Talk:President of the United States/Archive 8

Edit request on 31 October 2012
In the "See also" section, move the link List of Presidents of the United States, being the main general-purpose list, to the top.

86.160.84.230 (talk) 21:46, 31 October 2012 (UTC)
 * ❌ Although your request was undoubtedly made in good faith, please note that List of Presidents of the United States is already linked to in the hatnote at the top of the article.--JayJasper (talk) 04:40, 1 November 2012 (UTC)
 * Yes, I see that now. However, if one misses that (as I originally did) and alights instead on "Lists relating to the United States presidency", it is the devil's job to find the general-purpose list from among the dozens and dozens of links. Regardless of whether the general list is also linked elsewhere, it should in my opinion be made very easy to find in "Lists relating to the United States presidency". 86.151.118.165 (talk) 12:05, 1 November 2012 (UTC)
 * See WP:SEEALSO "As a general rule the "See also" section should not repeat links which appear in the article's body or its navigation boxes." The hatnote is sufficient.  Sorry you couldn't find it.    Hot Stop     (Edits)   12:56, 1 November 2012 (UTC)
 * I completely disagree. It is common sense that the main, general list should be easy to find in that vast section. You are being blinded to the obvious. 86.151.118.165 (talk) 13:50, 1 November 2012 (UTC)

I must say I agree with the anonymous user. I really don't feel it's in the spirit of Wikipedia policy to simply resort to citing them in lieu of a reasoned response - and besides, "Ignore All Rules" is one of the five pillars, and I believe it applies here, unless someone can contrive a decent argument in favour of *not* including this link in the "See Also" section, discounting the policy citation. Peace :). Psychonavigation (talk) 01:46, 9 November 2012 (UTC) (this is User:Psychonavigation, not logged in - please reply on my talk page)
 * Point taken, Psychonav. I see that it's now listed at the top of the See also sec. No compelling reason to remove it.--JayJasper (talk) 19:47, 12 November 2012 (UTC)

is this sentence correct?
The amendment also specifies that if any eligible person who serves as president or acting president for more than two years of a term for which some other eligible person was elected president, the former can only be elected president once. I am not sure this sentence is correct.. though english is not my mother language --Maxbeer (talk) 14:59, 5 November 2012 (UTC)
 * It's correct. It's an accurate paraphrase of the text of the Twenty-second Amendment: ...no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than once. TJRC (talk) 18:10, 5 November 2012 (UTC)
 * Thanks. Actually I meant to ask if the sentence is grammatically correct - isn't it more correct without the "who"? ("if a person serves ... can only be elected")--Maxbeer (talk) 23:47, 10 November 2012 (UTC)
 * The sentence definitely needs help. Perhaps this will work: "The amendment also provides that a person can only be elected once if he or she has served as president or acting president for more than two years during a term someone else was elected to." Incidentally, I'm not sure why "eligible" occurs in the description of the theoretical dead/resigned/removed president. It doesn't appear in the amendment and may not even be true. For instance, John Smith is elected president, but is not a citizen. Vice-President-elect Jackie Johnson takes the necessary oaths to become president or acting president, then serves the rest of the term. She would be restricted to being elected once more, and Smith's ineligibility doesn't come into it. -Rrius (talk) 10:11, 11 November 2012 (UTC)

2nd Term
On November 06, 2012 Barack Obama was re-elected to the presidency for a term of 4 more years. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Angelicasoler6 (talk • contribs) 06:33, 7 November 2012 (UTC)
 * The 2nd term is now noted in the article.--JayJasper (talk) 19:50, 12 November 2012 (UTC)

Actual Compensation?
The article lists the changing Presidential salary approved by Congress. Is this the salary actually received by each President?

I ask because I recall reading once (no reference available) that a member of Congress who then takes a position in the Executive Branch cannot receive a salary for that position that he/she voted on while in Congress.

One result of this was that, because of G. Ford's long service in Congress, when he became President he received the same salary as FDR! True? Just wondering...

NitPicker769 (talk) 22:51, 24 September 2012 (UTC)


 * FDR was dead before Ford was first elected to Congress. So it can't be entirely true. Rmhermen (talk) 17:42, 8 October 2012 (UTC)


 * I think the logic is that Ford was in Congress when the 1949 Presidential salary increase was passed. So if my supposition were true Ford would only be eligible for the pre-1949 salary;  ie Roosevelt's (and Truman's)  NitPicker769 (talk) 22:46, 8 October 2012 (UTC)

If you mean the Ineligibility Clause, then the answer to you question would be "No." The IC affects a former Congressional officer only for the duration of that Congressional officer's elected term. The most recent example of this involves Hillary Clinton. She became the junior senator from NY in 2001, and secured reelection in 2006, with her 2nd term beginning in 2007. As such, the IC would affect her until Jan. 3, 2013. While a senator, she voted for pay increases for the president and cabinet, which would commence in 2009. She was then appointed Secretary of State. Had Congress not reset the Secretary of State's pay to the level it had been when Clinton began her second term in 2007, then she would have been ineligible to be SecState. Had the pay remained increased and Clinton thus ineligible, that ineligibility would terminate at the expiration of the term for which she had been elected: Jan. 3, 2013.

So, to turn to your question about FDR and Ford. On becoming president, Ford received the salary that had been current when he took office as president. If the IC had been relevant to his situation in any case, then his salary would only need be reduced to the level of what it had been at the end of Ford's last full term in Congress, which ended Jan. 3, 1973. And even then, if IC applied due to an increase in pay after Jan 3, 1973, that application would only be relevant to his salary as Vice President. His succession to the office of president was not an appointment, but happenstance. On the question of whether the IC would apply to his appointment as Vice President: no. The pay for VP had last been increased on Sep. 14, 1969. Thus, by the time Ford assumed the position of VP, he had been twice reelected. Thus, any ineligibility, if it existed, had since lapsed. -- Foofighter20x (talk) 05:18, 9 December 2012 (UTC)

Edit Request on January 10, 2013
Selection process Eligibility Main article: Age of candidacy

The article states to be eligible for the office of president a candidate must be at least thirty-five years old. However, this information is inconsistent with eligibility requirements outlined within the US Constitution, which indicate that a person must be at least 42 years of age to be President. Could you please make this correction? Thank you! Whisperofthegarden (talk) 07:13, 10 January 2013 (UTC)Whisperofthegarden
 * Thank you for your request, but it must be denied. Article II, Section 1, Clause 6 of the Constitution clearly states that the age requirement for the presidency is thirty-five. SMP0328. (talk) 07:20, 10 January 2013 (UTC)

Royal genes
The second paragraph ends with "According to Burke's Peerage genealogists, 'The presidential candidate with the most royal genes and chromosomes has, up to now, always won the White House.'" Doesn't that seem like a bit of a non sequitur for this section of the article? And also out of date... it is from 2000, after all. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.85.54.21 (talk) 17:21, 23 January 2013 (UTC)
 * That reference was in the Introduction, which is a summary of what is in the body of the article. Nowhere in the body of the article is there a reference to Burke's Peerage genealogists, so I removed that reference from the Introduction. SMP0328. (talk) 01:48, 24 January 2013 (UTC)

If you're going to leave the "royal genes" section in the introduction, at least find a more up to date source, or clarify that it's from 2000. Are George W. Bush's genes more royal than John Kerrys? Are Obama's genes more royal than McCain's or Romney's?69.205.120.39 (talk) 19:53, 4 February 2013 (UTC)
 * I took it out from the lead and from the body. I think it's facially bananas (to use a technical term) and absurd trivia to have in an encyclopedic article. Burke's can keep their dust and their chromosomes to themselves.--Bbb23 (talk) 00:35, 5 February 2013 (UTC)

Useful addition regarding genetic material?
99.112.212.232 (talk) 01:52, 27 March 2013 (UTC)
 * Hacking the President’s DNA "The U.S. government is surreptitiously collecting the DNA of world leaders, and is reportedly protecting that of Barack Obama. Decoded, these genetic blueprints could provide compromising information. In the not-too-distant future, they may provide something more as well—the basis for the creation of personalized bioweapons that could take down a president and leave no trace." The Atlantic November 2012

