Starter: After 6 months in office, Barack Obama had sent 369 nominations to the US Senate, and George W. Bush had nominated 315. At the same point in his presidency, how many nominations had Donald Trump made?

1.How accurate was your prediction?

2.How does Trump's nomination rate compare to Obama's?

3.Why do you think that is?

4.What is one consequence of this?

5.Of those nominations that Trump has actually made, about what percent have been confirmed by the US Senate?

6.How does Trump's confirmation rate compare to Obama's?

7.Why do you think that is?

8.What is one consequence of so few positions being filled in the US government?

9.Is this good news or bad news?

10.What are some examples of the kinds of positions presidents nominate?

11.Of all of the types of positions of presidential nominations, explain which you believe has the greatest impact.

12.How does it benefit presidents to fill positions in government?

13.Who are some people who help the president decide on nominations?

14.Why did the Framers set up a system where the Senate has to approve presidential nominations?

15.Do you believe the Senate should be allowed to say no to a presidential nomination?

Review

Find a partner and prepare to describe some concepts about presidential nominations, campaigns, and elections.

A Short Lesson on Executive Orders Courtesy of SNL

A Longer Lesson on Executive Orders

Some think only congress could make laws, but President Trump has used executive authority to direct the federal government's policy in many different areas including immigration and regulations on the environment. And he's not the first president to use executive orders! President Obama, before him, issued executive orders regarding stem cell research, immigration, accelerating investment in energy efficiency, restoring ecosystems in the gulf coast, and authorizing sanctions on Iran, just to name a few. And just about every recent president before him did the same thing! How can it be legal for the President to make rules and decisions using executive orders?

Executive order-A rule or regulation issued by the president that has the effect of law.
(1) Enforce legislative statutes
(2) Enforce the Constitution or treaties with foreign nations
(3) Establish or modify rules and practices of executive administrative agencies
Can be retracted by successor, nullified by Congress or ruled unconstitutional by a federal court.
Presidents have issued nearly 14,000 of them.
Now it's time to look at an actual executive order. Read any one of Donald Trump's executive orders or if you're feeling nostalgic, one of Barack Obama's executive orders and then answer the questions below about it:

List of executive orders

  1. Which executive order did you select?  What president issued it?
  2. What is the purpose of this specific order?
  3. What is your opinion of this order?

Caption Contest!

Create the following Venn Diagram in your notebook and fill it in.

Who Controls the White House

We are going to examine the different positions that work with or for POTUS.  Find what they do, who the important people are, and create an analogy of the key players that we all would understand.  For example, the president is Luke Skywalker and his senior adviser is Obi-Wan Kenobi (or, if you're feeling pessimistic, Darth Vader and Palpatine).
Click Here!

Closer: If you wanted to maximize your influence on POTUS, which job within the administration would you try to take?

  • Make a claim here!
  • Support your claim with TWO pieces of accurate and relevant information.
  • Use reasoning to explain why your evidence supports your claim.
  • Respond to an opposing or alternative perspective.

Next Class: Legislative Powers of the President