Roles Of The Us President Essay, Research Paper

The purpose of the report is to show the responsibilities and the roles of the President of the United States. This paper will attempt to cover the different obligations the President must fulfill in order to be considered a good President.

The role of the president changes with each new inauguration, sometimes dramatically for the good, or drastically for the bad. Presidents such as George Washington, Andrew Jackson, Abe Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, John Kennedy, and Bill Clinton are men who undoubtedly changed the course of the American Presidency forever.

The position of President was created during and immediately after the Revolutionary War under laws called the Articles of Confederation (online). The name itself came from the original name for the chief officer who presided over congress (online). The first man who had taken this position was George Washington, whose name every American is familiar with (Britannica.com). To the position, Washington brought great courage, prestige, and wisdom , and created a sort of legacy for those after him to follow (Schlesinger, 21). The legacy was followed, and expanded with men who interpreted the constitution in new ways, and increased the power of the presidency. Presidents such as Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, and Abraham Lincoln are examples of this. As America became a world power, the President was given more power. Men like Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, FDR, and John F. Kennedy then used the position to advance the freedom of our country, and encourage the development of our minds and souls.

The Constitution dictates the fore-mentioned powers that the president has, and it also states the basic requirements that a person must fit in order to act as president. These requirements are as follows:

No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of president; neither shall any person be eligible to the office who shall not have attained to the age of 35 years, and been fourteen years a resident within the United States (Kundhardt, 35).

The Constitution also explains the method in which the president is elected, the Electoral College (Britannica.com). Although the American people vote for presidential candidates on Election Day, it makes little difference as to which candidate wins. The members of the Electoral College are those who actually select the president (Britannica.com). The members of the college are selected by each state in proportion to the number of total seats that each state holds in Congress (Britannica.com). Supposedly, those chosen to be electors cast their votes in order to reflect the voting trend of the citizens of his or her state. However, there are no laws that force elector s to vote in such a manner; they are free to vote as they choose.

The United States President is elected to a four-year term, and every president is limited to serving two successive terms (online).

The President has to fulfill seven different positions. The first one is Commander in Chief. To do this, the President is expected to defend the country during wartime and to keep it strong during peacetime. Only the president can decide whether to use nuclear weapons or not (Bernstein, 11).

As the Foreign Policy Director, the constitution gives the President the power to appoint ambassadors, make treaties, and receive foreign diplomats (Matalin, 84). The Foreign Policy is also able to refuse to recognize a newly formed government, propose legislation dealings with foreign aid and other international activities, and make executive agreements with foreign leaders without senate approval (Matalin, 93).

The Legislative Leader position of the President describes how greatly the President is able to influence the laws that congress passes. The president also uses his cabinet officers to win congressional support for the president s programs. Another power to influence laws is his constitutional power to veto any bill (Britannica.com).

As the Popular Leader, the President is expected to represent every citizen and every state. That is what he agreed to when he was elected, and this part is very important in a representative government. The Popular Leader must also maintain good communication with his people. Through this, he is able to promote legislation and inform the people (online).

Another name to describe the President is Party Head. This term is used to show that the President, as the leader of a political party, will help push issues his party feels strongly about, and hope that the congress is made up of enough of his party to pass his programs (online).

Lastly, the President earns the title Chief of State. As the foremost representative of the U.S. government, the President is expected to show pride and celebrate American achievements and traditions (Matelin, 108). He is also expected to host dinners for visiting foreign officials, and represents the United States in visits to other countries (online).

To sum it all up, being the United States President is not easy; every decision he makes can turn out to be a controversial one. Recently, President Clinton supported the notion that Elian Gonzales should be given back to his father, an opinion that did not sit well with many people. Also, the President has very little time to spend with his family because of all of the jobs he is responsible for. He cannot take a day off just because his daughter has a birthday party she wants him to attend; the job demands that he is available all day, every day. The President does not have all the freedoms his constituents do, he cannot say anything that is on his mind because every little thing can be taken seriously and launch a series of bad events. For example, if the President says, I wish that guy was dead, in a joking manner, his secret service might take it seriously and harm that person. Furthermore, every move he makes is being watched, in my opinion, I don t think the poor guy has any time to spend with his wife, I guess maybe that s why they appoint interns

The job also has its benefits; the United States President is considered to be the most powerful person in the world, not because he is the strongest or the smartest person in the world, but because he leads the greatest country in the world. He has dinners with the most famous people in the world, the greatest athletes, the best actors, and at every event he is the main guest.