The US president cannot adjourn Congress
The subject matter in the summary is massively incorrect. The US president is a coequal to the Congress as a whole and nowhere in the Constitution is he given the authority to convene or adjourn the US Congress. This power is vested only without the Congress itself. 70.160.33.128 (talk) —Preceding undated comment added 08:54, 22 June 2013 (UTC)
 * "According to Article II, Section 3, Clause 2 of the Constitution, the president may convene either or both houses of Congress." That said, citing to a primary source (in the lead) without giving any context as to when the president has ever done this and what constitutes "extraordinary Occasions" is not particularly helpful.--Bbb23 (talk) 15:08, 22 June 2013 (UTC)
 * He can convene yes, and has done so for declarations of wars and so on for incidents when Congress is not in session. Congress does not have to do anything about it though, and nowhere does it say he has the power to adjourn Congress. 70.160.33.128 (talk) —Preceding undated comment added 15:45, 22 June 2013 (UTC)
 * "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 Adjournment, he may adjourn them to such Time as he shall think proper;" --Bbb23 (talk) 16:57, 22 June 2013 (UTC)
 * The Constitution does technically allow the President to adjourn the Congress, as quoted by Bbb23, but no President has ever done this. SMP0328. (talk) 18:20, 22 June 2013 (UTC)


 * Good Grief The president convenes congress all the time. Every time he gives the State of the Union Speech. He also does so in other times as well. For example, when he wants a declaration of war, a la December 8, 1941 speech asking congress for a declaration of war against Japan. Bush also did so after 9/11. I think that most of you are confusing "convene" with allowed to sit, such as the power the Queen has over parliament in Britain.-- JOJ Hutton  18:32, 22 June 2013 (UTC)
 * We are talking about the President's authority to adjourn the Congress. Obviously, the President may convene the Congress whenever he wants. SMP0328. (talk) 18:43, 22 June 2013 (UTC)
 * In all fairness to JOJ, the IP originally rejected the power to convene and the power to adjourn. On a more substantive note, should we alter the lead not to include the adjournment part? It's not in the body of the article, and if it's true that no president has never done it, why should we highlight it in the lead?--Bbb23 (talk) 23:48, 22 June 2013 (UTC)
 * I would add to the Introduction a small reference that the President has never used the power to adjourn the Congress. Leaving it out will likely cause people to think we forgot about it. I would add a similar reference at the appropriate place in the article. SMP0328. (talk) 23:56, 22 June 2013 (UTC)
 * What we should do is add everything to the body and cite something (nothing is cited now except a link to the article). If that's done correctly, then we don't have to include sources in the lead (which I hate anyway). At the moment, the "source" in the lead is the constitution, which is a primary source and shouldn't even be used except perhaps to quote text. Do you have a secondary source in support of the negative about adjournment?--Bbb23 (talk) 00:16, 23 June 2013 (UTC)

President Of The United States (POTUS) or President of The United States (PUS)?
POTUS? a.k..a President Of The United States (POTUS) or President of the United States (PUS)? CaribDigita (talk) 14:21, 9 July 2013 (UTC)
 * It's in the archives, pal. Infoman99 (talk) 22:10, 11 July 2013 (UTC)

Helicopters
The National Geographic Channel did a great special on specifically Marine One. In the documentary, it says that there are 35 choppers in the fleet, 4 different models. The link is below and it says this at 5:16 in. I don't know how to add links to videos in article so someone else can do that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mY8vDFbzH4g

Zdawg1029 (talk) 19:21, 18 August 2013 (UTC)

"Head of government"?
In the lead section of the article, it states that the President of the United States is the "head of government". The U.S. Constitution simply states: "The executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America". This appears to establish an office that is the head of the executive branch, but this is not equivalent to the overall head of government. As per the head of government article, I understand that it is used to describe the highest official of the executive branch. However, because in the case of the United States, the government wholly consists of THREE entirely separate but equal branches of government (not simply the executive), the phrase is a misnomer, and therefore confusing. To remedy this problem, I suggest that we remove this phrase from the lead and replace it with "head of the executive branch". Is there consensus on this? Brian Reading (talk) 19:21, 10 September 2013 (UTC)


 * In the head of government article, it says "In presidential republics or absolute monarchies; the head of state, generally, is also the head of government." So I would have to disagree, I see your point though. Zdawg1029 (talk) 20:18, 10 September 2013 (UTC)


 * Generally speaking, perhaps, but is this the case here? Can we get a clear answer to give regarding this office? Brian Reading (talk) 20:39, 10 September 2013 (UTC)


 * The article further states "In some models the head of state and head of government are one and the same. These include: President (executive)" I think it is pretty clear and accurate as it reads now.Zdawg1029 (talk) 20:52, 10 September 2013 (UTC)


 * No. Please do your research before proposing significant changes:


 * Selected quotations from academic works, scholarly papers, and government documents:

Infoman99 (talk) 03:18, 11 September 2013 (UTC)
 * "In the United States, the president is the head of state and the head of government."
 * "Performing the unifying functions as head of state builds up political capital, which the president can use in his divisive role as head of government."
 * "In the United States, however, the president is both head of state and head of government."
 * "The president is both the head of state and the head of government."
 * "In contrast to the president of the United States, the President of Russia is not head of government;"
 * "In some, as in the United States, the president is both head of government and head of state"
 * "The president is both the head of state and head of government of the United States."
 * "The President is both the head of state and head of government of the United States"

'Juridicial'?
Shouldn't this be 'Judicial'? Karanne (talk) 21:01, 12 September 2013 (UTC)


 * Yeah I see that as well, and I think you're absolutely right. But I'm stuck here wondering how such an obvious mistake like that could be made and whether or not it is supposed to be like that. If no one has any objections or explanations for that within the next day then I will change it.Zdawg1029 (talk) 23:27, 12 September 2013 (UTC)


 * There is the word 'juridical'. But that has only 2 i's, not 3.  --   Jack of Oz   [pleasantries]  23:32, 12 September 2013 (UTC)


 * Okay, so are we changing that? Leaving it? Anyone?Zdawg1029 (talk) 05:19, 15 September 2013 (UTC)


 * I've just taken a look at the page, and the word "juridicial" is not there and hasn't been there since at the latest 1 September. So, what have we been talking about? --   Jack of Oz   [pleasantries]  07:47, 15 September 2013 (UTC)


 * How could it not say that on yours but says it on mine? Look at the contents list at the top. Under "Power and Duties" number 2.2.3, it definitely says "juridicial" on my screen in both the contents list and the heading of that section further down. Zdawg1029 (talk) 14:50, 15 September 2013 (UTC)
 * I've just checked the article and it says "Juridical". SMP0328. (talk) 20:27, 15 September 2013 (UTC)
 * I agree, SMP. As I said, I've checked back as far as 1 September and it has never said "juridicial" in all that time.  I have no explanation for why Karanne and Zdawg see that spelling on their screens.  Someone may need their eyes checked, but whether it's you and me, or them, I cannot say.  --   Jack of Oz   [pleasantries]  20:51, 15 September 2013 (UTC)
 * I expect there is confusion here. I think Zdawg1029 and Karanne are thinking it should say 'judicial' not 'juridical'. I don't think they're actually trying to say it is currently or has ever been spelt 'juridicial' instead of 'juridical' in our article, they just spelt it wrong once each. Note also it's only Zdawg1029 who has commented since your message. And even for Zdawg1029, I'm not sure if they even realise the spelling is in contention, they may not have understood your 'But that has only 2 i's, not 3.' comment. Nil Einne (talk) 21:14, 15 September 2013 (UTC)


 * Is there just a miscommunication here? My eyes are not "deceiving" me, this is literally copy and paste from my screen right here, "2.2.3 Juridical powers", and I think this thread was started to determine if "Juridical" is actually supposed to say "judicial". If it says "judicial" on your screen and not "juridical" like it does on mine, then I can't explain that. I refreshed several times and cleared temporary internet files, but it remains. So lets just clear this up. Does it say "Judicial" on your screen, or does it say "Juridical"? And if it does say "juridical", shouldn't it say "judicial"? Zdawg1029 (talk) 22:02, 15 September 2013 (UTC)


 * Wait a sec. Until now, you've been claiming the screen says JURIDI CIAL (10 letters).  Now you're just as vehemently claiming it says JURIDI CAL (9 letters), which is exactly what I've always seen and is exactly what your copy/[paste reveals.  Clearly, earlier you were misreading the page.  --   Jack of Oz   [pleasantries]  00:07, 16 September 2013 (UTC)


 * Okay regardless, I mistakenly left out the "I" the first time I actually typed the word, but that doesn't matter. This is getting rather annoying. It boils down to this, is it supposed to say "Juridical" like it does now? Or is it supposed to be "Judicial"?Zdawg1029 (talk) 01:19, 16 September 2013 (UTC)


 * Sorry to be a nitpicker, but this thread is potentially colossally confusing enough to new readers, and what you just wrote could make it even worse. What your mistake was, was not to leave out an i where one belonged, but to insert an i where it didn't belong, and even enclosed your augmented spelling in quotes to assert it was a verbatim facsimile of what was in the article when it was nothing of the sort.  The article always said "juridical", never "juridicial".


