US Civics Guide and Education
US Civics Guide and Education
  • Home
  • Civics 101
    • Civics 101
    • Declaring Independence
    • U.S. Constitution 101
    • The U.S. Constitution
    • U.S. Constitution (con't)
    • The Amendments
  • US GOVERNMENT 101
    • Legislative Branch
    • Law Making - Congress
    • Executive Branch
    • Voting - Electors 101
    • Judicial Supreme Court
    • Supreme Court Nominations
    • District & Circuit Courts
    • Major Supreme Court Cases
  • Brief History & Documents
    • Colonial Governments
    • American Revolution
    • U.S. History of Money
  • About US Civics Guide
  • Contact Site Editors
  • Civics Circle Blog
  • More
    • Home
    • Civics 101
      • Civics 101
      • Declaring Independence
      • U.S. Constitution 101
      • The U.S. Constitution
      • U.S. Constitution (con't)
      • The Amendments
    • US GOVERNMENT 101
      • Legislative Branch
      • Law Making - Congress
      • Executive Branch
      • Voting - Electors 101
      • Judicial Supreme Court
      • Supreme Court Nominations
      • District & Circuit Courts
      • Major Supreme Court Cases
    • Brief History & Documents
      • Colonial Governments
      • American Revolution
      • U.S. History of Money
    • About US Civics Guide
    • Contact Site Editors
    • Civics Circle Blog

  • Home
  • Civics 101
    • Civics 101
    • Declaring Independence
    • U.S. Constitution 101
    • The U.S. Constitution
    • U.S. Constitution (con't)
    • The Amendments
  • US GOVERNMENT 101
    • Legislative Branch
    • Law Making - Congress
    • Executive Branch
    • Voting - Electors 101
    • Judicial Supreme Court
    • Supreme Court Nominations
    • District & Circuit Courts
    • Major Supreme Court Cases
  • Brief History & Documents
    • Colonial Governments
    • American Revolution
    • U.S. History of Money
  • About US Civics Guide
  • Contact Site Editors
  • Civics Circle Blog
(left) The Oval Office at the White House

the executive branch

 

"In directing national policy, the President possesses 

almost unlimited discretional powers 

which are not subject to question by 

the legislative or judicial departments."



(source: "The Story of the Constitution." U.S. Constitution Sesquicentennial Commission, Congress, Washington, D.C., 1937).

The President of the United States

Executive Powers Vested in the President

Executive Powers Vested in the President

Executive Powers Vested in the President

  

Article II, Sections 1 of the U.S. Constitution states: 

The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. . .


Article II, Sections 1 – 4 include the following:


1. Term of office

2.  Eligibility

3. Voting & Electors 

4. Oath of Office

5. Salary

6. Powers & Duties

7. Vacancies


 

Constitutional Requirements

Executive Powers Vested in the President

Executive Powers Vested in the President

 Term

He shall hold his Office during the Term of four Years, and, together with the Vice President, chosen for the same Term, be elected, as follows


Eligibility

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; neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty-five Years, and been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States. 

Oath of the President

Who is the current President?

Who is the current President?

Before he enters on the Execution of his Office, he shall take the following Oath or Affirmation:


 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.  

* * *





Who is the current President?

Who is the current President?

Who is the current President?

  

   47th President
  2025- 2029 


Donald J. Trump

 # 45  &  # 47


Did you know?


Both Donald Trump 

& Grover Cleveland left office, 

then ran again four years later & won!


Grover Cleveland was President #22 and #24


  





This Page: Duties & Powers; Presidents: Past & Current; History; Amendments XII, XX, XXIII & XXV

This Page: Duties & Powers; Presidents: Past & Current; History; Amendments XII, XX, XXIII & XXV

This Page: Duties & Powers; Presidents: Past & Current; History; Amendments XII, XX, XXIII & XXV

This Page: Duties & Powers; Presidents: Past & Current; History; Amendments XII, XX, XXIII & XXV

This Page: Duties & Powers; Presidents: Past & Current; History; Amendments XII, XX, XXIII & XXV

This Page: Duties & Powers; Presidents: Past & Current; History; Amendments XII, XX, XXIII & XXV

The Presidents of the United States of America 1789 - 2025

Presidents First - 12th

Presidents First - 12th

Presidents First - 12th

George Washington (1789–1797) 

John Adams (1797–1801) 

Thomas Jefferson (1801–1809)

James Madison (1809–1817) 

James Monroe (1817–1825) 

