The article II of the Constitution of the United States defines the powers and responsibilities of the President. The most important of all the duties of the President is to command the Armed Forces and the Navy of the United States as the commander-in-chief. The President commands and directs the military and is primarily responsible in planning the military strategy. The president directs the foreign policy through the Department of State and the Department of Defense and is responsible to protect the American citizens abroad and foreign nationals in the United States . The President decides whether or not to recognize new nations and governments. It is the responsibility of the President to negotiate treaties with other countries, post approval by two-thirds vote of the Senate. The President has the power to nominate federal judges, including the members of the Supreme Court of the United States and the United States courts of appeals post confirmation by the Senate . The President is the chief diplomat of the United States and has the power to make treaties, which go for the approval by the Senate. The President maintains international relations related to economics, war, trade, peacemaking, human rights and many others.
The President is the head of the executive branch of the federal government and has the power to appoint or remove the executive officials at his discretion. The Constitution allows the President to recommend fiscal policies. The President also possesses law enforcement powers and takes care to execute the laws in a faithful manner. The power of clemency is extensive and allows the President to grant reprieves and pardons to any federal process, or offenders, except in cases of Impeachment . The President can grant 400 pardons per term. The President has the chief legal weapon or the veto power. According to the veto power, the President can sign the bill, veto the bill and return to the Congress or do nothing. When the President vetoes the bill, the Congress can pass it with the majority of two-thirds in both the chambers. The President has the ability to shape the agenda of the government. The President issues executive orders to bureaucratic rules or actions or decision making procedures. The emergency powers of the President help protect the national sovereignty and domestic order of the United States .
The mandate Article II allows the President to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution. The power of executive agreement, which is a foreign policy tool, allows the President to act without seeking congressional backing. A few examples are trade agreements, military commitments, annexation of territory and arms control pacts . The President appoints ambassadors to the United Nations who speak for the United States related to various issues. The President is the Chief of the state of the United States. As the chief of the state, the President has the obligation to take the oath of office receive ambassadors from other nations and deliver an annual State of the Union message . The inherent powers are the powers that the President inherits from the Constitution. These powers allow the President to respond to a crisis. However, the Supreme Court can limit the legislation by declaring the actions of the President unconstitutional. On the other hand, the implied powers, though not mentioned in the Constitution are necessary to preserve and defend the United States.
Works Cited
Grant, Alan R. The American Political Process. Psychology Press, 2004.
Krent, Harold J. Presidential Powers. NYU Press, 2005.
Nelson, Michael. The Presidency A-Z. Routledge, 2013.