 * Now, as to whether the word should be "juridical" or "judicial": I think the former is correct, and hence the status quo needs no change.  "Juridical" is about things pertaining to the administrative aspects of justice, such as the power to nominate federal judges etc.  "Judicial", OTOH, is about the powers that judges themselves have, and that has nothing to do with POTUS.  --   Jack of Oz   [pleasantries]  01:54, 16 September 2013 (UTC)


 * Wow, that is what this entire thing was about, just to see if that one word was right or not, so now that we have finally gotten on topic as to whether or not it is the right word and off of me misspelling it one time, we have made some progress, so if you say it is the correct word then fine, end of discussion, a discussion by the way I did not even start.Zdawg1029 (talk) 02:55, 16 September 2013 (UTC)


 * Jack, I had honestly never HEARD of the term 'juridical' before, but I can see that it would apply to POTUS nominating SC and other federal justices. I made the original post thinking it was a typo (which happens to the best of us) but thought I'd better check consensus first. Besides, I didn't want to edit on my own (I'm still learning here!) and wanted to be polite. I'll withdraw the original question, and thanks, everyone! Karanne (talk) 03:14, 27 September 2013 (UTC)

Air Force One
I don't have permission to edit, but there's a comment about 'any plane the President is aboard is identified as Air Force One for the trip'. I do not believe this is correct and should be any 'Air Force aircraft' instead of plane. About Air Force One


 * This is 100% accurate. Any plane the President is aboard is considered "Air Force One". Air Force One is not the name of a plane, it is the Presidential call sign for the plane the President is aboard.Zdawg1029 (talk) 03:53, 2 September 2013 (UTC)


 * That's not correct if it's a civil aircraft it's called Executive One, only if it's an Air Force aircraft would it be called Air Force One. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.27.200.85 (talk) 04:10, 2 September 2013 (UTC)


 * Uh, I stand corrected and will fix it.Zdawg1029 (talk) 04:28, 2 September 2013 (UTC)

All are wrong. If POTUS is on an Air Force Aircraft it would be Air Force One. If he is on a Navy aircraft it is Navy One. One is a DV code entered into a flight plan to the FAA. One designator also applies to Presidents of other countries as well. If he was on a Marine C-130 (I hope he never has to go on a C-130) it would be Marine One. Source General Planning 1 which is a DoD publication for flight planning. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 138.162.8.57 (talk) 19:23, 1 October 2013 (UTC)

West Wing
The term may have had some insider usage for decades, but I dare say it was the West Wing pilot that spread it to the masses. I cannot recall ever having heard it before then; now it's a common term (along with TOTUS) on political shows, talk radio, and the like.

Some mention of this fact -- as well as the origins -- is in order here. Can WWW be cited?

http://www.worldwidewords.org/weirdwords/ww-pot1.htm

209.172.25.162 (talk) 06:17, 26 October 2013 (UTC)
 * There has been a West Wing in the White House for a very long time (West Wing - White House Museum). No TV show made the term well known. That was a common term before that show premiered. SMP0328. (talk) 19:52, 26 October 2013 (UTC)


 * Um...we're talking about "POTUS" here, not "West Wing"....


 * How about some sources that POTUS was a "common term" before said episode?! The weight of evidence begs to differ.  209.172.25.168 (talk) 03:59, 27 October 2013 (UTC)
 * How about the three previous discussions already linked at the top of this page, one of which includes this article: . Rmhermen (talk) 04:19, 27 October 2013 (UTC)

Power to initiate war
One of the most critical powers that a US president holds is that of initiating a war. The lede makes no mention of this. I gave my best effort by adding this statement:


 * The military powers of the president have also grown beyond the role of just commanding troops that are engaged in war (as Commander in Chief). Immediate decision making required by the nuclear age of the Cold War led to the president being given de-facto authority to initiate World War III. War-starting authority was formalized in 1973 with the War Powers Resolution, even though the Constitution states that Congress is the body that has the authority to declare war.

...but it got promptly deleted by SMP0328 because it "...seemed to be more the opinion of the editor who added it, instead of an objective description of the President's war powers". I might agree that the tone of my statement needs to be improved, but the facts that I was attempting to convey are cold facts. Others may have ideas on better ways to include this info (per SMP0328's criticism) more objectively.--ChrisfromHouston (talk) 00:09, 1 December 2013 (UTC)
 * My issue with your wording is that it appears to imply that post-WWII Presidents have been acting Unconstitutionally and that the War Powers Resolution is Unconstitutional. That may be your opinion, but the Supreme Court has never so ruled. If this reference is restored, it must be by using objective wording that does not imply whether those Presidents or the WPR are Constitutional or Unconstitutional. SMP0328. (talk) 01:01, 1 December 2013 (UTC)

Uniform
As the President is Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, wouldn't it be appropriate for him to wear military uniform reflecting his rank and position? 74.69.9.224 (talk) 16:57, 22 December 2013 (UTC)
 * In the United States, the military is under civilian control. The President wearing a military uniform would undermine that principle. SMP0328. (talk) 23:06, 22 December 2013 (UTC)
 * Canada is pretty much the only democratic nation with a special CINC uniform. European constitutional monarchs often wear the uniforms of the highest grade in their armed forces, but it's merely a tradition without substance; they don't make final command decisions; that's the domain of civilian politicians, as in the US. The US is in this respect very much in line with (if not ahead of) the rest of the civilized world.RicJac (talk) 22:54, 28 January 2014 (UTC)

Duhmerika
"The person in this position is the leader of the country which has the largest economy and the largest military, with command authority over the largest active nuclear arsenal. The president is frequently described as the most powerful person in the world."

Could someone please remove this tedious derping nonsense. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 109.255.232.208 (talk) 23:38, 25 September 2014 (UTC)

Andrew Johnson in the Timeline
Andrew Johnson shows as a Republican in the timeline and he was a Democrat. CCamp2013 (talk) 20:07, 21 November 2014 (UTC)
 * He was part of the 1864 Republican Presidential ticket, that's why Johnson is listed as a Republican President. For that election, the national Republican Party called itself the National Union Party. Johnson was not nominated by the Democratic Party. SMP0328. (talk) 20:47, 21 November 2014 (UTC)
 * It's wrong to list him as Republican though. He was not apart of the Republican party. He was a Democrat on the National Union Party ticket. If we list him as anything else besides Democrat it should be the National Union Party, which should also be listed by Abraham Lincoln's presidency.  CCamp2013 (talk) 03:36, 24 November 2014 (UTC)

Leader of the free world
Since this phrase is still in use (and was), it should be mentioned in this article. Free World --Sebastian.Dietrich (talk) 17:38, 22 January 2015 (UTC)

The power of the president
The first paragraph contains the clause "the power of the president and the federal government have grown substantially." The subject of this clause is the singular "power" and therefore the singular verb "has grown" should be used instead of the plural "have." Please note that "of the president and the federal government" is a prepositional phrase and therefore cannot be the subject. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Kkaveh88 (talk • contribs) 22:12, 12 February 2015 (UTC)
 * The grammatical error you caught has now been fixed. Thanks for your help. SMP0328. (talk) 01:56, 13 February 2015 (UTC)

POTUS
Is the abbreviation "POTUS", which I had never heard of before today, in sufficiently widespread or general use to warrant appearing in bold letters in the definition sentence at the start of the article? 81.132.192.58 (talk) 20:33, 17 February 2015 (UTC)

Note 1
i am trying to start a discussion about the content of this note. but i AM curious as to...well, where it came from. granted, i might be able to figure out who placed it, and when, by going to the edit page and checking previous versions, etc., etc.

but it does seem like there should be some basic information on the actual page. you know, things like, from WHERE did this little factoid come??Colbey84 (talk) 08:40, 25 March 2015 (UTC)
 * The Constitution, Art. II, § 1, cl. 5: "No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President;".  Obviously, pretty much every potential President at the time the Constitution was written had been born before the United States existed as a country; and I suppose some potential candidates could even have been born in England (although, so far as I know, every person actually elected to President or Vice-President born before the ratification of the Constitution was born in America).


 * I think the last President to rely on this clause was Zachary Taylor, born in 1784, five years before the adoption of the Constitution. It was the source of the occasional joke when Bob Dole was running, though. TJRC (talk) 22:38, 26 March 2015 (UTC)


 * The note ends with However, this allowance has since become obsolete.


