Before taking office, the President-elect must appoint over 6,000 new federal positions. The appointments range from top officials at U.S. government agencies, to the White House Staff, and members of the United States diplomatic corps. Many, but not all, of these positions are appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the United States Senate.

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  • Before taking office, the President-elect must appoint over 6,000 new federal positions. The appointments range from top officials at U.S. government agencies, to the White House Staff, and members of the United States diplomatic corps. Many, but not all, of these positions are appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the United States Senate. The President also has the power to nominate federal judges, including members of the United States Courts of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court. However, these nominations do require Senate confirmation, and this can provide a major stumbling block for Presidents who wish to shape their federal judiciary in a particular ideological stance. The President must appoint judges for the United States District Courts, but he will often defer to Senatorial courtesy in making these choices. As head of the executive branch, the President must appoint the top officials for all of the federal agencies. These positions are listed in the Plum Book which outlines the 7,000 bureaucratic positions that the President has the right to fill. In the case of ten agencies, the President is free to appoint a new agency head at his pleasure. For example, it is not unusual for the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency or the NASA Administrator to be changed by the President. Other agencies that deal with federal regulation such as the Federal Reserve Board or the Securities and Exchange Commission have set terms that will often outlast the time a President sits in office. For example, the members of the Federal Reserve board serve for twelve years. This is to ensure that these agencies can act independently of political control. The President also appoints members to the boards of directors for government-owned corporations such as Amtrak. The President can also make a recess appointment if a position needs to be filled while Congress is not in session. In the past, Presidents had the power to appoint all members of the United States civil service. This use of the spoils system allowed Presidents to reward political supporters with jobs. Following the assassination of President James Garfield by Charles J. Guiteau, a disgruntled office seeker, Congress instituted a merit-based civil service in which positions are filled on a nonpartisan basis. The Office of Personnel Management now oversees the staffing of 2.8 million federal jobs in the federal bureaucracy. The President must also appoint his staff of 1,800 aides, advisers, and assistants. These individuals are political appointments and are not subject to review by the Senate. All members of the staff serve, "at the pleasure of the President."
  • Die Befugnisse des Präsidenten der Vereinigten Staaten bestehen aus den durch die Verfassung aufgezählten und den durch den Einfluss und das Ansehen des Präsidentenamts abgeleiteten Kompetenzen.
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  • Before taking office, the President-elect must appoint over 6,000 new federal positions. The appointments range from top officials at U.S. government agencies, to the White House Staff, and members of the United States diplomatic corps. Many, but not all, of these positions are appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the United States Senate.
  • Die Befugnisse des Präsidenten der Vereinigten Staaten bestehen aus den durch die Verfassung aufgezählten und den durch den Einfluss und das Ansehen des Präsidentenamts abgeleiteten Kompetenzen.
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  • Powers of the President of the United States
  • Befugnisse des Präsidenten der Vereinigten Staaten
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