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##  Teaching about the U.S. Presidency. ERIC Digest.                             

Many consider the U.S. presidency to be the most powerful office in             the world.  What are its constitutional foundations?  How has the               role of the chief executive changed through the years?  What World              Wide Web resources are available for teaching about the U.S.                    presidency? CONSTITUTIONAL FOUNDATIONS OF THE PRESIDENCY.The              delegates to the 1787 Philadelphia Convention, who framed the U.S.              Constitution, brought with them various conceptions of executive                power.  Three questions dominated the framers' consideration of the             role the executive would play in the new government.  First, the                delegates discussed whether the executive should be a single                    individual or whether multiple persons should share the office.                 Second, they considered at length the amount of power the executive             should wield.  And third, they debated the best means by which to               elect the executive.  Generally, deliberations on these questions               involved the balance of power in the new government. 
The framers              feared that a powerful executive could usurp legislative authority              and engage in tyrannical actions.  The weak executives created by               the state constitutions, however, proved unable to prevent state                legislatures from trampling on the people's rights.  The founding               fathers sought to create a government in which, as James Madison                explained in FEDERALIST 51, "Ambition must be made to counteract                ambition."  Madison deemed a balance of power necessary, and he                 called for a governmental arrangement in which it would be in the               best interest of all citizens to resist executive                               encroachment. 
Although they recognized the importance of strong               leadership, Americans feared executive tyranny.  To guard against               the creation of an authoritarian monarchy, many delegates called for            a plural executive. Advocates of a plural executive believed that               vesting presidential power in more than one man would lessen the                danger that leaders would abuse power.  When the Pennsylvania                   delegate James Wilson moved on June 1, 1787 that the executive                  should consist of one person, a lengthy silence ensued. The framers             eventually decided upon a single executive.  They decided this on               the basis that conflicts would be more easily avoided if there were             only one executive.  Also, they believed that Congress could more               carefully watch and check a single executive. 
The length of the               president's term and the method of election were also contested                 issues.  The delegates initially agreed that the president would                serve a seven-year term and would be ineligible for reelection.                 After much debate, they decided a bicameral Congress would elect the            executive.  On July 26, the Convention presented its decisions to               the Committee of Detail, which was charged with the task of                     organizing the resolutions into a constitutional draft.  Of the five            members of the Committee of Detail, only Nathaniel Gorham advocated             executive authority. As a result, the Committee's draft of the                  description of the executive provided the office with scant                     power (McDonald 1994, 171). 
In late August, as the Committee of               the Whole reconvened to examine the Committee of Detail's draft, the            proposed presidency consisted of the following: there would be a                single president elected for a seven-year term by a joint session of            Congress.  The president would be ineligible for reelection, would              have no power of appointment or removal, and could be impeached by              the House and convicted by the Supreme Court.  The president would              be commander-in-chief, would possess a conditional veto over                    Congressional legislation, and could grant pardons and                          reprieves. 
In the final days of the Convention, several                       adjustments were made in these provisions and the executive office              evolved into its current form. The president's enumerated powers as             listed in Article II of the Constitution included commander-in-chief            of the armed forces, the authority to grant pardons and reprieves,              the ability to veto legislation, the power to make treaties with                other nations, and the power to appoint judges, executive department            heads, and ambassadors.  To ensure a balance of power, the                      legislative and executive branches had the ability to check                     presidential actions. For example, only Congress could declare war,             two-thirds of both Congressional houses could override a                        presidential veto, the Senate must confirm all treaties made by the             president, and the Senate must approve presidential appointments.               The House could impeach the president with the Senate serving as                judge or court.  The framers hoped this system of checks and                    balances would prevent the reign of a tyrannical executive.  In                 addition to finalizing the executive's power, the framers discussed             methods of selecting the president. 
Lacking trust in the people's             ability to elect the president directly and hesitating to allow                 existing legislative bodies to select the president, they designed              the electoral college.  (For a discussion of the electoral college,             see the ERIC Digest "Teaching about Presidential Elections," August             2000, by Thomas S. Vontz and William A. Nixon.) THE CHANGING ROLE             OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE.The role of the executive in the United              States government has changed as office holders shaped the                      presidency and interpreted their powers in various ways.  All                   members of the Constitutional Convention considered George                      Washington to embody the image of the American president.  His                  leadership and commitment to the United States brought legitimacy to            the newly formed government.  Two of Washington's cabinet members,              Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson, differed in their views of             the role of the government, and their clashing political                        philosophies have characterized leadership styles adopted by                    subsequent presidents. 
Hamilton called for an active government,              and strong leadership exhibited by such presidents as Abraham                   Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt,                Harry Truman, and Lyndon Johnson hearkens back to the Hamiltonian               view of government.  The charismatic personality of Franklin                    Roosevelt (FDR) undoubtedly enabled him to lead the United States               during the Depression and World War II.  FDR demonstrated strong                leadership by expanding the role of the federal government through              the New Deal.  FDR's successor, Harry Truman, also exhibited strong             leadership.  Truman made tough foreign policy decisions that FDR                postponed, and policy makers in the Truman administration outlined              strategies of containment that defined and shaped the outcomes of               the Cold War. 
By contrast, the Jeffersonian style of leadership               was associated with a less active government.  Thomas Jefferson,                Andrew Jackson, Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, Dwight Eisenhower,             and Ronald Reagan demonstrated Jeffersonian tendencies during their             presidencies.  Hoover, for example, initially refused to offer                  federal aid during the Depression because he believed the government            should limit its interference in people's lives.  Reagan's                      leadership style has been interpreted as a reaction to an                       excessively active government, as he sought to curtail federal                  programs and return power to the states. 