 * So this means it is no more allowed? So that a German-born military brat cannot become a president, for example? Even though (s)he is American citizen from birth? 85.217.20.110 (talk) 15:24, 21 May 2015 (UTC)


 * No, the "obsolete" phrase only recognizes the low likelihood that anyone who was already a citizen in 1789 will be running for president in the future. The military brat issue - along with related issues of tourists, diplomats, ex-pat executives, and others similarly situated - is not officially resolved, but current consensus seems to be that such foreign-born citizens would be eligible to serve as president.
 * The phrasing of the note could be improved, though. "Foreign born" is meaningless in context; the exception applied equally to all citizens no matter where they were born. And "who met the age and residency requirements at the time the Constitution was adopted" is misleadingly restrictive; certainly at five years of age Zachary Taylor met neither of these, but he was still covered by the exception. 2600:1006:B12C:E4B8:B945:D20A:9451:85D (talk) 19:02, 21 May 2015 (UTC)

Date error on last sentence of third paragraph
The article currently states the following: On November 6, 2012, he was re-elected and is currently serving the 57th term, which ends on January 20, 2017. Four years from his second oath of office is 2016, and I believe that is when the next president will be sworn into office.

How did everyone miss this? --Pmkorcho (talk) 19:18, 16 June 2015 (UTC)pmkorcho
 * Elected 2012 but sworn in in 2013. 2017-2013 = 4 years .Rmhermen (talk) 19:55, 16 June 2015 (UTC)
 * The current term ends on January 20, 2017, at noon. See Twentieth Amendment. SMP0328. (talk) 04:18, 17 June 2015 (UTC)

Birth years of former presidents are wrong.
(I'm not a Wikipedia editor) The article says it's locked, so I thought I'd point that out here:

The article says that all 4 living former presidents are born in 1946.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_the_United_States#Post-presidency — Preceding unsigned comment added by 23.24.132.233 (talk) 15:08, 29 July 2015 (UTC)

Thank you. The corrections have been made.--NextUSprez (talk) 16:34, 29 July 2015 (UTC)

Ceremonial first pitch
It says Every president since Taft, except for Jimmy Carter, threw out at least one ceremonial first ball or pitch for Opening Day, the All-Star Game, or the World Series, usually with much fanfare.

But on the ceremonial first pitch page it say that Carter done a first pitch at 1979 world series

It seems one of these pages must be wrong - I don't know about baseball so don't want to make a change but maybe someone that knows can check? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2A02:C7D:3C0A:B300:48DC:6CBD:18EF:833D (talk) 17:58, 9 September 2015 (UTC)

Post-presidency
I read in an encyclopedia that any former President might address to the US Senate, if he wanted to do so. Is it true? E.H.Despointes — Preceding unsigned comment added by Despointes (talk • contribs) 10:47, 2 February 2016 (UTC)
 * Only the Senate can decide if a non-Senator may speak to it. SMP0328. (talk) 03:37, 3 February 2016 (UTC)

Only if he was a previous Senator does he have a right to speak before the Senate, just as a former member of the House can always speak before the House. Since Obama was a Senator he would have the right, however no other President in recent times has been a Senator. An active President regardless of previous service in the House or Senate, must get permission before speaking to Congress. (The Speaker delivers a request each year for the President to deliver the State of the Union) This dates back to Charles I and him entering the House of Commons, and is part of the separation of branches. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.45.91.9 (talk) 11:53, 5 March 2016 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 16 August 2016
Can somebody add the Start date and age template from the current "|formation = March 4, 1789" to "formation = {start date and age|1789|3|4}" to correspond to the President of the United States's official formation date?

96.255.203.83 (talk) 02:05, 16 August 2016 (UTC)


 * ✅ Rules of engagement  Paine   07:30, 16 August 2016 (UTC)

Why did they get rid of the really nice timeline & replace it with the minimalist list ?
Why did they get rid of the really nice informative timeline & replace it with the minimalist list ? — Preceding unsigned comment added by YManCyberDude (talk • contribs) 14:49, 24 August 2016 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 3 September 2016
Remove self-promotion. `"POTUS" redirects here. For the political talk radio channel, see P.O.T.U.S. (Sirius XM).`

86.153.26.167 (talk) 19:02, 3 September 2016 (UTC)

❌ Appears to be proper use of WP:HAT, not blatant self-promotion. Good faith request declined.--NextUSprez (talk) 19:20, 3 September 2016 (UTC)

Ongoing discussion about lead picture at Donald Trump
You are invited to participate in an ongoing talk-page discussion about the lead picture at Donald Trump. --Dervorguilla (talk) 07:22, 15 September 2016 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 9 November 2016
I would like to file a edit request for this article because as of November 9th, 2016, Barak Obama is no longer incumbent President of The US. 49.187.155.156 (talk) 07:46, 9 November 2016 (UTC)


 * ❌ Barack Obama is still the incumbent POTUS; his term does not end until January 20, 2017. Drdpw (talk) 07:52, 9 November 2016 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 9 November 2016
Donald Trump is the president now Bobthebutcher123 (talk) 09:03, 9 November 2016 (UTC) – No, he won't be president until January 20, 2017. Drdpw (talk) 09:12, 9 November 2016 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 9 November 2016
Donald Jonathan Trump has currently been elected to take office as president of the U.S.A, yet this article suggests otherwise, I am writing this request to have this article updated with current information. Thank you.

Jkorp626 (talk) 16:31, 9 November 2016 (UTC)
 * ❌ it very clearly states that Obama's term "ends at noon on January 20, 2017. Donald Trump, having won the 2016 presidential election, is expected to be inaugurated shortly after noon." - Arjayay (talk) 16:37, 9 November 2016 (UTC)

Case consistency
Is it "President" or "president"? The article is not consistent. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.22.165.103 (talk) 20:46, 16 November 2016 (UTC)
 * If you use the word as a title, e.g., President Obama, then it's uppercase, whereas if you use it as an ordinary word, e.g., Obama is the president, then it's lowercase. Those are the two most common differentiations.--Bbb23 (talk) 21:05, 16 November 2016 (UTC)

Removed material
I have removed the following material from the War and foreign affairs subsection:"Although presidents are not constitutionally provided with the power, they sometimes employ "executive agreements" in foreign relations. These agreements frequently regard administrative policy choices germane to executive power; for example, the extent to which either country presents an armed presence in a given area, how each country will enforce copyright treaties, or how each country will process foreign mail. However, the 20th century witnessed a vast expansion of the use of executive agreements, and critics have challenged the extent of that use as supplanting the treaty process and removing constitutionally prescribed checks and balances over the executive in foreign relations. Supporters counter that the agreements offer a pragmatic solution when the need for swift, secret, and/or concerted action arises." This material was unsourced and used weasel words (e.g., "critics"). If both of these defects are cured, this material can be restored to the article. SMP0328. (talk) 05:25, 16 January 2017 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 17 January 2017
I would like to edit the Potus Page to include Donald Trump Instead of obama, Thank you GlaDOS (talk) 13:44, 17 January 2017 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done for now: Firstly this is not the page to request additional user rights. secondly Obama remains President until 20 January 2017. regards,    DRAGON BOOSTER   ★  13:53, 17 January 2017 (UTC)

Request to temporally fully protect the page

 * Padlock-dash2.svg Not done: requests for increases to the page protection level should be made at Requests for page protection. DRAGON BOOSTER   ★  17:19, 20 January 2017 (UTC)

Salary
Shouldn't the salary be changed to $1 as President Trump will only take that as his salary? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 84.104.177.133 (talk) 17:43, 20 January 2017 (UTC)
 * No, as the salary itself has not changed, nor will it, except through an Act of Congress. He'll get the official amount, as it's set by law. What he'll apparently is keep $1 and turn the balance back over to the federal government. Drdpw (talk) 17:55, 20 January 2017 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 5 February 2017
"POTUS" redirects here. For the political talk radio channel, see P.O.T.U.S. (Sirius XM). For other uses, see President of the United States (disambiguation). For a list, see List of Presidents of the United States. President of the United States of America Seal of the President of the United States.svg Presidential Seal Flag of the President of the United States of America.svg Presidential Standard Donald Trump official portrait.jpg Incumbent Donald Trump since January 20, 2017 Executive Branch of the U.S. Government Executive Office of the President Style 	Mr. President (informal)[1][2] The Honorable (formal)[3] His Excellency[4][5][6] (in international correspondence) Member of 	Cabinet Domestic Policy Council National Economic Council National Security Council Residence 	White House Seat 	Washington, D.C. Appointer 	Electoral College Term length 	Four years renewable once Constituting instrument 	United States Constitution Inaugural holder 	George Washington Formation 	June 21, 1788 (228 years ago) Salary 	$400,000 annually[note 1][7] Website 	WhiteHouse.gov

The President of the United States (POTUS)[8][note 2] is the elected head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces.

