American Presidency
How Presidents can influence the policymaking process to suit their needs

constitution has created the executive branch and the executive power vested in the hands of the president. In fact, the president cannot act in isolation in running the executive branch. The president depends on the executive office staff and agencies like office of management and council of economic advisors and the policy development offices like the National Security Council. Further, the president selects individual cabinet members who lead the cabinet departments and other non-cabinet-level agencies. All these are mandated to interpret and implement laws passed by congress. All these departments act as advisors, formulating policies, and identifying issues for presidential consideration. In theory, all these divisions of the executive branch function in furthering the goals set by the president.

The presidents

The presidents are the heads of the federal executive branch. As strong as this might sound, the founders of the….

The second section examines the processes of the Constitutional Convention, the rectification of the weak Articles of Confederation, the ratification of the new Constitution, and the Washington and Jeffersonian Administrations. The first presidents had to try to make sense of the wording of the new document and put the presidency's ideals into practice. The third section examines the evolving role of presidents from Jackson to the present and how they defined the role in relationship to the legislative and judicial branches, public opinion, historical events, and foreign affairs.
McDonald notes that although Democrats today tend to be most critical of so-called imperially styled presidents, it was Republicans who decried the increasingly powerful office of the presidency during the Roosevelt and Johnson administrations, and only later did the two parties flip-flop, after Nixon created what would later be called the imperial presidency by Democrats. This suggests that there is less of….

By comparison, Adams "never accepted the necessity of parties, platforms, compromise, and cooperation. Believing that the president should remain above partisan politics he was incapable of manipulating support for his policies or of putting together a congressional majority in support of his initiatives. Above all, John Adams had not accepted the presidency to serve special interest. His role, as he saw it, was not to be guided by the people so much as it was to educate and guide them" (Urofsky, 2000). This aspect was crucial for the presidency of Adams because it left him with less support among the population and in the Congress, reason for which his initiatives were not considered either priority or a rule.
One of the most important achievements of the Adams administration was the creation of the United States Navy in cooperation with the French state. At the same time though, during Adam's presidency,….

By Chapter 11 McDonald begins discussing how presidents from ashington on dealt with the law based on the Constitution. And while federal law gradually gave way to state and local laws, because some issues and problems were simply easier to deal with at the local and regional level, it was also true that presidents and their attorneys general had problems enforcing what federal laws did require federal jurisdiction. Part of this problem, McDonald write on page 285, was "the penchant of Congress to enact bad legislation"; bills that were well intentioned turned out to be "poorly crafted," or plainly impossible to enforce. The author gives examples of laws that attempted to legislate morality, that didn't work; the "Mann Act," which made it a federal crime to "transport a female across state lines for 'immoral purposes'"; and the Volstead Act (prohibition), which attempted to ban the sale or production of booze.

The….

At the same time it was the fatal mistake that provoked and legitimized resistance to the revolutionary presidency." The Watergate scandal and the events leading to it were, from the perspective of the components mentioned above, the manifestation of both an imperial presidency visible in the way in which Nixon tackled the issue of Vietnam, and a revolutionary presidency, as the resignation of the president marked the beginning of a new period in the history of the presidential administrations.
The example of the Vietnam War is probably one of the most representatives for the issue under discussion, the idea of imperial presidency. In this sense, the author considers the right of Nixon to wage war against the authorization of the Congress. The main justification for the continuation of the war in Vietnam was the title of the president as Commander in Chief

Overall, the perspective offered by the book is both….

McDonald also covers the evolution of the presidency, noting that the "level of expectation has been accelerated over the years by developments in the technology and communications" (278). In addition, the perception of the president has changed as well. As a society, we come to expect more from our president. In addition, the current-day president faces more perils than the president did one hundred years ago.
McDonald also delves into the responsibilities of the president, from executing laws to how he handles his administration. A close observation of the how the administration works allows us to see how things have evolved over decades. McDonald describes a paralysis that evolved over years regarding Congress and how it interacts with the president. He asserts that the "history of the presidency in the twentieth century has been a history of presidents' attempts to gain control of the sprawling federal bureaucracy" (329).

The primary theme….

The Despotism of Federalism Why Hamilton was Wrong Stephen Knott opens his book by quoting Alexander Hamilton, the original promoter of despotism, who, via The Federalist Papers, advocated for a strong central government—like that which the American Revolutionaries had just opposed in the Revolutionary War. It is ironic because, in that opening quote, Hamilton is talking about the risk of despotism, a risk which he made all but certain would become a real problem, as the Anti-Federalists pointed out. Jefferson was one of these, and Jefferson is criticized in the book as a populist president who thought he knew better than the framers of the Constitution. It is my argument that he did know better and that the framers of the Constitution—particularly Hamilton—were power-hungry centrists craving the moment when they themselves could demonstrate the kind of despotism they lamented in their writings. Such despotism is seen all throughout the history of….

Kennedy, would be gunned down in Dallas only a few years later. Yet he insightfully points out that the president, in every historical era, has to deal with the lunatic fringes as well as the most well structured verbal and political offensive. ossiter writes, "The American Presidency is not universally admired. Most of us may think of it as a choice instrument of constitutional government, but there are loud dissenters in this country, especially in deep right field, and sharp dissenters abroad, especially in those happy lands where the parliamentary system is counted a success. If the opinions of the former are generally too mixed up with politics to demand serious attentions, the opinion of the latter deserve a hearing and rebuttal."
The assassination of John Kennedy and the right wing fervor over the current president's actions and policy tie well together using the framework that ossiter employs to examine….

