty-eight hours of committing troops abroad in a military action?

A) War Powers Act
B) Going Public
C) USA Patriot Act
D) Brownlow Report

Answer 3

A

Question 4

President Grover Cleveland noted which of the following about presidential appointments?

A) "I make one ingrate and ten enemies."
B) "It's the biggest and best source of my power."
C) "I love it more than any other aspect of my job."
D) "I couldn't care less who is in my cabinet; I'm the President and they work for me."

Question 5

Presidents can sidestep treaty rejections through ______.

A) the privileges and immunities clause of the Constitution
B) the necessary and proper clause of the Constitution
C) the supremacy clause of the Constitution
D) executive agreements which are exempt from Senate ratification

Question 6

Compared with its 19th-century counterpart, which of the following is true about the modern cabinet?

A) It is much more powerful and more of a stepping-stone to the White House.
B) It has lost much of its luster as offices with real political clout.
C) It more likely compromised the President's rivals.
D) It is smaller and employs fewer people.

Question 7

Which of the following statements about presidential power is accurate?

A) The president has enough resources for coordinating national responses during emergencies, but insufficient authority to usurp the Constitution.
B) The internal checks of the presidency were designed to be similar to the type of checks used to control the legislative branch.
C) The Constitution provides the President with a long list of enumerated powers to promote the independence of the executive branch.
D) Presidential power is absolute because of broad and easily invoked emergency powers that allow the President to gain an upper hand over his opponents.

Question 8

The President's role in 19th-century politics was which of the following?

A) It was relatively minor since newspapers rarely reported on the President and focused most of their coverage on Congress.
B) The focus was during presidential election years as presidents pulled the party train but receded into the background during midterm election years.
C) It was confined primarily to vetoing legislation and issuing executive orders.
D) It involved significant travel as the President often campaigned to win support for his legislative priorities.

Question 9

The relationship between 19th-century presidents and their cabinets was based on which of the following?

A) loyalty
B) cabinet members being the successful bidders for their posts
C) reciprocity
D) the whim of the Senate

Question 10

Which of the following take form of joint declarations between administration and a foreign government that they "agree" on how they will deal with each other?

A) signing statements
B) treaties
C) executive orders
D) executive agreements

Question 11

Congress's authority to declare war is, in most respects, a hollow check, for which of the following reasons?

A) Presidents can order an extended military engagement without a declaration of war.
B) The power to declare war is not explicitly in the Constitution.
C) A declaration of war must be submitted to the states for approval.
D) Congress must constitutionally defer to any declaration of war by a president with previous military experience.

Question 12

Examining the President's role as commander in chief reveals which of the following?

A) Presidents often commit troops and engage hostilities and then go to Congress for authority to continue.
B) Providing Congress the power to declare war has limited the role of the President in foreign affairs.
C) The worst fears of the Framers were realized because presidents take advantage of their ability to declare to protect their power.
D) The Framers got the balance of power between the executive and the legislative branches over war powers exactly right.

Question 13

What is key to creating an energetic presidency?

A) creating a plural executive so power will be shared among different individuals who can find the best solutions
B) giving the President a broad grant of power so he is capable of responding to any crisis
C) providing the President with an unlimited term so he can consider national interests
D) avoiding ambitious individuals who would use the temporary advantages conveyed by national crisis to permanently alter the constitutional order

Question 14

The President is commander in chief of the nation's armed forces because ______.

A) Congress specifically delegated this authority to the office after the Civil War
B) the Supreme Court declared this to be the case at the outset of World War I
C) the Constitution declares it
D) the states voted to transfer this power to the executive after the War of 1812

Question 15

Opposition-controlled congresses write longer laws on average because they ______.

A) try to anticipate efforts by an unsympathetic administration to suborn or redirect policy
B) are more likely to be in conflict
C) use these longer bills to "go public" and undermine public support for the President
D) are ever diligent against efforts to dissolve Congress and call for new elections

Question 16

Which of the following types of presidential powers has been consistently used by President Trump to circumvent Congress?

A) vetoes
B) memorandum
C) signing statements
D) executive orders

Question 17

Modern presidents deal with an opposition Congress using vetoes and threats but also by ______.

A) declaring a state of national emergency
B) appointing a friendly Speaker of the House of Representatives and seeking allies to occupy positions of leadership in the Senate
C) pulling decisions into the White House through executive orders, centralized administration, and broad assertions of executive privilege
D) ensuring the Senate overrides any order issued by the House

Question 18

While the modern presidency is a powerful office, its status in the constitute is subordinate to ______.

A) the federal legislature
B) the states
C) the American people
D) the Supreme Court

Question 19

The modern presidency ______.

