Informal Sources of Presidential Power

Test yourself on Informal Sources of Presidential Power

After reading these notes, test your knowledge with free interactive questions on Seneca — used by over 10 million students.

Informal Powers

Some of the informal sources of presidential power include the electoral mandate, executive orders and key national events. Informal powers are not stated in the Constitution.

The electoral mandate

Being elected gives the president the mandate to carry out policies outlined in the election campaign.
An electoral mandate is important as a president elected with a large majority has a stronger mandate to carry out their policies than a president with a smaller majority of the vote.
- Barack Obama had a large majority winning 52.9% of the popular vote in 2008.
- George W. Bush had a smaller mandate than many presidents with 47.9% of the popular vote, which was less than the opponent he defeated, Al Gore.

Limits to the electoral mandate

An electoral mandate is limited in the power it gives the president because Congress can block the president’s legislative proposals.
- President Obama won a large victory in the 2008 election, but after the 2010 midterms, lots of legislation was blocked by the House of Representatives in Congress, where the opposition Republican party had a majority.

Executive orders

Executive orders are documents which have the effect of law and are drafted by the government.
Executive orders give the president the power to manage certain federal government operations and direct government officials to act.
Executive orders are presidential powers which are not written in the Constitution.
- President Trump used an executive order to ban immigrants from certain majority-Muslim countries in 2017.

National events

Specific national events can give the president power because they enable the president to become a symbol of national unity and highly popular.
- President Bush gained lots of support after the 9/11 terrorist attacks and had the power to begin his war on terror.

Informal Power: The Cabinet

The cabinet is a group of advisors to the president who support the president in decision making and in the federal government’s work.

Membership and recruitment

The cabinet is made up of the 15 executive department heads, in addition to other officials appointed by the president.
The president chooses cabinet members mainly from Congress, city mayors, state governors or academics from universities.
- Cabinet members cannot also be members of Congress. John Kerry resigned from the Senate when appointed as Secretary of State by President Obama in 2013.
The president wants cabinet members who are specialists in policy areas of the department which they head.

Cabinet power for the president

The cabinet gives the president power to present ‘big picture items’ which affect the cabinet such as major legislation, the budget and elections
Presidents try to unite their cabinet at the start of their administration into a team that will move forward with the president’s agenda.
Presidents use their cabinet to look collegial and open to consulting others in the government on policies and issues.
Cabinet meetings can be used by presidents to check on legislation of interest to them which is passing through Congress.

Significance of the cabinet

The cabinet fulfils key functions for cabinet members, including resolving disputes between government departments and provides a chance for interaction with the president.
The cabinet fulfils key functions for the president.
Cabinet members are among the most important in the executive branch as they are heads of the main state departments.

Insignificance of the cabinet

EXOP has grown in importance for the president with more access than the cabinet and has become the main source of advice for the president.
The Constitution gives all executive power to the president rather than the cabinet, with cabinet members not equals of the president.
Cabinet officers have divided loyalties, and have loyalties other than to the president, including loyalty to their own department.

Informal Power: EXOP

The Executive Office of the President (EXOP) is an organisation made up of top White House staff agencies that provide support and advice for the president.

EXOP

The EXOP was created in 1939 following the Brownlow Committee report which found that the president needed help.
The EXOP consists of several offices, including the National Security Council, Office of Management and Budget, and the White House Office.

National Security Council (NSC)

The National Security Council supports the president in coordinating foreign policy and national security policy.
Under Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, the National Security Council has had an ‘honest broker’ role, acting as an advisor for the president.
The National Security Council is led by the National Security Advisor.
- National Security Advisors have included Condoleezza Rice under George W. Bush and John Bolton under Donald Trump.

Significance of the NSC

The NSC’s significance depends on the president and how they choose to seek its advice on key policy matters, in addition to the personality in the National Security Advisor role.
- In President Obama’s first term, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Obama made the key foreign policy decisions whilst the NSC played a smaller role.
- Susan Rice, National Security Advisor in Obama’s second term as president, was more politically minded and more outspoken than previous National Security Advisors.

Office of Management and Budget

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) was formed in 1970 by President Richard Nixon and has three main roles:
- The OMB oversees all federal department and agency spending.
- The OMB offers the president advice on how to allocate funding in the budget.
- The OMB analyses legislation and regulation proposed by the executive for its financial implications to the budget.
The OMB’s director must be confirmed by a Senate vote and speaks on behalf of the president on areas relating to the budget.

White House Office (WHO)

The WHO is the president’s personal office made up of their closest advisers.
The WHO’s functions include policy advice, acting as a communicator between the president and Congress, management of the president’s daily schedule and running the White House.
The WHO manages any crises and makes sure that decisions are reached in an orderly way by presenting all relevant options to the president.
The WHO’s members are meant to be anonymous, and act as impartial advisors rather than policymakers.

White House Office makeup

The White House Office is composed of over 30 offices including the Office of Political Affairs and the National Economic Council and is run by the Office of the Chief of Staff.