American history as it relates to the first five Presidents of the United States. Specifically, it will discuss the impact of early leaders of America on the democratic government, and how the first five presidents impacted early American government. It will also look at the accomplishments of each president and different facts about each that contributed positively and negatively on America as it formed as a nation. The first five presidents of the United States were George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroe. Each man influenced American history in his own unique and significant ways, with both positive and negative results. These leaders were really creating the office of President as they tried to run the country with intelligence and finesse. Their accomplishments were not always perfect, but they did the best they could with the knowledge and resources available at the time.
THE IMPACT OF….

American Expansion
American Territorial Expansion: The Louisiana Purchase

American territorial expansion was the top priority of ashington DC for every decade of the 19th century, including the Civil ar years. The new territory all came to Americans through treaties or conquest, and thus promoted the isolationist "Manifest Destiny" prerogative of strengthening the American continent. The earliest and largest territorial expansion of the 19th century was the Louisiana Purchase, doubling the size of the American states. The Louisiana Purchase was made with the short-term bolstering of Thomas Jefferson's government in the near-term, yet with deep concerns for the security of the new land and how and who should settle the land in the long-term.

The Louisiana Purchase was not a decision taken lightly by then President Thomas Jefferson, who felt that it would be difficult for the young America to take full possession of the territory, and thus sign the country into a future….

His accomplishments included simplifying government jobs, and helping create the Democratic Party. He is most remembered as a great general and for defying Congress. Martin Van Buren served from 1837 to 1841. He was married to Hannah, and he died in 1862. His vice-president was ichard Johnson, and his nickname was the "Little Magician." His accomplishments included regulating banks and federal funds, and creating an independent treasury. He is most remembered for the Panic of 1837, and for being opposed to slavery. William Henry Harrison served in 1841 and died after only one month in office. He was married to Anna. His vice-president was John Tyler. He is most remembered for being the first president to die in office. John Tyler served from 1841 to 1845. He was married to Letitia and then Julia and he died in 1862. His nickname was "Old Tippecanoe." His accomplishments included annexing Texas….

Suppose I was asked to donate money to "Citizens for Better Schools," what would I need to find out about the group first? The first thing would be find out if they are a bona fide public charity -- a 501 C3 -- and if they were, I would examine their bylaws and mission statement. Secondly, I would locate board members and examine public statements they have made and projects they have injected themselves into. Something with a vague title like this one has could actually be a protest group trying to remove certain board members from the school board or they might be advocating to have the science textbooks changed so evolution isn't taught. I would also look through newspaper reports to find what the group has been advocating in its public pronouncements.

Should journalists have the right to protect their sources? The answer is yes. One example relates to….

Alexander Hamilton carried on an affair with the wife of "a notorious political schemer," Maria Reynolds. Andrew Jackson married Rachel Jackson before her divorce from Lewis Robards was finalized and therefore was accused of marrying a married woman. Jackson's opponent in 1828, John Quincy Adams, was in turn accused of "corrupt bargaining" during his term. Jackson also championed Margaret O'Neill Timberlake, who married his secretary of war, John Eaton. "Peggy O'Neill" was considered a woman of "questionable virtue," and as a result Martin Van Buren became Jackson's successor in the presidency. After the death of Jackson and Eaton, Peggy married a 19-year-old dance teacher (which raised eyebrows, as she was 59), who embezzled her money and ran off to Europe with her 17-year-old granddaughter.
Other scandals concerned Richard Mentor Johnson, who ran for vice president in 1836 with Martin Van Buren. He supposedly shot Tecumseh during the ar of 1812,….

Other Congressional Democrats too are withdrawing their support of the president, including Senator Paul Kirk, Jr. Of Massachusetts. Health care reform too has seen a parting of the ways for some Democrats and the president.
Health care reform was one of the primary issues President Obama focused on during his campaign. The historic vote in the House of epresentatives brought him one step closer to seeing this reform come to fruition. However, the vote revealed a significant decline in the president's support. Whereas all but one epublican voted for the bill, almost 20% of Democrats voted against Obama's flagship piece of legislation, allowing to pass by a very slim 220-215 vote ("Final vote," 2009). The Senate has yet to vote on the bill, but with a similar composition as the House, the vote is certainly to be close. Immigration reform too was a topic Obama espoused to voters along the….

It was during the same period that hostilities with the communist leadership culminated into the bombing of Libya, loggerheads with the Soviet Union and a stiff arms race with the U.S.S.R.
It is also significant to note that it was during the same time that he successfully engaged Mikhail Gorbachev who was then the Soviet General secretary and culminated into the signing of Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty that signaled the end in arms race and both countries agreed to decrease in nuclear weapons in their custody.

Upon ascending to presidency, Reagan was bent on introducing new political as well as economic dispensations radically. He advocated more for supply-side economics which saw him push for reduction of tax rates to speed up economic growth, money supply control to check inflation, reduction of regulation on the economy particularly business to encourage competitive and free-market free for all which as a matter of….