Powers and duties of the president.

Military Powers of the President. — An eminent histo­rian, writing recently of the power exercised by President Lincoln in time of war, said, " It is an interesting fact, that the ruler of a republic which sprang from a resistance to the English king and Parliament should exercise more arbitrary power than any Englishman since Oliver Crom­well, and that many of his acts should be worthy of a Tudor."

President Lincoln, it is true, exercised powers which, if attempted by a weaker man, or at another time, might have proved dangerous to the liberties of the people.

The President shall be commander-in-chief of the army and navy of the United States, and of the militia of the several States when called into the actual service of the United States; he may require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in each of the executive departments, upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices, and he shall have power to grant reprieves and par­dons for offences against the United States, except in cases of impeachment,

Reprieves and Pardons. — The ordinary powers of the President are also important. One of the greatest is the power to grant reprieves and pardons. A reprieve is the temporary suspension of the execution of a sentence. By means of a reprieve, the President may gain time to look into the evidence more carefully. Complete release from a sentence is secured by a pardon.

Treaty-making Power. — While the power to conclude treaties seems to be without restriction, it is implied that no treaty shall in any way interfere with the authority of the Constitution. The usual steps in the negotiation of treaties are as follows: (1) In time of peace they are conducted at the capital of the nation that begins the negotiation. If this is in Washington, the terms are considered by the Secretary of State and the minister of the other nation; if in a foreign capital, our minister acts under instructions sent him by the Secretary of State. At times, one or more special ministers are sent abroad for the purpose of negotiating a treaty. (2) In time of war, the minister of the nation with which we are at war leaves the United States. The interests of his nation are then intrusted to the minister of some neutral power, and through this minister negotiations for peace are usually begun. (3) The treaty of peace at the close of a war is generally negotiated in some neutral country by special commissioners appointed by the nations at war.

In all cases, the President exercises general control over the negotiation and framing of treaties. After an agreement has been reached, the treaty is sent to the Senate. It is discussed in executive or secret session. This means that the treaty and all matters pertaining to it are kept secret until, by a resolution, the Senate allows the discussion to be made public. The Senate may approve, re­ject, or modify the terms. If amendments are made, they must be agreed to by the President and by the other nation interested. When a treaty has been finally approved by the officials of both countries, duplicate copies of it are made on parchment. Both of these copies are signed by the chief officers of each country, and the copies are then exchanged. This is called the "exchange of ratification." An official copy of the treaty is thus secured by each nation. The President then publishes the treaty accom­panied by a proclamation, in which it is declared to be a part of the law of the land.

Power of Appointment. — When it is considered that the President has the nominal power of appointing over 200,000 persons to office, we can readily see that this comprises one of his chief powers. He shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public ministers and Consuls, Judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the United States.

It would be quite impos­sible for the President, personally, to oversee all of these appointments, and so a large percentage of them is made by officials in the different departments. There are, besides the ambassadors, consuls, and judges of the Supreme Court, some 7000 so-called Presidential officers, whose appointments must receive the sanction of the Senate.

Official Patronage. — In making his appointments, the President is largely dependent upon the advice of the head of that department un­der whose direction the officer will come, or upon the recommendation of the representatives and senators of his party from the State in which the office is located. This official patronage, through which political assistants in a State may be rewarded with a Federal office, has become so burdensome that many Congressmen complain of it and desire to be freed from its exactions.

Duties of the President. —He shall, from time to time, give to the Congress information of the state of the Union, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on extraordinary occasions, convene both houses, or either of them, and in case of disagreement between them, with respect to the time of adjournjnent, he may adjourn them to such time as he shall think proper; he shall receive Ambas­sadors and other public ministers; he shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed, and shall commission all the officers of the United States.

Presidential Messages. — By means of the annual mes­sage sent to Congress at the opening of the session, and special messages on particular occasions, the President is enabled to call attention to the legislative needs of the country. The plan of having a message read in each House by the clerk or secretary was introduced by Presi­dent Jefferson. Presidents Washington and Adams ad­dressed, in person, Congress assembled in joint session. Various reasons have been alleged for this change. Presi­dent Jefferson was a poor speaker, and it is said that he regarded the formal address as monarchical.

Enforcement of the Laws. —The most important duty of the President is to see that all laws passed by Congress are faithfully executed. Laws are useless unless they are enforced, and it is chiefly for the performance of this task that the Executive was originally created. It is not contemplated that this duty shall be performed by him in person, but through officials who are directly responsible to him. The United States marshals and their deputies exercise a wide influence in seeing that the laws are en­forced. They usually act under an order from a United States court, but may, at times, act without such a writ. If necessary, the President may send the army and navy of the United States or call out the militia of the States to overcome any resistance to federal law.

ANSWER THE QUESTIONS

1. May a President have many of the privileges of private life?

2. What are some of the official cares of the President?

Дата добавления: 2015-07-20