The President is considered to be one of the world's most powerful political figures, as the leader of the only contemporary global superpower.[9][10][11][12] The role includes being the commander-in-chief of the world's most expensive military with the second largest nuclear arsenal and leading the nation with the largest economy by nominal GDP. The office of President holds significant hard and soft power both in the United States and abroad.

Article II of the U.S. Constitution vests the executive power of the United States in the president. The power includes execution of federal law, alongside the responsibility of appointing federal executive, diplomatic, regulatory and judicial officers, and concluding treaties with foreign powers with the advice and consent of the Senate. The president is further empowered to grant federal pardons and reprieves, and to convene and adjourn either or both houses of Congress under extraordinary circumstances.[13] The president is largely responsible for dictating the legislative agenda of the party to which the president is a member. The president also directs the foreign and domestic policy of the United States.[14] Since the office of President was established in 1789, its power has grown substantially, as has the power of the federal government as a whole.[15]

The president is indirectly elected by the people through the Electoral College to a four-year term, and is one of only two nationally elected federal officers, the other being the Vice President of the United States.[16] The Twenty-second Amendment (adopted in 1951) prohibits anyone from being elected president for a third term. It also prohibits a person from being elected to the presidency more than once if that person previously had served as president, or acting president, for more than two years of another person's term as president. In all, 44 individuals have served 45 presidencies (counting Grover Cleveland's two non-consecutive terms separately) spanning 57 full four-year terms.[17] On January 20, 2017, Donald Trump was sworn in as the 45th and current president.

Contents

1 Origin 2 Powers and duties 2.1 Article I legislative role 2.2 Article II executive powers 2.2.1 War and foreign affairs powers 2.2.2 Administrative powers 2.2.3 Juridical powers 2.2.4 Legislative facilitator 2.3 Ceremonial roles 2.4 Critics of presidency's evolution 3 Selection process 3.1 Eligibility 3.2 Campaigns and nomination 3.3 Election and oath 3.4 Tenure and term limits 3.5 Vacancy or disability 3.6 Political affiliation 4 Compensation 5 Post-presidency 5.1 Presidential libraries 6 Timeline of presidents 7 See also 7.1 Presidential administrations 7.2 Lists relating to the United States presidency 7.3 Articles 8 Notes 9 References 10 Further reading 10.1 Primary sources 11 External links

Origin This article is part of a series on the Politics of the United States of America Greater coat of arms of the United States.svg Federal Government[show] Legislature[show] Executive[show] Judiciary[show] Elections[show] Political parties[show] Federalism[show]

Other countries Atlas

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In 1776, the Thirteen Colonies, acting through the Second Continental Congress, declared political independence from Great Britain during the American Revolution. The new states, though independent of each other as nation states,[18] recognized the necessity of closely coordinating their efforts against the British.[19] Desiring to avoid anything that remotely resembled a monarchy, Congress negotiated the Articles of Confederation to establish a weak alliance between the states.[18] As a central authority, Congress under the Articles was without any legislative power; it could make its own resolutions, determinations, and regulations, but not any laws, nor any taxes or local commercial regulations enforceable upon citizens.[19] This institutional design reflected the conception of how Americans believed the deposed British system of Crown and Parliament ought to have functioned with respect to the royal dominion: a superintending body for matters that concerned the entire empire.[19] Out from under any monarchy, the states assigned some formerly royal prerogatives (e.g., making war, receiving ambassadors, etc.) to Congress, while severally lodging the rest within their own respective state governments. Only after all the states agreed to a resolution settling competing western land claims did the Articles take effect on March 1, 1781, when Maryland became the final state to ratify them.

In 1783, the Treaty of Paris secured independence for each of the former colonies. With peace at hand, the states each turned toward their own internal affairs.[18] By 1786, Americans found their continental borders besieged and weak, their respective economies in crises as neighboring states agitated trade rivalries with one another, witnessed their hard currency pouring into foreign markets to pay for imports, their Mediterranean commerce preyed upon by North African pirates, and their foreign-financed Revolutionary War debts unpaid and accruing interest.[18] Civil and political unrest loomed.

Following the successful resolution of commercial and fishing disputes between Virginia and Maryland at the Mount Vernon Conference in 1785, Virginia called for a trade conference between all the states, set for September 1786 in Annapolis, Maryland, with an aim toward resolving further-reaching interstate commercial antagonisms. When the convention failed for lack of attendance due to suspicions among most of the other states, the Annapolis delegates called for a convention to offer revisions to the Articles, to be held the next spring in Philadelphia. Prospects for the next convention appeared bleak until James Madison and Edmund Randolph succeeded in securing George Washington's attendance to Philadelphia as a delegate for Virginia.[18][20]

When the Constitutional Convention convened in May 1787, the 12 state delegations in attendance (Rhode Island did not send delegates) brought with them an accumulated experience over a diverse set of institutional arrangements between legislative and executive branches from within their respective state governments. Most states maintained a weak executive without veto or appointment powers, elected annually by the legislature to a single term only, sharing power with an executive council, and countered by a strong legislature.[18] New York offered the greatest exception, having a strong, unitary governor with veto and appointment power elected to a three-year term, and eligible for reelection to an indefinite number of terms thereafter.[18] It was through the closed-door negotiations at Philadelphia that the presidency framed in the U.S. Constitution emerged. Powers and duties Article I legislative role President Ronald Reagan signing the Martin Luther King bill in 1983.

The first power the Constitution confers upon the president is the veto. The Presentment Clause requires any bill passed by Congress to be presented to the president before it can become law. Once the legislation has been presented, the president has three options:

Sign the legislation; the bill then becomes law. Veto the legislation and return it to Congress, expressing any objections; the bill does not become law, unless each house of Congress votes to override the veto by a two-thirds vote. Take no action. In this instance, the president neither signs nor vetoes the legislation. After 10 days, not counting Sundays, two possible outcomes emerge: If Congress is still convened, the bill becomes law. If Congress has adjourned, thus preventing the return of the legislation, the bill does not become law. This latter outcome is known as the pocket veto.

In 1996, Congress attempted to enhance the president's veto power with the Line Item Veto Act. The legislation empowered the president to sign any spending bill into law while simultaneously striking certain spending items within the bill, particularly any new spending, any amount of discretionary spending, or any new limited tax benefit. Congress could then repass that particular item. If the president then vetoed the new legislation, Congress could override the veto by its ordinary means, a two-thirds vote in both houses. In Clinton v. City of New York, 524 U.S. 417 (1998), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled such a legislative alteration of the veto power to be unconstitutional. Article II executive powers War and foreign affairs powers Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States, successfully preserved the Union during the American Civil War

Perhaps the most important of all presidential powers is the command of the United States Armed Forces as its commander-in-chief. While the power to declare war is constitutionally vested in Congress, the president has ultimate responsibility for direction and disposition of the military. The present-day operational command of the Armed Forces (belonging to the Department of Defense) is normally exercised through the Secretary of Defense, with assistance of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to the Combatant Commands, as outlined in the presidentially approved Unified Command Plan (UCP).[21][22][23] The framers of the Constitution took care to limit the president's powers regarding the military; Alexander Hamilton explains this in Federalist No. 69:

The President is to be commander-in-chief of the army and navy of the United States. ... It would amount to nothing more than the supreme command and direction of the military and naval forces ... while that [the power] of the British king extends to the DECLARING of war and to the RAISING and REGULATING of fleets and armies, all [of] which ... would appertain to the legislature.[24] [Emphasis in the original.]

Congress, pursuant to the War Powers Resolution, must authorize any troop deployments longer than 60 days, although that process relies on triggering mechanisms that have never been employed, rendering it ineffectual.[25] Additionally, Congress provides a check to presidential military power through its control over military spending and regulation. While historically presidents initiated the process for going to war,[26][27] critics have charged that there have been several conflicts in which presidents did not get official declarations, including Theodore Roosevelt's military move into Panama in 1903,[26] the Korean War,[26] the Vietnam War,[26] and the invasions of Grenada in 1983[28] and Panama in 1990.[29]

Along with the armed forces, the president also directs U.S. foreign policy. Through the Department of State and the Department of Defense, the president is responsible for the protection of Americans abroad and of foreign nationals in the United States. The president decides whether to recognize new nations and new governments, and negotiates treaties with other nations, which become binding on the United States when approved by two-thirds vote of the Senate.[citation needed] Administrative powers

Suffice it to say that the President is made the sole repository of the executive powers of the United States, and the powers entrusted to him as well as the duties imposed upon him are awesome indeed. William Rehnquist, Nixon v. General Services Administration, 433 U.S. 425 (1977) (dissenting opinion)

The president is the head of the executive branch of the federal government and is constitutionally obligated to "take care that the laws be faithfully executed".[30] The executive branch has over four million employees, including members of the military.[31]

Presidents make numerous executive branch appointments: an incoming president may make up to 6,000 before taking office and 8,000 more while serving. Ambassadors, members of the Cabinet, and other federal officers, are all appointed by a president with the "advice and consent" of a majority of the Senate. When the Senate is in recess for at least ten days, the president may make recess appointments.[32] Recess appointments are temporary and expire at the end of the next session of the Senate.