A) looks very much like the presidency of the 19th century
B) has evolved as constitutional amendments adding presidential power were ratified
C) is powerful because of the ability to require congressional consideration of the President's agenda
D) represents a cumulative product of the changing place of Washington in national policy and world affairs

Question 20

President Obama's executive orders ______.

A) simply filled in policy gaps missing in congressional legislation
B) have declined since the Democratic Party maintains control of both chambers of Congress
C) have had little impact since they address largely symbolic issues
D) have created political tension because he has addressed controversial issues such as immigration

Question 21

The Constitution gives presidents a modest role in the legislative arena including which of the following?

A) the veto and the ability to call Congress into special session
B) signing statements
C) sending the Vice President to preside over the House of Representatives
D) the right to dissolve Congress and schedule new elections

Question 22

Which of the following statements about the President's veto is accurate?

A) The veto enables the President to exert his authority absolutely.
B) Presidents have rarely used the veto and prefer to negotiate with Congress.
C) Overriding presidential vetoes is relatively easy so presidents use the veto scarcely.
D) It allows presidents a clear, self-enforcing means of asserting their preferences.

Question 23

Delegation to the President ______.

A) is always done from programmatic necessity since the President has the ability to manage the bureaucracy effectively
B) produces tremendous responsiveness since the President depends on Congress for his budget
C) rarely produces the outcome Congress intends since the President leads a separate branch of government largely insulated from congressional control
D) creates better opportunities to implement policy since there is only one voice that develops the rules

Question 24

Which of the following statements about executive orders is accurate?

A) Executive orders are permanent and nearly impossible to change.
B) Executive orders are not laws because they are confined by the scope of discretion delegated to the President.
C) There are few disagreements on whether executive orders fall on the right side or wrong side of the Constitution's limitations.
D) Modern presidents generally do not issue many executive orders because they prefer that Congress pass laws so any decisions are permanent.

Question 25

While executive actions may have the force of law, they lack ______.

A) support
B) neutrality
C) flexibility
D) permanence

Question 26

The President's budget ______.

A) sets the basic framework for spending and taxing in the United States
B) is advisory, but Congress is required to vote on the President's budget so the voters have a clear choice of competing policy priorities
C) sets the spending priorities of the government and represents an opening bid in negotiations
D) has largely been dismantled as executive departments communicate directly with the Appropriations Committees to reduce political influences

Question 27

Which of the following presidents were proponents of the unitary theory of the presidency?

A) Reagan and W. Bush
B) Clinton and Obama
C) H. W. Bush and W. Bush
D) Johnson and Nixon

Question 28

Most executive orders ______.

A) arise from the authority and responsibilities explicitly delegated to the President by law
B) are quickly overturned by congressional action
C) fail to cite the authority that allows the President to take action
D) represent decisions by a president to disregard the plain text of the Constitution

Question 29

Which of the following has been instrumental in checking a presidents use of executive orders?

A) the courts
B) the House
C) the Senate
D) the states

Question 30

All of the following are examples of principle appointments EXCEPT for ______.

A) cabinet secretaries
B) assistant secretaries
C) undersecretaries
D) congressional secretaries

Question 31

Which of the following did President Obama use when he feared the deportation of nearly five million immigrants?

A) executive orders
B) signing statements
C) executive actions
D) presidential memorandum

Question 32

President Trump violated which of the following when he appointed an individual with an inferior office to a principle office that required Senate confirmation?

A) vacancy laws
B) Congressional rules
C) affirmative action laws
D) human resource staffing protocol

Question 33

Which of the following statements about the President's role in the legislative process is correct?

A) They start with their party allies, but while shared electoral fates provide incentives for cooperation, they will not bow to the President's wishes.
B) The President can count on absolute support of his party especially on issues he designates as priority items.
C) Cooperation with the opposition party is the norm as those partisans hope some of the President's popularity rubs off on them.
D) He generally succeeds in building bipartisan coalitions especially on matters of national security.

Question 34

Modern presidential leadership in the policymaking process is distinguished by ______.

A) complete control over the agenda and the ability to control the spending levels of government
B) reaction as Congress passes bills and presidents suggest minor alterations before signing them
C) sponsorship and promotion of major policies
D) unilateral action because congressional gridlock has become so severe that there are no other options for solving the challenges facing the United States

Question 35

The constitutional foundations of the veto ______.

A) allow the President the absolute authority to block congressional actions and completely dominate the national agenda
B) represent a carefully tailored authority to check legislative abuses while denying the executive unilateral authority
C) are not carefully delineated in the Constitution so its use is ambiguous
D) allow the President to aggressively use the veto to block legislative action

Question 36

Which of the following is true about the lawmaking powers that Congress shares with the President?