John Quincy Adams (1825–1829)

Andrew Jackson (1829–1837) 

Martin Van Buren (1837–1841) 

William Henry Harrison (1841)

John Tyler (1841–1845)

 James Polk (1845–1849)

Zachary Taylor (1849–1850) 

Presidents 13th - 24th

Presidents First - 12th

Presidents First - 12th

Millard Fillmore (1850–1853) 

Franklin Pierce (1853–1857) 

James Buchanan (1857–1861)

Abraham Lincoln (1861–1865) 

Andrew Johnson (1865–1869) 

Ulysses S. Grant (1869–1877)

Rutherford B. Hayes (1877–1881) 

James Garfield (1881) 

Chester Arthur (1881–1885)

 Grover Cleveland (1885–1889) Benjamin Harrison (1889–1893) 

Grover Cleveland (1893–1897) 

Presidents 14th - 34th

Presidents First - 12th

Presidents 14th - 34th

William McKinley (1897–1901) 

Theodore Roosevelt (1901–1909) 

William H. Taft (1909–1913)

Woodrow Wilson (1913–1921) 

Warren Harding (1921–1923) 

Calvin Coolidge (1923–1929)

Herbert Hoover (1929–1933) 

*Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933–1945) 

Harry S. Truman (1945–1953)

 Dwight Eisenhower (1953–1961) 


*F.D. Roosevelt won four terms in office. This prompted 22nd Amendment - term limits.  

Presidents 35th - 47th

Presidents First - 12th

Presidents 14th - 34th

John F. Kennedy (1961–1963) 

Lyndon Johnson (1963–1969)

Richard Nixon (1969–1974) 

Gerald Ford (1974–1977) 

Jimmy Carter (1977–1981)

Ronald Reagan (1981–1989) 

George H. W. Bush (1989–1993) 

William J. Clinton (1993–2001)

George W. Bush (2001–2009) 

Barack Obama (2009–2017) 

Donald J. Trump (2017–2021)

Joseph Biden (2021–2025) 

Donald J. Trump (2025–Present) 

Did you know?

Three U.S. Presidents died on july 4th

  On the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence - July 4, 1826, John Adams, the second president and Thomas Jefferson, the third president, both died.  On July 4, 1831, James Monroe, the fifth president, died.   RIP

What happens if something happens to the President?

The order of Succession:

The order of Succession:

The order of Succession:

 1. Vice President


2. Speaker of the House


3. President Pro Tempore of the Senate

The order of Succession:

The order of Succession:

 4. Secretary of State


5. Secretary of the Treasury


6. Secretary of Defense


7. Attorney General

The order of Succession:

 8. Secretary of the Interior


9.  Secretary of Agriculture


10.  Secretary of Commerce


11.  Secretary of Labor . . .

Constitutional Duties & Powers of the President

Surrender of Lord Cornwallis, by J. Trumbull

The American Revolution

October 19, 1781


1.  The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States; 


he may require the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties of their respective Offices, and 


2.  he shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.


  3.  He shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur;  and  



4.  he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by Law: but the Congress may by Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments.


5.  The President shall have Power to fill up all Vacancies that may happen during the Recess of the Senate, by granting Commissions which shall expire at the End of their next Session. 


 6. He shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; 


7. 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; 


8.  he shall receive Ambassadors and other public Ministers; 


9.  he shall take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed, and shall Commission all the Officers of the United States.


(Language of the U.S. Constitution, Article II, Sections 1-4.  Numbers added by editor) 

Supreme court appointments

Learn the facts

Voting for the President - Electoral Process 101

Find out more

Commander in Chief

45th & 47th President - Donald J Trump

Term of Presidency - January 20, 2025 to January 20, 2029

 After a landslide election victory in 2024, President Donald J. Trump is returning to the White House to build upon his previous successes and use his mandate to reject the extremist policies of the radical left while providing tangible quality of life improvements for the American people. 

Source:  The Trump Administration 

Learn about the focus issues of the President.

Go to White House Website

Vice President

J.D. Vance

 "In 2024, President Donald J. Trump extended JD the incredible honor of asking him to serve as the Vice-Presidential Nominee for the Republican Party. JD looks forward to serving with President Trump over the next four years as they work diligently to Make America Great Again." 

Source:  The Trump Administration 

The President's Cabinet

The Constitution Gives the Power of Appointments to the President

Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution reads in part: "He shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties,  provided two thirds of the Senators present concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the  Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and  Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court, and all other officers of the United States . . ."


