440 Chapter 12Chapter 12 || The PresidencyThe PresidencyThese rather limited official duties of the vice president pale in comparison with
the influential role played by recent vice presidents. Vice President Dick Cheney, who
served with President George W. Bush, exerted a significant influence over many
policy decisions, including the rights of terror suspects, tax and spending policy,
environmental decisions, and the writing of new government regulations.^26 Although
Cheney’s level of influence was unique, other recent vice presidents have also had real
power. Mike Pence, for example, attends most significant meetings in the Oval Office
and has considerable private discussion time with President Trump.The First Spouse
Presidential spouses have also played a key but largely informal role in presidential
administrations, typically as one of a president’s most important advisers. There are
examples where they have been an informal conduit for expressing the president’s
opinions to political appointees, members of Congress, or the media. They also
represent America at a wide range of international events, from funerals to
conferences. And of course, presidential spouses are a highly visible symbol of the
nation, performing a role similar to the president’s role as head of state.
Attempts by first spouses to have an official policy-making role in a president’s
administration are generally limited. For one thing, a first spouse’s staff is not set up to
assess policy problems or solutions. The commitments of first spouses often keep them
out of Washington for substantial periods. Finally, insofar as the first spouse’s work
is controversial at all, opponents can always argue that the first spouse should not be
involved in policy making, as he or she was not elected to do so. During Bill Clinton’s
presidency, for example, then–first spouse Hillary Clinton was criticized for her
leadership role in health care reform efforts.
In light of these constraints, most first spouses pick a largely noncontroversial
policy area to focus their official efforts. For example, George W. Bush’s spouse, Laura
Bush, made numerous public appearances to support education and literacy programs
as well as international HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention efforts. Michelle
Obama worked to support exercise and healthy eating programs (including changes
to federal student lunch guidelines). Donald Trump’s spouse, Melania Trump, has
kept a low public profile but has made some appearances at events aimed at deterring
cyberbullying and supporting her Be Best campaign.The President’s Cabinet
The president’s Cabinet is composed of the heads of the 15 executive departments
in the federal government, along with other appointees given cabinet rank by the
president. Nuts & Bolts 12.5 lists the Cabinet and cabinet-level positions. The cabinet
members’ principal job is to be the frontline implementers of the president’s agenda
in their executive departments. As we discuss in Chapter 13, these appointees monitor
the actions of the lower-level bureaucrats who retain their jobs regardless of who is
president and are not necessarily sympathetic to the president’s priorities.
Like other presidential appointees, cabinet members are chosen for a combination
of loyalty to the president and expertise. An early supporter of Trump, Attorney
General Jeff Sessions is a former senator who served on the Judiciary Committee.
Trump’s secretary of defense, James Mattis, is a highly respected retired Marine
general who commanded troops during Operation Desert Storm in 2001 and during
the Iraq War.Cabinet
The group of 15 executive department
heads who implement the president’s
agenda in their respective positions.Full_13_APT_64431_ch12_418-453.indd 440 16/11/18 10:34 AM