The power of a president to fire executive officials has long been a contentious political issue. Generally, a president may remove purely executive officials at will.[33] However, Congress can curtail and constrain a president's authority to fire commissioners of independent regulatory agencies and certain inferior executive officers by statute.[34]

The president additionally possesses the ability to direct much of the executive branch through executive orders that are grounded in federal law or constitutionally granted executive power. Executive orders are reviewable by federal courts and can be superseded by federal legislation.

To manage the growing federal bureaucracy, Presidents have gradually surrounded themselves with many layers of staff, who were eventually organized into the Executive Office of the President of the United States. Within the Executive Office, the President's innermost layer of aides (and their assistants) are located in the White House Office. Juridical powers

The president also has the power to nominate federal judges, including members of the United States courts of appeals and the Supreme Court of the United States. However, these nominations require Senate confirmation. Securing Senate approval can provide a major obstacle for presidents who wish to orient the federal judiciary toward a particular ideological stance. When nominating judges to U.S. district courts, presidents often respect the long-standing tradition of senatorial courtesy. Presidents may also grant pardons and reprieves (Bill Clinton pardoned Patty Hearst on his last day in office), as is often done just before the end of a presidential term, but not without controversy.[35][36][37]

Historically, two doctrines concerning executive power have developed that enable the president to exercise executive power with a degree of autonomy. The first is executive privilege, which allows the president to withhold from disclosure any communications made directly to the president in the performance of executive duties. George Washington first claimed privilege when Congress requested to see Chief Justice John Jay's notes from an unpopular treaty negotiation with Great Britain. While not enshrined in the Constitution, or any other law, Washington's action created the precedent for the privilege. When Richard Nixon tried to use executive privilege as a reason for not turning over subpoenaed evidence to Congress during the Watergate scandal, the Supreme Court ruled in United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. 683 (1974), that executive privilege did not apply in cases where a president was attempting to avoid criminal prosecution. When President Bill Clinton attempted to use executive privilege regarding the Lewinsky scandal, the Supreme Court ruled in Clinton v. Jones, 520 U.S. 681 (1997), that the privilege also could not be used in civil suits. These cases established the legal precedent that executive privilege is valid, although the exact extent of the privilege has yet to be clearly defined. Additionally, federal courts have allowed this privilege to radiate outward and protect other executive branch employees, but have weakened that protection for those executive branch communications that do not involve the president.[38] President George W. Bush delivering the 2007 State of the Union Address, with Vice President Dick Cheney and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi behind him

The state secrets privilege allows the president and the executive branch to withhold information or documents from discovery in legal proceedings if such release would harm national security. Precedent for the privilege arose early in the 19th century when Thomas Jefferson refused to release military documents in the treason trial of Aaron Burr and again in Totten v. United States 92 U.S. 105 (1876), when the Supreme Court dismissed a case brought by a former Union spy.[39] However, the privilege was not formally recognized by the U.S. Supreme Court until United States v. Reynolds 345 U.S. 1 (1953), where it was held to be a common law evidentiary privilege.[40] Before the September 11 attacks, use of the privilege had been rare, but increasing in frequency.[41] Since 2001, the government has asserted the privilege in more cases and at earlier stages of the litigation, thus in some instances causing dismissal of the suits before reaching the merits of the claims, as in the Ninth Circuit's ruling in Mohamed v. Jeppesen Dataplan, Inc.[40][42][43] Critics of the privilege claim its use has become a tool for the government to cover up illegal or embarrassing government actions.[44][45] Legislative facilitator

The Constitution's Ineligibility Clause prevents the President (and all other executive officers) from simultaneously being a member of Congress. Therefore, the president cannot directly introduce legislative proposals for consideration in Congress. However, the president can take an indirect role in shaping legislation, especially if the president's political party has a majority in one or both houses of Congress. For example, the president or other officials of the executive branch may draft legislation and then ask senators or representatives to introduce these drafts into Congress. The president can further influence the legislative branch through constitutionally mandated, periodic reports to Congress. These reports may be either written or oral, but today are given as the State of the Union address, which often outlines the president's legislative proposals for the coming year. Additionally, the president may attempt to have Congress alter proposed legislation by threatening to veto that legislation unless requested changes are made.

In the 20th century critics began charging that too many legislative and budgetary powers have slid into the hands of presidents that should belong to Congress. As the head of the executive branch, presidents control a vast array of agencies that can issue regulations with little oversight from Congress. One critic charged that presidents could appoint a "virtual army of 'czars' – each wholly unaccountable to Congress yet tasked with spearheading major policy efforts for the White House".[46] Presidents have been criticized for making signing statements when signing congressional legislation about how they understand a bill or plan to execute it.[47] This practice has been criticized by the American Bar Association as unconstitutional.[48] Conservative commentator George Will wrote of an "increasingly swollen executive branch" and "the eclipse of Congress".[49]

According to Article II, Section 3, Clause 2 of the Constitution, the president may convene either or both houses of Congress. If both houses cannot agree on a date of adjournment, the president may appoint a date for Congress to adjourn. Ceremonial roles President Woodrow Wilson throwing out the ceremonial first ball on Opening Day, 1916

As head of state, the president can fulfill traditions established by previous presidents. William Howard Taft started the tradition of throwing out the ceremonial first pitch in 1910 at Griffith Stadium, Washington, D.C., on the Washington Senators' Opening Day. Every president since Taft, except for Jimmy Carter, threw out at least one ceremonial first ball or pitch for Opening Day, the All-Star Game, or the World Series, usually with much fanfare.[50]

The President of the United States has served as the honorary president of the Boy Scouts of America since the founding of the organization.[51]

Other presidential traditions are associated with American holidays. Rutherford B. Hayes began in 1878 the first White House egg rolling for local children.[52] Beginning in 1947 during the Harry S. Truman administration, every Thanksgiving the president is presented with a live domestic turkey during the annual National Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation held at the White House. Since 1989, when the custom of "pardoning" the turkey was formalized by George H. W. Bush, the turkey has been taken to a farm where it will live out the rest of its natural life.[53]

Presidential traditions also involve the president's role as head of government. Many outgoing presidents since James Buchanan traditionally give advice to their successor during the presidential transition.[54] Ronald Reagan and his successors have also left a private message on the desk of the Oval Office on Inauguration Day for the incoming president.[55] Four ruffles and flourishes and 'Hail to the Chief' (long version) Menu 0:00 Problems playing this file? See media help.

During a state visit by a foreign head of state, the president typically hosts a State Arrival Ceremony held on the South Lawn, a custom begun by John F. Kennedy in 1961.[56] This is followed by a state dinner given by the president which is held in the State Dining Room later in the evening.[57]

The modern presidency holds the president as one of the nation's premier celebrities. Some argue that images of the presidency have a tendency to be manipulated by administration public relations officials as well as by presidents themselves. One critic described the presidency as "propagandized leadership" which has a "mesmerizing power surrounding the office".[58] Administration public relations managers staged carefully crafted photo-ops of smiling presidents with smiling crowds for television cameras.[59] One critic wrote the image of John F. Kennedy was described as carefully framed "in rich detail" which "drew on the power of myth" regarding the incident of PT 109[60] and wrote that Kennedy understood how to use images to further his presidential ambitions.[61] As a result, some political commentators have opined that American voters have unrealistic expectations of presidents: voters expect a president to "drive the economy, vanquish enemies, lead the free world, comfort tornado victims, heal the national soul and protect borrowers from hidden credit-card fees".[62] Critics of presidency's evolution Main articles: Imperial Presidency and Imperiled presidency

Most of the nation's Founding Fathers expected the Congress, which was the first branch of government described in the Constitution, to be the dominant branch of government; they did not expect a strong executive.[63] However, presidential power has shifted over time, which has resulted in claims that the modern presidency has become too powerful,[64][65] unchecked, unbalanced,[66] and "monarchist" in nature.[67] Critic Dana D. Nelson believes presidents over the past thirty years have worked towards "undivided presidential control of the executive branch and its agencies".[68] She criticizes proponents of the unitary executive for expanding "the many existing uncheckable executive powers – such as executive orders, decrees, memorandums, proclamations, national security directives and legislative signing statements – that already allow presidents to enact a good deal of foreign and domestic policy without aid, interference or consent from Congress".[68] Activist Bill Wilson opined that the expanded presidency was "the greatest threat ever to individual freedom and democratic rule".[69] Selection process George Washington, the first President of the United States Eligibility See also: Age of candidacy and Natural-born-citizen clause

Article II, Section 1, Clause 5 of the Constitution sets the following qualifications for holding the presidency:

be a natural-born citizen of the United States;[note 3] be at least thirty-five years old; be a resident in the United States for at least fourteen years.

