Presidential Powers Related to Public Policy

American Government and Public Affairs
Stefaon Singleton

Tami Erickson
Colorado Technical University

Abstract
The election of President Barack Obama was a very significant event for the American Government. The American Government has always had a standard to which the country was to be run. Each branch of government was given expressed powers by the constitution. Each branch has a certain job and has certain liabilities regarding the other branches.
As the leader of this nation, the president is charged with the nation’s safety and care. He is charged with the welfare of the nation’s finances. The president’s powers are delegated directly from the Second Article of Confederation of the Constitution of the United States. The Constitution expressly states that the president is limited to two four year terms in office. This office is limited to those individuals who are natural born citizens of The United States.
The president has the power of veto. This means that if Congress passes a bill and it makes it the president’s desk, he has the power to send it back to Congress to be modified or simply because he does not agree with the bill (Constitution, 1787). The president also has the power to make treaties with foreign nations without the consent of Congress (Constitution, 1787). He also has the power to grant Pardons and Reprieves to those who have been convicted of crimes against the United States (Constitution, 1787).
Within the president’s scope of power, he has the Presidential Cabinet in which there are several departments that he oversees. As the president, he selects the heads of each of these departments: The Attorney General, Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Housing, Department of Transportation, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Education, Department of the Treasury, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Agriculture, Department of State, Department of Energy, and Department of Defense.
The president has power of the military and militia of the government. He is Commander in Chief during times of war. He may require the opinion, in writing, of his cabinet members. But if he was a smart president he would select individuals who were like minded.
Under normal circumstances the president would have to pass bills and public policies through Congress in order for it to be passed (Constitution, 1787). During certain instances the president is able to circumvent Congress by passing certain ideas and bills through his cabinet members, provided the public policy is directly related to that cabinet members department. The president’s agenda for this country is as follows: The economy, education, and healthcare. The president, within the duration of his time in office, has initiated several public policies and laws that have turned this country around. About 6 years ago there was talk of another great depression. The president initiated a policy regarding the annual income tax refunds that was able to jump start the economy avoiding another economic crash. This was most likely done with the assistance of the president’s secretary of treasury.
The president implemented a public policy regarding health care. This was a very pressing time in this country. The president implemented a policy called ObamaCare (Lawson, 2011). This policy is a way for all citizens of the United States to have affordable healthcare. ObamaCare is officially known as The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Lawson, 2011). This was signed into law due to a lack of healthcare benefits for all citizens. For low income there is usually Medicaid and for elderly there is usually Medicare. But often times there are those individuals who slip through the cracks. For example there are African American males who have an income but make only enough to pay their bills. The income level is just above the maximum one can accrue to utilize the Medicaid