The Cabinet’s role is to advise the President on any subject he may require relating to the duties of each member’s respective office. 

Meet the Current Cabinet

President #47 & several Cabinet Members

Go to the White House

A Brief History

early days & problems with the presidential elections

Election 1796

     John Adams (Federalist) had the most votes and was elected President.  Thomas Jefferson (Republican) came in second place, and was elected Vice President.                                                      

     

     Due to the President's and Vice President's differing public policy philosophies, the Executive office lacked unity in public policy ideas and goals.  Governing was difficult.  

Election 1800

  •  Thomas Jefferson (Republican) & Aaron Burr (Federalist) tied for the Presidency  with 73 electoral votes each. 

                                                                     

     In accordance with the Constitution, when there is a tie - the vote for the President then goes to the House of Representatives.                                             


     In what would be one of several slights by Alexander Hamilton toward Aaron Burr, Hamilton encouraged his Federalist Party colleagues in the House to vote for Jefferson over Burr.

  

     Even though Hamilton did not share the same political philosophy as Jefferson he trusted Jefferson over Burr.  

     

  • Jefferson became President and 
  • Burr - Vice President.    


After Burr's term as V.P., Hamilton continued to criticize Burr & damage his reputation.

      Hamilton was thought to have said of Aaron Burr,  

  

      "Mr. Burr to be a dangerous man and one who ought not to be trusted with the reins of government.”           

     

     Burr would not take anymore slights from Hamilton and to defend his reputation Burr challenged Hamilton to a duel. 

     

     


July 11, 1804 - Duel

  • Saving face and upholding one's honor was ingrained as common and necessary for a "gentleman." 
  • Dueling was an acceptable & expected defense to a man's honor.  


 Hamilton would not apologize for his remarks and felt obligated to accept the duel. 

     

     Hamilton replied to Burr, “. . . I answer that my relative situation . . . enforcing all the considerations which constitute what men of the world denominate honor, imposed on me (as I thought) a peculiar necessity not to decline the call.”    

The Senate claimed a duel was not a common murder!

     Hamilton wrote that his plan was to purposely “throw away” his first shot, and hold off his second shot to give Burr,

“a double opportunity” to “pause and to reflect.”   


     Burr did not throw away his first shot, and his aim fatally wounded Hamilton.  Burr was not prosecuted for murder.


  

The 12th Amendment (ratified June 1804) -

  • Since the  ratification of the 12th Amendment, the President & Vice President candidates run separate races.  

    

  • In regard to unifying differing public policy ideology, the President and Vice President candidates are not required to, but have ever since been in the same political Party.  They  run on same "ticket."
     

Constitutional Amendments related to Executive Branch

    01/12

    Summary of 25th Amendment - Death, Resignation or Discharge

    25th Amendment complete text -  (above) under "Constitutional Amendments Related to Executive Branch."

    25th Amendment

    Impeachment & Removal from Office

    Removal of the President from Office

    Removal of the President from Office

    Removal of the President from Office

      The following is original language of Article II, Section 1 of the U.S. Constitution.


     (This Section was changed by 25th Amendment)  


    In Case of the Removal of the President from Office, or of his Death, Resignation, or Inability to discharge the Powers and Duties of the said Office, 

    the Same shall devolve on the Vice President, and the Congress may by law provide for the Case of Removal, Death, Resignation or Inability, both of the President and Vice President, declaring what   officer shall then act 



    Removal of the President from Office

    Removal of the President from Office

      as President, and such Officer shall act accordingly, until the Disability be removed, or a President shall be elected.


    The President shall, at stated Times, receive for his Services, a Compensation, which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the Period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not receive within that Period any other Emolument from the United States, or any of them.  


     * 

    Impeachment

    Removal of the President from Office

    Impeachment

    Article II, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution

     


     The President, 

    Vice President and 

    all civil Officers of the United States,

     shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for,

     and 

    Conviction of, 

    Treason, Bribery, 

    or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.



    Copyright © 2025 US Civics Education - All Rights Reserved.

    Powered by

    • Home
    • Civics 101
    • Declaring Independence
    • U.S. Constitution 101
    • The U.S. Constitution
    • The Amendments
    • U.S. Government 101
    • Law Making - Congress
    • Executive Branch
    • Voting - Electors 101
    • Supreme Court Nominations
    • District & Circuit Courts
    • Colonial Governments
    • American Revolution
    • Civics Circle Blog