AP Ch 11

Mizzou American Presidency online

42 flashcards · Politics · by Madi Butler

1. Explain Wildavsky's two presidencies thesis and the (3) reasons the president has more foreign policy freedom

   Wildavsky argued that domestic policy success requires great crises or great majorities in Congress, or both, for the president to be successful. On the other hand, presidents have more authority in foreign affairs and assume a more active role. 2. (1.) The nature of the modern world, which is more dangerous due to nuclear weapons. Crises occur much faster, and even seemingly small issues can have large consequences (2.) public tends to have fewer preexisting opinions about foreign policy matte…

2. Why did the framers include both the president and the Senate in the treaty process?

   The framers felt that it was potentially dangerous to have the power to make treaties remain solely in the hands of the president, so the Senate was made part of the process.

3. According to Hamilton, the management of foreign affairs requires one firm hand because treaty negotiation requires what 2 qualities?

   (1) secrecy and secrets are more likely to be kept by one person than a whole body (2) dispatch (speed), and speed is more likely when the process is placed in the hands of one person rather than a large group

4. When the decisions of the Supreme Court in Belmont and Curtiss-Wright are combined with Congress's traditional deference to presidents, what does it mean for presidential authority in foreign policy?

   When Curtiss-Wright is combined with the Belmont decision about executive orders, the president's foreign policy power seems almost impossible to challenge, and the president has broad discretion in foreign policy.

5. List and describe, using examples, two major ways in which presidents have personally influenced foreign policy throughout our history.

   (1.) Through the declaration of foreign policy doctrines, usually stated unilaterally by presidents, such as the Monroe Doctrine (2.) With personal diplomacy, such as Jimmy Carter's efforts to broker peace between Egypt and Israel.

6. Describe the major (3) components of the War Powers Resolution. Why did Congress pass this resolution

   The president may send the military into action if there is: (1) a congressional declaration of war (2) a specific congressional authorization (3) a national emergency created by a sudden attack on the United States, its territories, or its armed forces. 2. For Congress, the long war in Vietnam was the last straw. From the escalation of the war by Johnson to Nixon's bombing and invasions of Laos and Cambodia

7. Why is Wildavsky's thesis problematic in the modern context? (4)

   (1) A time span problem. The original study analyzed the period from 1948 to 1964. When the Cold War was a brand-new reality and high approval ratings for foreign policy were present only for a limited time. (2) The failure of superior information in Vietnam caused other institutional players (particularly Congress) to be less willing to defer to the president. (3) In addition to doubts about the president's information, much better information is now more readily available to many players. (4)…

8. There are several important defects in the War Powers Resolution What are they? (4)

   (1) Consultation clause: What does this mean? Should the president consult with the entire Congress or only with its leadership? (2)Sixty-day limit: How do you time a military operation in advance? Wouldn't an enemy force simply stick it out for sixty days until the limit hit? (3) Legislative veto: The resolution allows Congress to unilaterally end hostilities at any time by concurrent resolution, which is a legislative veto, which were declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in INS v. C…

9. There are also several important areas that are not addressed by the War Powers Resolution. What are they?

   (1) Issue of undeclared wars: Throughout its history, the United States has participated in many undeclared military actions. (2) Issue of repelling sudden attacks: Everyone recognizes this as a presidential responsibility, including the War Powers Resolution, but does the president need to restrict military force to purely defensive actions? (3) Issue of rescue: The War Powers Resolution does not recognize an inherent right or power (or responsibility) of the president to rescue endangered cit…

10. Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty

    The treaty was signed by 154 nations, but it was ratified only by 48. The opponents of the treaty argued for the right to test new weapons, and they warned of the difficulty of verifying whether nations were keeping their commitment not to test --Clinton signed but Congress didn't ratify

11. Kyoto Protocol

    The Kyoto Protocol to reduce greenhouse gases is another example of an unratified international agreement that the United States signed during Clinton's presidency

12. congressional-executive agreements

    These are treatylike agreements with other countries that, instead of being ratified by two-thirds of the Senate, are ratified by a simple majority in the House and Senate. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is an example of such an agreement.

13. can a president arbitrarily terminate a treaty without the consent of Congress?

    If a president makes a decision to terminate a treaty, Congress' options seem to be limited. If money is needed for something the president decides to do, Congress can have some influence in deciding whether to fund the programs

14. Executive Agreements

    Executive agreements are agreements between the president and the head of another country that have the force of treaties but do not require the Senate's "advice and consent."

15. U.S. v. Belmont

    United States v. Belmont (1937) the president has the right to make executive agreements. The court found that not all agreements between the United States and other nations are treaties, and therefore some can be entered into by the president acting alone. (Russian assets aided by US)

16. U.S v. Pink

    In a case similar to United States v. Belmont (1937), the United States attempted to assist the Soviet Union in recovering assets of the First Russian Insurance Company which the New York Superintendent of Insurance refused to release. Ruling: New York could not "rewrite our foreign policy to conform to its own domestic policies.

17. U.S. v. Curtiss-Wright

    law authorized the president to place an embargo on the sale of American-made weapons to countries engaged in armed conflict. A company, Curtiss-Wright, violated the embargo and then challenged the law as an unlawful delegation of legislative authority to the president. Solution: the Supreme Court sided with the president in a near-unanimous vote. Giving president more foreign policy power

18. Case Act

    Case Act, requiring all executive agreements to be reported to Congress within sixty days. Secret agreements must be submitted to the House Foreign Affairs and Senate Foreign Relations Committees.