A person who meets the above qualifications is still disqualified from holding the office of president under any of the following conditions:

Under the Twenty-second Amendment, no person can be elected president more than twice. The amendment also specifies that if any eligible person serves as president or acting president for more than two years of a term for which some other eligible person was elected president, the former can only be elected president once. Scholars disagree over whether a person precluded by the Twenty-second Amendment to being elected president is also precluded to being vice president.[70] Under Article I, Section 3, Clause 7, upon conviction in impeachment cases, the Senate has the option of disqualifying convicted individuals from holding federal office, including that of president.[71] Under Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment, no person who swore an oath to support the Constitution, and later rebelled against the United States, can become president. However, this disqualification can be lifted by a two-thirds vote of each house of Congress.

Campaigns and nomination Main articles: United States presidential primary, United States presidential nominating convention, United States presidential election debates, and United States presidential election

The modern presidential campaign begins before the primary elections, which the two major political parties use to clear the field of candidates before their national nominating conventions, where the most successful candidate is made the party's nominee for president. Typically, the party's presidential candidate chooses a vice presidential nominee, and this choice is rubber-stamped by the convention. The most common previous profession by U.S. presidents is lawyer.[72]

Nominees participate in nationally televised debates, and while the debates are usually restricted to the Democratic and Republican nominees, third party candidates may be invited, such as Ross Perot in the 1992 debates. Nominees campaign across the country to explain their views, convince voters and solicit contributions. Much of the modern electoral process is concerned with winning swing states through frequent visits and mass media advertising drives. Election and oath Map of the United States showing the number of electoral votes allocated following the 2010 census to each state for the 2012, 2016 and 2020 presidential elections; it also notes that Maine and Nebraska distribute electoral by way of the Congressional District Method. 270 electoral votes are required for a majority out of 538 votes possible. Main articles: Electoral College (United States) and Oath of office of the President of the United States

The president is elected indirectly. A number of electors, collectively known as the Electoral College, officially select the president. On Election Day, voters in each of the states and the District of Columbia cast ballots for these electors. Each state is allocated a number of electors, equal to the size of its delegation in both Houses of Congress combined. Generally, the ticket that wins the most votes in a state wins all of that state's electoral votes and thus has its slate of electors chosen to vote in the Electoral College.

The winning slate of electors meet at its state's capital on the first Monday after the second Wednesday in December, about six weeks after the election, to vote. They then send a record of that vote to Congress. The vote of the electors is opened by the sitting vice president—acting in that role's capacity as President of the Senate—and read aloud to a joint session of the incoming Congress, which was elected at the same time as the president.

Pursuant to the Twentieth Amendment, the president's term of office begins at noon on January 20 of the year following the election. This date, known as Inauguration Day, marks the beginning of the four-year terms of both the president and the vice president. Before executing the powers of the office, a president is constitutionally required to take the presidential oath:

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.[73]

Although not required, presidents have traditionally palmed a Bible while swearing the oath and have added, "So help me God!" to the end of the oath.[74] Further, although the oath may be administered by any person authorized by law to administer oaths, presidents are traditionally sworn in by the Chief Justice of the United States. Tenure and term limits Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected to four terms before the adoption of the Twenty-second Amendment in 1951.

The term of office for president and vice president is four years. George Washington, the first president, set an unofficial precedent of serving only two terms. Before Franklin D. Roosevelt, Ulysses S. Grant and Theodore Roosevelt each unsuccessfully sought a third term. In 1940, Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected to a third term after being "drafted" by his party. In 1941, the United States entered World War II, leading voters to elect Roosevelt to a fourth term in 1944. Roosevelt died on April 12, 1945, 82 days into his fourth term.

After the war, and in response to Roosevelt being elected to third and fourth terms, the Twenty-second Amendment was adopted. The amendment bars anyone from being elected president more than twice, or once if that person served more than half of another president's term. Harry S. Truman, president when this amendment was adopted, was exempted from its limitations and briefly sought a third (a second full) term before withdrawing from the 1952 election.

Since the amendment's adoption, five presidents have served two full terms: Dwight D. Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama. Jimmy Carter and George H. W. Bush sought a second term, but were defeated. Richard Nixon was elected to a second term, but resigned before completing it. Lyndon B. Johnson was the only president under the amendment to be eligible to serve more than two terms in total, having served for only fourteen months following John F. Kennedy's assassination. However, Johnson withdrew from the 1968 Democratic Primary, surprising many Americans. Gerald Ford sought a full term, after serving out the last two years and five months of Nixon's second term, but was not elected. Vacancy or disability See also: Twenty-fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, United States presidential line of succession, Presidential Succession Act, and Impeachment in the United States

Vacancies in the office of President may arise under several possible circumstances: death, resignation and removal from office.

Article II, Section 4 of the Constitution allows the House of Representatives to impeach high federal officials, including the president, for "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors." Article I, Section 3, Clause 6 gives the Senate the power to remove impeached officials from office, given a two-thirds vote to convict. The House has thus far impeached two presidents: Andrew Johnson in 1868 and Bill Clinton in 1998. Neither was subsequently convicted by the Senate; however, Johnson was acquitted by just one vote.

Under Section 3 of the Twenty-fifth Amendment, the president may transfer the presidential powers and duties to the vice president, who then becomes acting president, by transmitting a statement to the Speaker of the House and the President pro tempore of the Senate stating the reasons for the transfer. The president resumes the discharge of the presidential powers and duties upon transmitting, to those two officials, a written declaration stating that resumption. This transfer of power may occur for any reason the president considers appropriate; in 2002 and again in 2007, President George W. Bush briefly transferred presidential authority to Vice President Dick Cheney. In both cases, this was done to accommodate a medical procedure which required Bush to be sedated; both times, Bush returned to duty later the same day.[75]

Under Section 4 of the Twenty-fifth Amendment, the vice president, in conjunction with a majority of the Cabinet, may transfer the presidential powers and duties from the president to the vice president by transmitting a written declaration to the Speaker of the House and the president pro tempore of the Senate that the president is unable to discharge the presidential powers and duties. If this occurs, then the vice president will assume the presidential powers and duties as acting president; however, the president can declare that no such inability exists and resume the discharge of the presidential powers and duties. If the vice president and Cabinet contest this claim, it is up to Congress, which must meet within two days if not already in session, to decide the merit of the claim.

The United States Constitution mentions the resignation of the president, but does not regulate its form or the conditions for its validity. Pursuant to federal law, the only valid evidence of the president's resignation is a written instrument to that effect, signed by the president and delivered to the office of the Secretary of State.[76] This has only occurred once, when Richard Nixon delivered a letter to Henry Kissinger to that effect.

