Question 1

In the modern era, Congress can still issue extensive rules for executive agencies to follow, as it did in earlier times.Since the New Deal era of Franklin D.Roosevelt and growth of the federal government, however, it has been more likely to give the executive branch broad grants of authority to carry out policy goals.Although Congress has usually given these delegated powers to specific agencies, presidents have:

Accepted Answer

Presidents have found ways to take quite a few of these powers for themselves, often through executive orders and other means, even though Congress typically delegates powers to specific agencies.

Question 2

Which term describes an understanding between the president and another country that has the force of a treaty but does not require a two-thirds vote of approval by the Senate?

Accepted Answer

An executive agreement is an understanding between the president and another country that has the force of a treaty but does not require Senate approval.

Question 3

How can a presidential veto be overridden?

Accepted Answer

A presidential veto can be overridden by a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Question 4

With the Electoral College, the Constitution's framers wanted to create a presidency that would be more responsible to _____________________ than the people.

Accepted Answer

The framers of the Constitution designed the Electoral College to ensure that the president would be more accountable to state and local legislators, rather than directly to the people, as a way to balance power between populous and less populous states.

Question 5

The American president exercises a measure of judicial authority through his or her power to:

Accepted Answer

The American president has the power to grant reprieves, pardons, and amnesties, which are forms of judicial authority allowing the president to forgive or lessen the penalties for federal offenses.

Question 6

Presidents appoint all federal judges-from the federal district level to the appeals courts to the Supreme Court:

Accepted Answer

The U.S. Constitution requires that the President appoints federal judges with the advice and consent of the Senate, not the entire Congress.

Question 7

When presidents have claimed the power to take an action not enumerated in the Constitution, as Lincoln did when suspending the writ of habeas corpus during the Civil War or Truman did in sending American military forces into the Korean conflict, they have been more likely to do so by claiming that these actions are justified by the president's inherent powers, as stemming from:

Accepted Answer

Presidents have often claimed inherent powers based on the rights, duties, and obligations of the presidency, especially in situations involving national defense, war, or emergencies.

Question 8

When the president takes no action on a bill for over 10 days, and Congress is not in session, what happens to the bill?

Accepted Answer

If the president takes no action on a bill for over 10 days while Congress is not in session, the bill dies through a "pocket veto."

Question 9

Two recent presidents exercised unilateral power in America's Gulf Coast region.First, President George W.Bush sent military units there in 2005 in response to Hurricane Katrina and associated flooding in Louisiana, Mississippi, and parts of neighboring states.A few years later, President Obama sent Coast Guard staff and teams to the same region, in response to the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill.What allowed them to do this?

Accepted Answer

Both presidents declared states of emergency, which allowed them to exercise unilateral power to deploy federal resources and personnel to address the crises.

Question 10

Which of the following was true of the line-item veto power, as approved by Congress in the mid-1990s, while Bill Clinton was president?

Accepted Answer

The Supreme Court ruled in 1998 that the line-item veto was unconstitutional because it violated the Presentment Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

Question 11

Presidential powers that the Constitution explicitly grants are called __________.

Accepted Answer

Presidential powers that the Constitution explicitly grants are called expressed powers.

Question 12

In 1793, President George Washington received Edmond Genet as an emissary of the French government, then in the midst of a revolution, he gave a tacit recognition to that country's new and controversial regime.In so doing, he transformed the Constitution's executive power to "receive Ambassadors and other public Ministers" into a power to:

Accepted Answer

By receiving Edmond Genet, Washington effectively recognized the new French government, thus exercising the power to recognize other countries and their governments.

Question 13

When the Obama administration refused to comply with a congressional subpoena for documents related to Operation Fast and Furious, a Justice Department program created to combat drug trafficking, it did so by citing executive privilege.In so doing, he was following the example of many past presidents, especially those serving after Richard Nixon, because:

Accepted Answer

The Supreme Court recognized the validity of executive privilege in the case involving Nixon's Watergate tapes, establishing a precedent for its use by future presidents.

Question 14

When the president takes no action on a bill for over 10 days, and Congress is in session, what happens to the bill?

Accepted Answer

If the president takes no action on a bill for over 10 days while Congress is in session, the bill automatically becomes law without the president's signature.

Question 15

Congress's ______________, passed in the early 1970s in the wake of the Vietnam conflict, declared that the president can send troops into action abroad only by authorization of Congress, or if U.S.troops are already under attack or seriously threatened.

Accepted Answer

The War Powers Resolution Act, passed in 1973, was designed to limit the U.S. President's ability to initiate or escalate military actions abroad without Congressional approval.

Question 16

Who has the highest military authority in the United States, with control of the entire military establishment?

Accepted Answer

The President of the United States holds the highest military authority as the commander in chief, with ultimate control over the entire military establishment.

Question 17

The Constitution grants the power to declare war to:

Accepted Answer

The Constitution grants the power to declare war to Congress.

Question 18

When President Trump called on Congress to repeal or replace the Affordable Care Act (popularly known as Obamacare) during his first year in office, he was exercising _____________, despite a lack of success.In so doing, he echoed President Obama, who did the same in setting goals for and working with members of Congress on health-care reform during his first year.

Accepted Answer

Legislative initiative refers to the president's power to propose legislation and work with Congress to achieve policy goals, which is what both President Trump and President Obama did regarding health-care reform.

Question 19

Although the veto is one of the president's most formidable powers, recent presidents have rarely used it.This is likely because:

Accepted Answer

The threat of a veto can influence legislators to modify a bill to avoid an actual veto, making the use of the veto itself less necessary.

Question 20

Could an American president decide, unilaterally, to recognize a breakaway or secessionist country's legitimacy by receiving its emissaries, even if the country it broke off from objected?

Accepted Answer

The President of the United States has the constitutional authority to recognize foreign governments and receive ambassadors, which includes the ability to recognize breakaway or secessionist entities.

Quiz 6: The Presidency