19. Pacificus-Helvidius letters. Two arguments

    in a series of letters Madison and Hamilton debated, about presidential power in foreign policy. Hammilton: Someone has to be able to declare neutrality. It should be that branch that is the organ of intercourse between nations, the executive branch. -- constitutional justification from the vagueness of the vesting clause in Article II, Madison: response to Hamilton was that the president should act only in response to Congress.

20. Neutrality Proclamation of 1793

    whether Washington could unilaterally declare American neutrality in war between England and France.

21. concurrent resolution

    A resolution adopted by both houses of a legislative assembly that does not require the signature of the chief executive and that does not have the force of law. These do not require presidential signatures to go into action, making it much like a legislative veto.

22. Area Resolution

    Eisenhower thought Truman's actions constituted an inappropriate use of presidential power, so he asked for "area resolutions" from Congress that gave him authority to use force in specific areas, such as Formosa and the Middle East

23. Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

    Authorizing the president not only to take action to respond to the armed attack but also "to take all necessary steps" to assist members of the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO), including South Vietnam. Johnson lied about about events that transpired

24. primary function

    The president does not possess all the war powers, but he or she does possess the primary function of ensuring the security of the nation.

25. legislative veto

    A provision that allows a congressional resolution (passed by a majority of congress, but not signed by the President) to nullify a rulemaking or other action taken by an executive agency. Ruled unconstitutional with INS v. Chadha.

26. Bricker Amendment

    a proposed constitutional amendment that would have strengthened the congressional position in foreign policy by: including restricting the president’s ability to use executive agreements, making them subject to congressional approval and supervision. Eisenhower defeated it.

27. Expansion of presidential powers by Lincoln

    In order to protect the government from potential threats during the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln suspended the writ of habeas corpus challenging Congress’s sole right to make this determination Lincoln commanded his troops to suspend habeas corpus to any individual suspected of conspiring against the federal government.

28. Article: reasons crises allow presidents to expand their power (5)

    (1) “rally round the flag” The rally effect occurs because of the public’s increase in “its support of the president in times of crisis or during major international events. (2) induces an environment that shifts congressional focus, dispels gridlock and partisanship, and increases positive public opinion (3) The ability of crises to set the agenda and shift media and public attention provides another means for over- coming the constraints placed upon the president’s ability to act unilaterally…

29. what have they left out, according to the author? (3)

    (1) what makes a foreign policy crisis have such an impact (2) if individuals do view the government responsible for their personal security or if the sheer magnitude of a foreign policy crisis overshadows concerns of personal hardships. (3) a more complex dependent variable that captures national- and state-level policies would benefit future research on this topic.

30. Article: Three types of Focusing events

    (1) Foreign policy Crisis -- any war, militarized dispute, or terrorist attack that directly affected the United States (2) Economic crisis -- inflation, unemployment rates (3) Natural Disasters -- droughts, earthquakes, epidemics, extreme temperatures, floods, industrial accidents

31. Article: what does the author argue are the times most advantageous for a president to exert or expand power?

    Foreign Policy Crisis create the most favorable environment for the President to expand his power.

32. What are the advice and consent roles of the Senate in foreign policy making?

    Appointing nominees: Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the Supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States

33. Presidents power to recognize countries

    The president has the power to negotiate treaties; appoint US ambassadors and receive foreign ambassadors and ministers, which gives the president the implicit power to recognize other countries --President Carter terminated a defense treaty with Taiwan when he recognized China in 1978 -- US v. Pink found that the president's power with respect to recognition of foreign nations can achieve the status of the supreme law of the land

34. Executive agreements vs. Trearies

    5,000 executive agreements have been made, compared with fewer than thirty-two treaties.

35. Article: The Founding Fathers left the power of the executive branch vague and open for interpretation which led to....

    Presidents testing their boundaries of power and continuing to expand them

36. Hamilton: what other factors favor the presidency over Congress in the negotiation of treaties and foreign relations in general? (4)

    (1) knowledge about foreign affairs (2) staying on the same course (3) focusing on national concerns instead of local concerns (4) an ability to act

37. Hamilton: Why is a two-thirds majority required for the ratification of treaties?

    because treaties are very important and they’re the law of the land, so it is important to protect them from corruption.

38. criticisms of the Curtiss-Wright decision. (3)

    (1) it goes to far, and may imply that a president can act in contrary to an act of congress (2) decision was factually inaccurate when it stated that the separate states never possessed foreign policy powers (3) making a leap in logic by simply asserting, without justification, that the president alone has foreign policy power even though there are indications in the Constitution that contradict this.

39. What evidence can be found in the Constitution to argue that the framers intended foreign policy powers to be shared by the president and Congress?

    (1) Power to make treaties shared with the Senate (2) Power to appoint military officers and ambassadors shared with the Senate (3) Power to regulate foreign commerce rests entirely with Congress.

40. Presidents have occasionally claimed the authority to use military force from sources outside the government. What are these sources?

    (1) In the case of using peacekeeping forces, the president's authority is more ambiguous. (peacekeeping in Lebanon) (2) The legitimacy of minor invasions and actions is also ambiguous. (invasion of Grenada to rescue Americans)

41. What unusual arrangement did President Obama agree to with Congress when negotiating this executive agreement?

    He passed a bill with congress allowing them a 60 day review period of any executive agreement.