Section 1 of the Twenty-fifth Amendment states that the vice president becomes president upon the removal from office, death or resignation of the preceding president. The Presidential Succession Act of 1947 provides that if the offices of President and Vice President are each either vacant or are held by a disabled person, the next officer in the presidential line of succession, the Speaker of the House, becomes acting president. The line then extends to the President pro tempore of the Senate, followed by every member of the Cabinet. These persons must fulfill all eligibility requirements of the office of President to be eligible to become acting president; ineligible individuals are skipped. There has never been a special election for the office of President. Political affiliation

Throughout most of its history, politics of the United States have been dominated by political parties. Political parties had not been anticipated when the U.S. Constitution was drafted in 1787, nor did they exist at the time of the first presidential election in 1788–1789. Organized political parties developed in the U.S. in the mid–1790s, but political factions, from which organized parties evolved, began to appear almost immediately after the Federal government came into existence. Those who supported the Washington administration were referred to as "pro-administration" and would eventually form the Federalist Party, while those in opposition joined the emerging Democratic-Republican Party.[77]

Greatly concerned about the very real capacity of political parties to destroy the fragile unity holding the nation together, Washington remained unaffiliated with any political faction or party throughout his eight-year presidency. He was, and remains, the only U.S. president never to be affiliated with a political party.[78] Since George Washington, 43 persons have been sworn into office as President, and all have been affiliated with a political party at the time they assumed office. The number of presidents per political party are:

19 with the Republican Party – Chester A. Arthur, George H. W. Bush, George W. Bush, Calvin Coolidge, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Gerald Ford, James A. Garfield, Ulysses S. Grant, Warren G. Harding, Benjamin Harrison, Rutherford B. Hayes, Herbert Hoover, Abraham Lincoln, William McKinley, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and Donald Trump 14 with the Democratic Party – James Buchanan, Jimmy Carter, Grover Cleveland, Bill Clinton, Andrew Jackson, Lyndon B. Johnson, John F. Kennedy, Barack Obama, Franklin Pierce, James K. Polk, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, Martin Van Buren, and Woodrow Wilson Four with the Democratic-Republican Party – John Quincy Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroe Four with the Whig Party – Millard Fillmore, William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, and John Tyler One with the Federalist Party – John Adams[79] One with the National Union Party – Andrew Johnson

Compensation Presidential pay history Date established 	Salary 	Salary in 2016 dollars September 24, 1789 	$25,000 	$702,755 March 3, 1873 	$50,000 	$1,032,868 March 4, 1909 	$75,000 	$2,045,483 January 19, 1949 	$100,000 	$1,008,433 January 20, 1969 	$200,000 	$1,307,940 January 20, 2001 	$400,000 	$542,082 Sources:[80][81][82]

Since 2001, the president has earned a $400,000 annual salary, along with a $50,000 annual expense account, a $100,000 nontaxable travel account, and $19,000 for entertainment.[83][84] The most recent raise in salary was approved by Congress and President Bill Clinton in 1999 and went into effect in 2001.

The White House in Washington, D.C., serves as the official place of residence for the president. As well as access to the White House staff, facilities available to the president include medical care, recreation, housekeeping, and security services. The government pays for state dinners and other official functions, but the president pays for personal, family and guest dry cleaning and food; the high food bill often amazes new residents.[85] Naval Support Facility Thurmont, popularly known as Camp David, is a mountain-based military camp in Frederick County, Maryland, used as a country retreat and for high alert protection of the president and guests. Blair House, located next to the Eisenhower Executive Office Building at the White House Complex and Lafayette Park, is a complex of four connected townhouses exceeding 70,000 square feet (6,500 m2) of floor space which serves as the president's official guest house and as a secondary residence for the president if needed.[86]

For ground travel, the president uses the presidential state car, which is an armored limousine built on a heavily modified Cadillac-based chassis.[87] One of two identical Boeing VC-25 aircraft, which are extensively modified versions of Boeing 747-200B airliners, serve as long distance travel for the president and are referred to as Air Force One while the president is on board (although any U.S. Air Force aircraft the President is aboard is designated as "Air Force One" for the duration of the flight). In-country trips are typically handled with just one of the two planes while overseas trips are handled with both, one primary and one backup. Any civilian aircraft the President is aboard is designated Executive One for the flight.[88][89] The president also has access to a fleet of thirty-five U.S. Marine Corps helicopters of varying models, designated Marine One when the president is aboard any particular one in the fleet. Flights are typically handled with as many as five helicopters all flying together and frequently swapping positions as to disguise which helicopter the President is actually aboard to any would-be threats.

The U.S. Secret Service is charged with protecting the sitting president and the first family. As part of their protection, presidents, first ladies, their children and other immediate family members, and other prominent persons and locations are assigned Secret Service codenames.[90] The use of such names was originally for security purposes and dates to a time when sensitive electronic communications were not routinely encrypted; today, the names simply serve for purposes of brevity, clarity, and tradition.[91]

Presidential amenities

The White House

Camp David

Blair House

State car

Air Force One

Marine One

Post-presidency See also: Post-presidency of Ulysses S. Grant and Post-presidency of Bill Clinton Photograph of four former U.S. Presidents, including Ronald Reagan, celebrating in a blue room before leaving for Egypt President Ronald Reagan with former presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and Jimmy Carter, sharing a drink in the Blue Room in October 1981.

Under the Former Presidents Act, all living former presidents are granted a pension, an office, and a staff. The pension has increased numerous times with Congressional approval. Retired presidents now receive a pension based on the salary of the current administration's cabinet secretaries, which was $199,700 each year in 2012.[92] Former presidents who served in Congress may also collect congressional pensions.[93] The act also provides former presidents with travel funds and franking privileges. Prior to 1997, all former presidents, their spouses, and their children until age 16 were protected by the Secret Service until the president's death.[94][95] In 1997, Congress passed legislation limiting secret service protection to no more than 10 years from the date a president leaves office.[96] On January 10, 2013, President Obama signed legislation reinstating lifetime secret service protection for him, George W. Bush, and all subsequent presidents.[97] A spouse who remarries is no longer eligible for secret service protection.[96]

Some presidents have had significant careers after leaving office. Prominent examples include William Howard Taft's tenure as Chief Justice of the United States and Herbert Hoover's work on government reorganization after World War II. Grover Cleveland, whose bid for reelection failed in 1888, was elected president again four years later in 1892. Two former presidents served in Congress after leaving the White House: John Quincy Adams was elected to the House of Representatives, serving there for seventeen years, and Andrew Johnson returned to the Senate in 1875. John Tyler served in the provisional Congress of the Confederate States during the Civil War and was elected to the Confederate House of Representatives, but died before that body first met.

Presidents may use their predecessors as emissaries to deliver private messages to other nations or as official representatives of the United States to state funerals and other important foreign events.[98][99] Richard Nixon made multiple foreign trips to countries including China and Russia and was lauded as an elder statesman.[100] Jimmy Carter has become a global human rights campaigner, international arbiter, and election monitor, as well as a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. Bill Clinton has also worked as an informal ambassador, most recently in the negotiations that led to the release of two American journalists, Laura Ling and Euna Lee, from North Korea. Clinton has also been active politically since his presidential term ended, working with his wife Hillary on her 2008 and 2016 presidential bids and President Obama on his 2012 reelection campaign. Living former presidents Jimmy Carter (age 92) since 1981 George H. W. Bush (age 92) since 1993 Bill Clinton (age 70) since 2001 George W. Bush (age 70) since 2009 Barack Obama (age 55) since 2017 Presidential libraries Main article: Presidential library Seal of the US Presidential Libraries.svg

Since Herbert Hoover, each president has created a repository known as a presidential library for preserving and making available his papers, records and other documents and materials. Completed libraries are deeded to and maintained by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); the initial funding for building and equipping each library must come from private, non-federal sources.[101] There are currently thirteen presidential libraries in the NARA system. There are also presidential libraries maintained by state governments and private foundations and Universities of Higher Education, such as the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, which is run by the State of Illinois, the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum, which is run by Texas A&M University and the Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library and Museum, which is run by the University of Texas at Austin.

As many presidents live for many years after leaving office, several of them have personally overseen the building and opening of their own presidential libraries, some even making arrangements for their own burial at the site. Several presidential libraries therefore contain the graves of the president they document, such as the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum in Yorba Linda, California and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California. The graves are viewable by the general public visiting these libraries. Timeline of presidents — Preceding unsigned comment added by 203.184.23.60 (talk) 05:06, 5 February 2017 (UTC)


 * ❌ Way too much text here. Please be brief. For an edit request, please use the "change X to Y" format. Include wp:citations Thank you Jim1138 (talk) 05:11, 5 February 2017 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 15 February 2017
Donald Trump's picture still states his most recent title as "Incumbent Since January 1st, 2017". This is not accurate. His title is 45th President of the United States. Please correct his picture. Omniwing (talk) 06:43, 15 February 2017 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: Unnecessary. Firstly, it actually says January 20, 2017. Secondly, "Incumbent Since January 20, 2017" is not inaccurate; it basically means that he is the current holder of the office since January 20, which is accurate. Thirdly, please clarify what you meant by "correct his picture". ChamithN   (talk)  06:55, 15 February 2017 (UTC)

Order of presidential administrations
Under "Presidential administrations", all but the presidency of William Howard Taft appear in alphabetical order. He is appearing after George Washington rather than between Theodore Roosevelt and Zachary Taylor. A couple of attempts to correct this have proved unsuccessful. Can anyone help? This is Paul (talk) 19:58, 20 February 2017 (UTC)
 * Correct now Paul. Cheers. Drdpw (talk) 20:47, 20 February 2017 (UTC)