In reaction to expanding             presidential power and as a result of actions taken during the                  Vietnam War, Congress has attempted to limit executive authority.               The 1973 War Powers Resolution assigned to the president and                    Congress the war-making authority supposedly intended by the                    Constitution.  In limiting the president's authority, Congress                  implied that powers not possessed by the executive belonged to the              legislature. Many members of Congress feared that the presidency had            become too powerful in the balanced government established in the               Constitution. 
Today, the American president is undoubtedly a                  powerful figure in the United States government structure.  The                 executive, legislative, and judicial branches act independently and             interdependently  to protect citizens' rights and, as Madison stated            in FEDERALIST 51, "enable the government to control the governed and            in the next place oblige it to control itself." WORLD WIDE WEB                RESOURCES FOR TEACHING ABOUT THE PRESIDENCY.The following World             Wide Web sites are recommended as valuable resources for teachers               and students. 
* The American Experience: The Presidents. 
This               interactive PBS site features eight presidents and emphasizes their             early careers, presidential politics, domestic policy, foreign                  affairs, legacies, and "days of decision."  The site provides                   content information and enables students to "vote" on critical                  issues that dominated the respective presidential administrations. A            teacher's guide and links to further resources are included as                  well. 
www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/presidents/indexjs.html 
*  IPL                  POTUS: President of the United States. 
This site provides                     background information, election results, notable events, and lists             of cabinet members for each presidential administration.  In                    addition to serving as a source of quick statistical information,               this site includes historical documents from each presidency, and               links to Internet biographies and other                                         resources. 
www.ipl.org/ref/POTUS 
* Character in Time: The U.S.              Presidents. 
The History Project, Inc. is in the process of                    developing a series of one-act plays that seek to capture each of               the American presidents as a person in his time and place. This site            contains information on the plays currently available for use and               those in production.  A description of the playwrights and                      subscription information are also                                               included. 
www.uspresidents.com/plays.htm 
* The American                     Presidency -- Selected Resources: an Informal Reference                         Guide. 
This site serves as a host to provide connections to                   numerous sites relating to the presidency.  It offers links for                 both "fun facts," primary sources, and current debates regarding the            presidency.  It also features links to specific information on each             of the                                                                          presidents. 
www.interlink-caf.com/uspresidents/ REFERENCES AND              ERIC RESOURCES.The following list of resources includes                     references used to prepare this Digest.  The items followed by an ED            number are available in microfiche and/or paper copies from the ERIC            Document Reproduction Services (EDRS).  For information about                   prices, contact EDRS, 7420 Fullerton Road, Suite 110, Springfield,              Virginia 22153-2852; telephone numbers are (703) 440-1400 and (800)             443-3742.  Entries followed by an EJ number, annotated monthly in               CURRENT INDEX TO JOURNALS IN EDUCATION (CIJE), are not available                through EDRS.  However, they can be located in the journal section              of most larger libraries by using the bibliographic information                 provided, requested through Interlibrary Loan, or ordered from                  commercial reprint services. 
Broyles, David. "Fundamentals of                 Intelligence: Prudential Reason and the Founders' Executive."                   TEACHING POLITICAL SCIENCE 16 (Spring 1989): 99-105. EJ 401                     567. 
Haas, Mary, et al. "Teaching About the President and the                 Presidential Election." SOCIAL STUDIES AND THE YOUNG LEARNER                    5 (September/October 1992): 1-4. EJ 460 398. 
Hamilton, Alexander,             James Madison, and John Jay. THE FEDERALIST PAPERS. Introduction by             Clinton Rossiter. New York: Penguin Books, 1961. 
Hargrove, Erwin              C., and Roy Hoopes. THE PRESIDENCY: A QUESTION OF POWER. Boston:                Little, Brown and Company, 1975. ED 111 744. 
Ketcham, Ralph, ed.              THE ANTI-FEDERALIST PAPERS AND THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION                    DEBATES. New York: Penguin Books, 1986. 
McDonald, Forrest. THE                AMERICAN PRESIDENCY: AN INTELLECTUAL HISTORY. Lawrence, KS:                     University Press of Kansas, 1994. 
Pious, Richard M. THE YOUNG                 OXFORD COMPANION TO THE PRESIDENCY OF THE UNITED STATES. New York:              Oxford University Press, 1994. ED 384 545. 
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This project               has been funded at least in part with Federal funds from the U.S.               Department of Education under contract number ED-99-CO-0016.  The               content of this publication does not necessarily reflect the views              or policies of the U.S. Department of Education nor does mention of             trade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement            by the U.S. Government.  ERIC Digests are in the public domain and              may be freely reproduced and disseminated. 
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Sarah E. Drake             is a doctoral student in the School of Education and a project                  assistant at the Social Studies Development Center of Indiana                   University.  Thomas S. Vontz is director of the Indiana Program for             Law-Related Education at the Social Studies Development Center and a            research associate in the Indiana University School of Education.            **Title:** Teaching about the U.S. Presidency. ERIC Digest.                             **Document Type:** Information Analyses---ERIC Information Analysis Products (IAPs) (071); Information Analyses---ERIC Digests (Selected) in Full Text (073); **Available From:** ERIC Clearinghouse for Social Studies/Social Science Education, 2805            East Tenth Street, Suite 120, Bloomington, IN 47408; Tel:                       800-266-3815; E-mail: ([email protected]); Web                                 site: (http://www.indiana.edu/~ssdc/eric_chess.htm).                         **Descriptors:** Citizenship Education, Constitutional History, Elementary Secondary             Education, Federal Government, Governmental Structure, Political                Issues,  Presidents of the United States, Social Studies,  United               States Government (Course),  United States History                           **Identifiers:** ERIC Digests                                                                 
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