VISUAL DICTIONARY:

CHAPTER 13 THE
PRESIDENCY
By: Rajat Goyal
AP US Government & Politics
10/23/2011

TWENTY-SECOND AMENDMENT

Passed in 1951, the amendment that limits

presidents to two terms of office.
Due to the twenty-second amendment,
Franklin D Roosevelt will be the only
president who will be elected to four terms
in office.

IMPEACHMENT

The political equivalent of an indictment in

criminal law, prescribed by the Constitution.
The House of Representatives may impeach
the president by a majority vote for
"Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and
Misdemeanors.
Impeachment was faced by two presidents in
United States History, Andrew Johnson and
Bill Clinton, and it was said that Richard
Nixon would have faced impeachment if he
did not resign.

WATERGATE

The events and scandal surrounding a

break-in at the Democratic National
Committee headquarters in 1972 and the
subsequent cover-up of White House
involvement, leading to the eventual
resignation of President Nixon under the
threat of impeachment.
The Watergate scandal involved Nixons
reelection committee funding a break in
into the Democratic National Committee
headquarters, Watergate National
Complex.

TWENTY-FIFTH AMENDMENT

Passed in 1967, this amendment permits the

vice president to become acting president if
both the vice president and the president's
cabinet determine that the president is
disabled. The amendment also outlines how a
recuperated president can reclaim the job.
President George W. Bush used the twentyfifth amendment twice under section 3, once
in 2002 and then again in 2007, to temporarily
(both times were under 30 minutes) give Vice
President Dick Cheney the power of acting
President when he underwent colonoscopies.

CABINET

A group of presidential advisers not

mentioned in the Constitution, although
every president has had one.Today the
cabinet is composed of 14 secretaries and
the attorney general.

Sentence 1: The Presidential Cabinet has

grown over the years from 4 members
(during George Washingtons presidency) to
15 members during the current presidency.
Sentence 2:The members of the Presidential
Cabinet include Secretaries of Agriculture,
Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy,
Health and Human Services, Homeland
Security, Housing and Urban Development,
Interior, Labor, State, Transportation,
Treasury, and Veterans Affairs, as well as the
Attorney General.

NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL

(NSC)

An office created in 1947 to coordinate the

president's foreign and military policy advisers.Its
formal members are the president, vice president,
secretary of state, and secretary of defense, and
it is managed by the president's national security
assistant.
Sentence 1: The National Security Council gives
the president information and advice on the topic
of national security, particularly in national
security crisis management.
Sentence 2: Tommy Vietor is the spokesman for
President Barack Obamas National Security
Council a

COUNCIL OF ECONOMIC
ADVISERS (CEA)

A three-member body appointed by the

president to advise the president on
economic policy.
The Council of Economic Advisers contains
three members appointed by the president
who advise the president on economic
policy and decisions. They also interpret
many important matters such as inflation
and unemployment and are in charge of
the annual Economic Report of the
President . The Council of Economic
Advisers during Barack Obamas presidency
is playing a greater role than it would in
other presidencies.

OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND

BUDGET (OMB)

An office that grew out of the Bureau of the

Budget, created in 1921, consisting of a
handful of political appointees and hundreds of
skilled professionals.The OMB performs both
managerial and budgetary functions, and
although the president is its boss, the director
and staff have considerable independence in
the budgetary process.
The Office of Management and Budget is
composed of many highly skilled career
officials (more than 600) who all help prepare
the presidents budget to propose to Congress.

VETO

The constitutional power of the

president to send a bill back to
Congress with reasons for rejecting
it. A two-thirds vote in each house
can override a veto.
If the Bill to amend the Patient
Protection and Affordable Care Act
with regard to abortion not being
covered under this act passes the
Senate, the President said he would
veto it because he does not support
the bill.

POCKET VETO

A veto taking place when Congress

adjourns within ten days of submitting a
bill to the president, who simply lets it die
by neither signing nor vetoing it.
Sentence 1: The president may pocket
veto if he not for or against a bill and does
not want to be judged on his actions
Sentence 2: A president is said to have
pocket vetoed a bill if he does not sign or
veto a bill within 10 days.

PRESIDENTIAL COATTAILS

The situation occurring when voters cast

their ballots for congressional candidates
of the presidents party because they
support the president. Recent studies
show that few races are won this way.
The party balance change due to
president coattails is relatively small,
only averaging one seat gain in the
senate for the presidents party from 1952
to 2008 and eight seats in the House.

I support
the
President
(D)

Congressional
Ballot
Democrat
Republican

WAR POWERS RESOLUTION

A law passed in 1973 in reaction to American fighting

in Vietnam and Cambodia that requires presidents to
consult with Congress whenever possible prior to
using military force and to withdraw forces after 60
days unless Congress declares war or grants an
extension.Presidents view the resolution as
unconstitutional.
The War Powers Resolution gives Congress some power
on Presidential duties as Commander in Chief since it
gives Congress the power to vote and pass a
resolution to end a war at any time they choose even
if previously they gave consent to the president to
continue/start the war.

LEGISLATIVE VETO

The ability of Congress to override a presidential

decision. Although the War Powers Resolution
asserts this authority, there is reason to believe
that, if challenged, the Supreme Court would
find the legislative veto in violation of the
doctrine of separation of powers.
Sentence 1: Congress can override a presidential
veto through a legislative veto with a two-thirds
majority.
Sentence 2: The legislative veto does not always
work under the War Powers Resolution, since
often times presidents ignore Congress
decisions with regard to war by deeming it
unconstitutional under the separation of powers.

CRISIS

A sudden, unpredictable, and potential

dangerous event requiring the president to
play the role of crisis manager.
An example of a crisis that the United States
faced was the September 11 attack on the
World Trade Center.