A) Power is shared through a special law that allows the President to vote in the Senate.
B) Power is shared by delegating to the executive branch the discretion to implement policy.
C) Power is shared through the line item veto.
D) Power is shared by submitting proposed laws to the secretaries of legislation for each state before holding a final vote.

Question 37

Traditionally, presidents only issued ______.

A) executive orders
B) signing statements
C) executive actions
D) presidential memorandum

Question 38

Which of the following direct agencies to take specific actions as if the president were supervising its activities?

A) executive orders
B) signing statements
C) executive actions
D) presidential memorandum

Question 39

What makes executive agreements so attractive?

A) their flexibility
B) their informality
C) the ability to bring together a divisive Congress
D) the ease of writing them

Question 40

How does Article II define executive power?

A) It is long on generalities and short on details but embodies limits on presidential discretion.
B) It defines very clearly with strict limitations on exactly what the President is permitted.
C) There are no mentions of any kind of executive power since the Framers wanted the President to act as a figure head.
D) Ambiguously, but most of the problems have been resolved with constitutional amendments strengthening presidential power.

Question 41

While helping presidents compete successfully with opposition-controlled Congresses, the development of cable television and other mass communications technology has also done which of the following?

A) eroded the President's capacity to enlist television to go public.
B) made going public more effective for presidents.
C) caused opposition parties to be less likely to win control of Congress.
D) made the Supreme Court a much more important institution regarding public policy.

Question 42

What is the name of the strategy presidents use to promote their policies by engaging in intensive public relations to induce cooperation from other elected officeholders?

A) veto bargaining
B) plebiscitary politics
C) going public
D) home style

Question 43

President Eisenhower's 1959 "goodwill tour" around the world is generally recognized as the first international presidential travel that did which of the following?

A) invited members of Congress to join the President overseas
B) constituted a president's farewell tour
C) utilized the Secret Service to protect the President
D) was taken primarily for the purpose of garnering favorable publicity

Question 44

The Office of Management and Budget ______.

A) keeps Congress well informed on international affairs
B) consents to treaties and trade agreements negotiated by the President
C) was created by Article III of the Constitution
D) is staffed by accountants, economists, and tax lawyers

Question 45

The initial period of presidential goodwill ______.

A) is marked by high levels of national support and presidents increasingly speak to bipartisan audiences
B) has gotten shorter because of partisan polarization as opponents quickly swing to disapproval so presidents often speak to audiences of like-minded partisans
C) has gotten longer because political polarization has decreased, and there is a greater interest in resolving political gridlock
D) has never really existed in the United States because presidential elections are partisan affairs so his opponents are not interested in cooperation

Question 46

Generally speaking, which of the following is true about presidential travel?

A) Each president has spent more days on foreign political travel and fewer days on domestic political travel.
B) Each president has spent more days on both foreign and domestic political travels.
C) Each president has spent more days on domestic political travel and fewer days on foreign political travel.
D) Each president has spent fewer days on both foreign and domestic political travels.

Question 47

The Brownlow Report ______.

A) was eagerly accepted by a Democratic Congress that wanted to ensure that President Roosevelt would have all the help he needed to enact the New Deal
B) was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, and this led President Roosevelt to propose significant changes to the Court
C) was stymied by legislative gridlock and President Roosevelt was forced to rely on his executive authority to get the help he needed
D) ignored the fact that the Constitution withholds the kind of authority from the President that CEOs typically enjoy, and Congress initially rebuffed the proposal and only relented to a scaled-down proposal

Question 48

The President's leadership of public opinion ______.

A) depends on the public's appraisal of him as president, and appeals from unpopular presidents are likely to be ignored
B) is exceptionally strong because he can command so much public attention and has access to more information
C) is nonexistent because of the growth of cable television and social media making it easier for the public to ignore the President
D) is effective only on foreign policy issues where the public tends not to have well-formed attitudes

Question 49

The White House Office ______.

A) is responsible for managing most aspects of executive branch agencies
B) is larger and more complex because of the expanded responsibilities of presidents and the centralization of tasks that used to be performed in agencies and departments
C) has a budget that is controlled by the President with little congressional input so the President can receive the best possible advice
D) was abolished after Watergate and its responsibilities were returned to the departments and agencies

Question 50

It was fitting that a separate presidential staff would arise during Roosevelt's presidency because ______.

A) Roosevelt persuaded Congress to create many relief agencies outside of the bureaucracy so this increased management responsibilities for the President
B) fighting a two-front war combined with managing the economy increased the demands for information
C) Congress was willing to give the President whatever he wanted since there was unified Democratic control
D) Roosevelt's management skills were so poor that the existing bureaucracy no longer wanted to oversee federal programs

Question 51

The two critical elements of the Executive Office of the President are the ______.

