Chapter 14 Section 3

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Chapter 14 Section 3

• Objective To understand the Presidents
  diplomatic and military powers.

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A. The Power to Make Treaties

• 1. Usually acting through the Secretary of State,
  the President may negotiate treaties, or
  international agreements.
• 2. The Senate must approve treaties by a 2/3 vote
  before they become law.
• 3. A small minority in the Senate has sometimes
  been sufficient to block approval of a treaty.

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B. Executive Agreements

• 1. Today, most routine international agreements
  are made by executive agreement pacts between
  the President and the leaders of foreign
  countries.
• 2. Executive agreements do not require Senate
  approval.

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C. The Power of Recognition

• 1. Presidents have the power to recognize, or
  acknowledge the legal existence of a country.
• 2. Diplomatic recognition is a powerful weapon
  because the lack of it can cripple a new
  governments future.

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D. The Presidents Dominant Role in Military
Affairs

• 1. The President shares the war powers with
  Congress but has almost no limits on his role as
  commander in chief.
• 2. Presidents usually delegate much of their
  command authority to military subordinates while
  retaining final authority in military matters.
• 3. Only Congress can declare war, but Presidents
  have often used the military without a formal
  declaration of war (200 times)

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• 4. There have been numerous undeclared wars in
  the countrys history, including the Korean and
  Vietnam wars.
• 5. In wartime, the Presidents powers as
  commander in chief have often been expanded to
  include non-military matters.
• 6. The President may use the armed forces,
  including state militias, to keep the peace in
  times of domestic turmoil.

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• 7. In reaction to the Vietnam war, Congress
  passed the War Powers Resolution of 1973.
• The President must inform Congress of any
  commitment of American troops within 48 hours.
• The President must gain congressional approval
  if the commitment lasts longer than 60 days.
• The constitutionality of the act has never been
  challenged and remains in dispute.