The Presidency and the Bureaucracy

Answer the following questions in a Word document and turn into the appropriate drop box.

1. Why did the Founding Fathers create the Electoral College? List as many flaws as you can with the Electoral College. List reasons to maintain the Electoral College.

2. List the strengths and weaknesses of the presidency. Give an example for each one. 3. Explain the restrictions Congress has put on the power of the presidency. 4. List and explain both the formal and informal powers of the President. Which ones are

the most powerful? Why? 5. What are the three structures for a president to organize his staff? What are the

advantages and disadvantages of each?6. Explain how much influence the president has over his cabinet officials and agency

heads.7. Give details about the following terms: veto message, pocket veto, and the line-item veto.

Give examples.8. List the effects of divided government that you can think of. What are the methods that a

president can use to overcome these barriers?9. How and why has the role of bureaucratic agencies changed since the Civil War?10. List and explain the causes for the problems the president has in obtaining bureaucratic

cooperation. 11. List the checks on bureaucratic power.12. What are the powers that the bureaucracy has to resist reform and change? 13. What are the constraints on what an agency can do? Why do we have such constraints

and what effect do these constraints have on agency behavior?14. Explain what iron triangles are and why they are less common today.15. How does Congress exercise supervision over the bureaucracy? Explain all the different

methods of oversight.