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President of the United States

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The head of state of the United States is called the President, who also serves the functions of chief executive and commander in chief of the armed forces. By current law, the U.S. president serves a four-year term and may only be re-elected once, as a result of the twenty-second amendment to the U.S. Constitution. In slang, the President of the United States is sometimes called POTUS. The wife of the President is known as the First Lady.

Relative to many heads of state from around the world, who often hold largely ceremonial powers, United States Presidents are capable of a large degree of meaningful political action. They can veto any legislation passed by the two houses of Congress. (Overriding a President's veto requires a full two-thirds majority in each house of Congress.)

Presidents nominate the heads and other members of executive agencies of government. Many nominees are appointed subject to the advice and consent of the U.S. Senate (i.e., the Senate must vote by majority to approve the nominees). In 2003, more than 3000 executive agency positions were subject to presidential appointment, with more than 1200 requiring Senate approval. Similarly, Presidents nominate persons to the federal judiciary and, again, appoint them with the advice and consent of the Senate.

Although the Congress must approve the government's annual budget, it is prepared for them by the President. Though constrained by various other laws passed by Congress, the President's executive branch conducts most foreign policy, and his power to order and direct troops as commander-in-chief is quite significant. (The exact limits of what a President can do with the military without Congressional authorization are open to debate.)

Article 2, Section 1, of the U.S. Constitution sets the requirements one must meet in order to become President:

  1. A natural-born citizen of the United States
  2. Thirty-five years of age
  3. Resident of the United States for 14 years.

There is a well-defined sequence of who should fill the Presidential office, upon the death, resignation, or removal from office (by impeachment) of a current President:

  1. the Vice President of the United States of America
  2. the Speaker of the House of Representatives
  3. the President pro tempore of the United States Senate.

This list is only partial. See the entire Presidential line of succession. The Twenty-fifth Amendment was ratified to define how the President is deemed incapable of discharging his powers and duties and when the Vice President becomes Acting President.

United States' Presidents

  1. George Washington (1789-1797) (no political party)
  2. John Adams (1797-1801) Federalist
  3. Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809) Democratic-Republican
  4. James Madison (1809-1817) Democratic-Republican
  5. James Monroe (1817-1825) Democratic-Republican
  6. John Quincy Adams (1825-1829) Democratic-Republican
  7. Andrew Jackson (1829-1837) Democrat
  8. Martin Van Buren (1837-1841) Democrat
  9. William Henry Harrison (1841) Whig
  10. John Tyler (1841-1845) Whig (Democrat on Whig ticket)
  11. James Knox Polk (1845-1849) Democrat
  12. Zachary Taylor (1849-1850) Whig
  13. Millard Fillmore (1850-1853) Whig
  14. Franklin Pierce (1853-1857) Democrat
  15. James Buchanan (1857-1861) Democrat
  16. Abraham Lincoln (1861-1865) Republican
  17. Andrew Johnson (1865-1869) Republican (Democrat on Republican ticket)
  18. Ulysses S. Grant (1869-1877) Republican
  19. Rutherford B. Hayes (1877-1881) Republican
  20. James Garfield (1881) Republican
  21. Chester A. Arthur (1881-1885) Republican
  22. Grover Cleveland (1885-1889) Democrat
  23. Benjamin Harrison (1889-1893) Republican
  24. Grover Cleveland (1893-1897) Democrat (same as #22)
  25. William McKinley (1897-1901) Republican
  26. Theodore Roosevelt (1901-1909) Republican
  27. William Howard Taft (1909-1913) Republican
  28. Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921) Democrat
  29. Warren G. Harding (1921-1923) Republican
  30. Calvin Coolidge (1923-1929) Republican
  31. Herbert Hoover (1929-1933) Republican
  32. Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1933-1945) Democrat
  33. Harry S Truman (1945-1953) Democrat
  34. Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961) Republican
  35. John F. Kennedy (1961-1963) Democrat
  36. Lyndon Johnson (1963-1969) Democrat
  37. Richard Nixon (1969-1974) Republican
  38. Gerald R. Ford (1974-1977) Republican
  39. Jimmy Carter (1977-1981) Democrat
  40. Ronald Reagan (1981-1989) Republican
  41. George Bush (1989-1993) Republican
  42. Bill Clinton (1993-2001) Democrat
  43. George W. Bush (2001-present) Republican

Presidential facts

Four U.S. Presidents have been assassinated:

Four others died in office:

One President resigned from office:

Two Presidents have been impeached, though neither was subsequently convicted:

Four Presidents have been elected without a plurality of popular votes:

Two Presidents have been elected without a majority of electoral votes, and were chosen by the House of Representatives:

The President's residence is the White House.

Presidents of course had homes other than the White House. This is a list of some of those homes:

Presidents of the Continental Congress

There were seven Presidents of the Continental Congress prior to the ratification of the Articles of Confederation. These men held very few powers that are now associated with the US presidency and cannot be considered to have been heads of state. Their primary duty was to preside over the Congress (hence the original meaning of "president").

Presidents of the United States in Congress Assembled

There were eight Presidents under the Articles of Confederation. These men held few powers that are now associated with the US presidency and cannot be considered to have been heads of state or the "Chief Executive". These men were simply heads of government with Congress holding all executive powers.

Misc

Also, on a less serious note:

There is also a rock band called The Presidents of the United States of America.

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