A) National Security Council and the Bureau of the Budget
B) Office of Management and Budget and the White House Office
C) Congressional Budget Office and the Administrative Office of U.S. Courts
D) White House Travel Office and the Office of Personnel Management

Question 52

Which of the following is TRUE about the line item veto?

A) It was struck down by the Supreme Court as violating the Constitution's separation of powers doctrine.
B) It was upheld by the Court as constitutional but subsequently repealed by Congress.
C) It was achieved by court action.
D) It was passed by the House but defeated by a filibuster in the Senate.

Question 53

Which of the following statements about presidential management is accurate?

A) To foster the best possible atmosphere, presidents try to maintain a collegial style.
B) Since the establishment of the White House Office, every president has utilized a Chief of Staff to maintain order and discipline.
C) Even with the chief of staff system modern presidents use, every recent president has experienced serious staffing problems that have erupted into public controversy, if not scandal.
D) The relatively small size of the President's staff makes it easy for presidents to supervise and get the information they need.

Question 54

Signing statements are ______.

A) the text of the President's remarks when signing bills
B) the recommendations from the Office of Management and Budget about the budgetary impact of bills
C) declarations presidents sometimes issue when approving a bill that they will not enforce or implement certain provisions of a bill
D) the explanation the President provides when exercising his ability to strike out objectionable parts of bills that he signs into law

Question 55

It is possible to view the institutional presidency as ______.

A) a great drain on the resources of the federal government
B) the glue that enables the federal government to operate under increased policy demands
C) an effective counterweight to the expertise Congress possesses on most matters of public policy
D) a presidential branch of the government separate and apart from the executive branch that attempts to coordinate the executive and legislative branches in its own behalf

Question 56

In 1937, the President's Committee on Administrative Management, also known as the Brownlow Committee, concluded its detailed analysis of the state of the presidency with which of the following?

A) "The President needs help."
B) "There is no need to expand the administrative capabilities of the presidency."
C) "The President can no longer be subjected to congressional budgetary control."
D) "There is a cancer on the presidency, that is growing."

Question 57

Veto threats ______.

A) must be credible, explicit, and public to be effective
B) are often communicated privately to Congress so that both sides can find room for compromise
C) are generally ineffective because members of Congress do not like presidents trying to tell them how to do their job
D) have declined in popularity as presidents have found other tools for influencing Congress

Question 58

Franklin Roosevelt required all department communications to Congress that could affect future budgets be cleared through the Bureau of the Budget, the predecessor to ______.

A) the Office of Management and Budget
B) the Internal Revenue Service
C) the Trilateral Commission
D) Department of the Treasury

Question 59

Today, appearing on prime time television is the most dramatic way of going public ______.

A) so almost every week modern presidents appear in prime time to push their policies
B) although the public is more responsive to radio addresses than television appearances
C) but presidents rely on it sparingly so they won't lose the public's attention
D) so presidents frequently try to appear on reality television shows

Question 60

The institutional presidency describes ______.

A) the formal powers of the President
B) the set of offices and staff created to assist the President
C) the various Cabinet positions created to manage the executive branch
D) the division of powers among various actors in the executive branch

Question 61

What is "institutional presidency?" Be sure to address when and how it arose as well as its defining characteristics.

Question 62

President Roosevelt relied on staff competition to solve the dependency problem that afflicts all principals who rely on agents for information and advice.

Question 63

How has the institution of the presidency evolved?

Question 64

What is the purpose of the White House Office?

Question 65

What is the President's role in the budgetary process?

Question 66

Presidents have always had a large role as a government actor in the history of the United States.

Question 67

The delegates to the Constitutional Convention struggled with putting the military under the control of a single individual, and one delegate proposed limiting the size of the army.

Question 68

Presidents justify their signing statements by arguing that provisions are unconstitutional either directly or by infringing on the discretionary prerogatives of the President.

Question 69

Explain the veto game.

Question 70

Explain the assertion that "Congress's authority to declare war is, in most respects, a hollow check."

Question 71

What is the Executive Office of the President?

Question 72

The size of the President's staff has generally remained small to promote effective oversight of executive branch activities.

Question 73

Since 1989, U.S. armed forces have almost been continuously engaged somewhere in the world.

Question 74

How do modern presidents deal with an opposition Congress?

Question 75

The President's personal staff system is based in the White House Office.

Question 76

At the party nominating conventions, presidential candidates were valued a great deal more for their widespread popular appeal and willingness to distribute patronage than their policy pronouncements.

Question 77

How does the President function as the chief executive?

Question 78

The State of the Union address has been diminished in importance so presidents simply send a written message to Congress instead of making a prime-time address.

Question 79

How do presidents utilize the bully pulpit and is it always successful?

Question 80

Probably no more than half of the President's legislative proposals are considered by congressional committee or subcommittee.