The President was given these powers:
1) Sign legislation into law & enforce laws made by Congress
2) Conduct foreign affairs (Only the Congress has the power to declare War).
He shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to make treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur
3) Command the military
4) Appoint executive & judicial officers
He shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the United States, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law.
Were the Czars established by law - with the advice and consent of the Senate?
5) Reprieve or pardon persons accused of crimes
He shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in cases of impeachment
Were all people who were pardoned by Presidents convicted for offenses against the United States?
6) Veto bills passed by Congress
7) The Constitution provides one additional power - only in extreme circumstances:
He may, on extraordinary occasions, convene both Houses, or either of them, and in case of disagreement between them, with respect to the time of adjournment, he may adjourn them to such time as he shall think proper.
These powers were considered TOO EXTENSIVE by many Americans & initiated a fight against ratification of the Constitution.
To make the President accountable, the Constitution requires that he report to the Congress:
He shall from time to time give to the Congress information of the state of the union, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.
The Constitution, for the most part, ignored the responsibilities of the Vice President. He is given only one official duty - to preside over the Senate. He is not allowed to vote in the Senate, except where there is a tie.
The Constitution initially did not state that the Vice President becomes President in the event of death, resignation, or impeachment of the President. Although it was an established custom, the right of the Vice President to assume the office was formally approved in 1967 with the 25th Amendment.
Now, I ask one question: Can you associate a power, that the Constitution provides to the President, with what he is doing now?
I will grant that he can "recommend to their (the Congresses) consideration" measures he judges to be necessary. The important word in that statement is "recommend".
Ok, I started reading now and you have some corrections that need to be made.
ReplyDelete1) Only Congress can Declare War (Article I, Section 8)
2) The President only "commands the military" when the military is "called into actual service of the United States", ie, a Declaration of war.
The President cannot assume these powers, nor can Congress give them to him without our permission through the Amendment Process.
The President was NOT to have any powers could lead the country to war nor was he to have any authority over military forces except after a Declaration of War. This was precisely to ward off tyranny.
Although you mentioned it, I think it needs to be made to clearer, the Presidents treaty making and appointment powers are subject to 2/3's concent of the Senate. Under the Constitution, the President does not have these powers without the Senates approval, this includes Presidential Treaties and/or Executive Agreements.
Thank you for the correction. I will edit the blog immediately. I knew that 2/3 of the Congress needed to consent to both a treaty and a Declaration of War but thought that the President could initiate this & give it to the Congress. The way I wrote it does make it seem that the President by himself can declare war.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking about Pearl Harbor, where FDR went on the radio & announced that a "State of War now exists". I don't think the Congress had approved it yet but I could be wrong - FDR may have waited for the official declaration of war by the Congress before making that statement.
Under the War Powers Act of 1973 (http://www.thecre.com/fedlaw/legal22/warpow.htm), the Chief Executive may commit U.S. troops to combat without Congressional approval at that time. There are provisions in the Act which, later, involve congress. Our current situation in Iraq was ratified by Congress with the enactment of the "Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq" (P.L. 107-243), in October 2002.
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