Deck 4: Congress and the President

Question 1

Article II enumerates specific powers granted to the president. These include the authority to _____.

A) nominate federal judges
B) suspend writs of habeas corpus
C) withhold privileged communications
D) all of the above

Answer 1

A

Question 2

The _____ theory holds that the president's constitutional power extends to anything not expressly forbidden, so long as it serves the public interest, and does not conflict with existing legislation.

A) literalist/limiting
B) constitutional
C) stewardship
D) originalist

Answer 2

C

Question 3

The president most closely identified with the constitutional theory of the presidency is ____.

A) Taft
B) George Washington
C) Theodore Roosevelt
D) Lyndon Johnson

Answer 3

A

Question 4

The case of _____ stemmed from a treaty between the United States and Canada designed to protect migratory birds.

A) Missouri v. Holland (1920)
B) United States v. Belmont (1937)
C) United States v. Pink (1942)
D) Goldwater v. Carter (1979)

Question 5

In _____ the Supreme Court rejected the president's inherent power to authorize military tribunals to try civilians where civilian courts were open and fully operating.

A) Goldwater v. Carter (1979)
B) Ex Parte Milligan (1868)
C) Myers v. United States (1926)
D) Ex Parte Merryman (1861)

Question 6

The 1973 War Powers Act (or Resolution) was an attempt to _____.

A) enhance presidential war-making powers
B) increase congressional control over presidential war-making activities
C) limit congressional power in foreign policy
D) improve the ability of Congress to respond to a nuclear crisis

Question 7

The Supreme Court is least likely to sustain the exercise of executive authority when the president is acting _____.

A) as commander-in-chief
B) on the basis of power delegated by Congress
C) in the negotiation of a treaty
D) without statutory authority in the negotiation of domestic policy

Question 8

In Youngstown Sheet and Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952), the Supreme Court _____.

A) upheld the president's power to seize the steel mill in national emergencies
B) held that Congress could not authorize the president to seize the steel mill in national emergencies
C) held that the president's seizure of the steel mill during a time of national emergency was unconstitutional
D) held that the president was obligated, under his responsibility to "take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed," to seize the steel mill to avert a strike during the Korean War

Question 9

_____ would most clearly justify the president's removal of an American ambassador because his or her views were not compatible with those of the administration.

A) Bowsher v. Synar (1986)
B) Ex Parte Merryman (1861)
C) Myers v. United States (1926)
D) Humphrey's Executor v. United States (1935)

Question 10

The Supreme Court last held an act of Congress unconstitutional on nondelegation grounds in _____.

A) Schecter Poultry Corporation v. United States (1935)
B) United States v. Curtiss-Wright Corporation (1936)
C) Carter v. Carter Coal Co. (1936)
D) Mistretta v. United States (1988)

Question 11

In Morrison v. Olson (1988), the Supreme Court upheld a provision of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 under which a "Special Division" of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia was empowered to appoint _____.

A) federal marshals
B) independent counsels
C) federal magistrates
D) special jurists

Question 12

President Nixon claimed that he should not have to comply with a subpoena demanding that he provide certain tape recordings to a federal district court because the subpoena violated _____.

A) his right against Self-incrimination
B) his right to Confrontation
C) Executive Privilege
D) Due Process

Question 13

According to Supreme Court doctrine, which of the following statements, if any, is true? _____

A) A president is immune from a civil lawsuit that arises out of his unofficial conduct that occurred prior to him becoming president.
B) A president is entitled to absolute immunity from damages liability predicated on his official acts.
C) A president may never be subject to a criminal investigation or civil action so long as he is "in office".
D) None of the above statements is true.

Question 14

Members of Congress are not legally accountable for statements made in their official capacity under the _____ Clause of Article I.

A) Due Process Clause
B) Immunity
C) Speech and Debate Clause
D) Membership

Question 15

In Watkins v. United States (1957), the Supreme Court held that _____.

A) there is no congressional power to expose for the sake of exposure
B) Watkins's First Amendment interests were overridden by Congress's in ensuring society's self-preservation
C) Watkins's impeachment conviction was constitutional even though the full Senate did not investigate the charges
D) Watkins's speech on the chamber floor was protected by the Constitution; his press release was unprotected

Question 16

In Nixon v. United States (1993), the Supreme Court held that _____.

A) Nixon's claim of absolute privilege was invalid
B) Nixon's impeachment, conviction, and removal was unconstitutional
C) Nixon's conviction and removal by the Senate was a political question, and thus nonjusticiable
D) none of the above

Question 17

In United States v. Pink (1942), the Supreme Court held that _____ carry the same weight as _____.

A) executive arrangements; executive agreements
B) executive agreements; treaties
C) treaties; federal law
D) executive orders; acts of Congress

Question 18

A treaty obligation entered into by the United States may be terminated _____.

A) only by Congress
B) by a state law
C) by an act of the president
D) by popular referendum authorized by Congress

Question 19

The importance of presidential power in enforcing a constitutional decision of the Supreme Court is well illustrated by the circumstances surrounding _____.

A) Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)
B) South Dakota v. Dole (1987)
C) Cooper v. Aaron (1958)
D) Hutchinson v. Proxmire (1979)

Question 20

In Trump v. Vance (2020), Cyrus Vance, Jr., is a

A) U. S. senator
B) member of the U. S. house of Representatives
C) prosecutor
D) governor

Question 21

In Trump v. Hawaii (2018), the principal constitutional question involved

A) the establishment clause
B) right to counsel
C) taxation
D) congressional immunity

Question 22

Discuss the grounds on which Justice Scalia dissented in Morrison v. Olson (1988).

Question 23

State the holding and significance of INS v. Chadha (1983). What is the "Hobson's choice" left for Congress?

Question 24

Articulate the primary justification(s) for striking down the line-item veto in Clinton v. City of New York (1998).

Question 25

A central issue in constitutional politics involves whether the authority granted in Article II exhausts the powers of the president. To what extent does the president enjoy inherent powers and extraordinary powers in times of emergency? Scholars disagree on this important question. Discuss the several theories of presidential power. Demonstrate the Supreme Court's acceptance or rejection of these theories by relying on cases we have discussed this semester. Be specific. To which theory (or theories) has the Supreme Court ascribed and why? In what circumstances? To which theory (or theories) did the Framers probably subscribe and why? Support your conclusions.

Question 26

The Supreme Court has ruled on a number of challenges to the administration of George W. Bush's claim that it had the power to detain indefinitely U.S. citizens held as "enemy combatants"; and to detain indefinitely and try by military tribunal, without and with limited appeal, foreign nationals who had been seized on battlefields and held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. These cases-Hamdi v. Rumsfeld (2004), Rasul v. Bush (2004), Hamdan v. Rumsfeld (2006), and Boumediene v. Bush (2008)-illustrate well the basic constitutional dilemma in enforcing constraints on presidential power to wage war. Focusing primarily on the last two cases, discuss the Court's conclusions, explaining the applicable presidential directives, laws, treaties, writs, and precedents. To what extent do these cases demonstrate that restraints on presidential power to wage war remain in the hands of Congress?

Question 27

In what way did Nixon v. Fitzgerald (1982) strengthen the presidency? Explain. Justice White in dissent insisted that the majority's position amounted to a "reversion to the old notion that the King can do no wrong." To what extent did Justice Powell's opinion of the Court effectively answer White's charge? Explain.

Question 28

In light of both Myers v. United States (1926) and Humphrey's Executor v. United States (1935), do you find Chief Justice Rehnquist's opinion for the majority in Morrison v. Olson (1988) persuasive? Why? Explain.
a. Justice Scalia wrote in dissent that the title of the statute being challenged in Clinton v. City of New York "has succeeded in faking out the Supreme Court." What did he mean?
b. On what basis did Justice Breyer argue in his dissent in the same case that "one cannot say that the Act 'encroaches' upon Congress's power?" Do you agree? Why?

Question 29

Supreme Court decisions in recent decades on separation-of-powers issues generally reflect one of two approaches. Some decisions adopt a "flexible" approach, while others follow a "rigid" approach. Which approach better characterizes the majority's position in Morrison v. Olson (1988)? Why? Which approach better characterizes the majority's position in Clinton v. City of New York (1998)? Why?

Question 30

In his dissent in INS v. Chadha, what point was Justice White making when he wrote: "a departure from the status quo occurs only upon the concurrence of opinion among the House, Senate, and President"? Explain.

Question 31

The Supreme Court has rendered two major decisions on the subject of presidential immunity to personal liability in a civil action brought against
him: Nixon v. Fitzgerald and Clinton v. Jones. One decision favored the president, but the other did not. Is the Court guilty of inconsistency? Explain.

Question 32

Dissenting in Mistretta v. United States, Justice Scalia declared: "Today's decision may aptly be described as the Humphrey's Executor of the Judicial Branch...." What did Scalia probably mean?

Question 33

Regarding INS. v. Chadha (1983):
a. What fatal defect did the Court's majority find in the legislative (or congressional) veto?
b. Aside from believing that the legislative veto had "become a central means by which Congress secures the accountability of executive and independent agencies," Justice White said in his dissent that he was convinced that the device, first used in 1932, was "consistent with the distribution of and limits upon legislative power that Article I provides...." What did he mean?

Question 34

"Justice Sutherland's opinion for the Court in United States v. Curtiss-Wright can be read as discourse on federalism as well as separation of powers." Discuss.

Question 35

Constitutional challenges to particular legislation and practices prevailed in INS v. Chadha and Clinton v. City of New York but not in Morrison v. Olson. (Interestingly, the division in none of the cases was particularly close: Chadha was decided 7-2, Morrison 6-2, and Clinton 6-3.) Yet, has the Supreme Court been inconsistent in its approach to these three separation-of-powers cases? Alternatively, does each majority opinion share one or more common elements or rationalizing principles with the majority opinions in the other two that makes each outcome consistent with the others?

Question 36

If the Supreme Court decided Nixon v. Fitzgerald correctly, how can the Court also be correct in Clinton v. Jones?

Question 37

Articulate the primary justification(s) for striking down the line-item veto in Clinton v. City of New York.

Question 38

Did the Supreme Court's decisions in Trump v. Mazars and Trump v. Vance affect the presidency or only Donald Trump?