Our Constitution Article II Sections 1 to 4 Our Executive Branch

I thought today would be a good day to cover a little more of the United States of America’s Constitution. Let’s look at Article 2 which has a total of 4 sections. I have said this time and again I am not expert but I do have a love for this country, our founding fathers, our history and our Constitution.

Article II of the United States of America’s Constitution covers the Executive Branch of our government. Our executive branch of government includes our President, who is elected by the people, and other executive officers. Now let’s break it down.

Section I describes the rights and role of the President and Vice President of the United States. I figured since everyone keeps questioning what President Trump has a right to do or not do and we have the fanatics calling for impeachment, it would be a good time to have a refresher course on Article II.

On Election Day we go to the poles and we cast our vote for President of the United States and his running mate for Vice President. When elected the President and Vice President will hold the office for the next four years. Even though we go to the polls and cast our votes it is not by so called “popular vote” the candidate wins.

You see, as it states in Section 1 the President and Vice President are chosen by the Electoral College. The electors, those who cast their vote for the Electoral College are usually picked by the state legislatures. The amount of electors a state has depends on the amount of representatives and senators each state has. Now we already know each state is only given two senators but the representatives go according to the size of the state so some states have more votes than others.

In order to run for President a person must be a natural born citizen of the United States and be at least thirty-five years of age and a resident “within the United States” for 14 years. Confusing I am sure to many because if you are a natural born citizen of the United States aren’t you living here? Actually no, not necessarily, you could be a child born to military personnel and born on a base in a foreign land but still you are a natural citizen of this country.

Now in case a President is removed from office, his or her death, resignation, or inability to discharge the Powers of the office then the Vice President is sworn in to take on the remaining term. If there were ever a circumstance where both the President and Vice President are unable to fulfill the term of office then Congress will chose a suitable replacement until the next election.

As for the Presidents salary it cannot change during his term plus he cannot receive money from any other state or federal government. As for our current President Trump he has opted to donate his salary. His first-quarter Salary went to the National Park Service keeping his promise to work for the American people for free. I don’t care what anyone says about President Trump, he obviously loves this country if he is putting up with all this hate, ridicule, and aggravation for no pay. Why don’t we ask Congress if they would do that for just one quarter? I am sure the answer to that would be No Way!

The final part of Section I of Article II is the swearing in of our President. Before he can enter office he must take the Oath or Affirmation which says: “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.”

Article II Section 2: If you took two minutes to read it you will see it is self-explanatory as it states the President shall be Commander-in-Chief of the United States Military. This is where it creates the Cabinet of senior executive officers who assist the President of his duties. He can go to them for advice, their opinion, in writing of the particular executive officer regarding any subject related to the duties of their respective offices. He also has the power to grant Reprieves and Pardons of Offences against the United States, except in cases of impeachment.

This section of the Constitution gives the President the power, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to make Treaties. In order to do that he must have two thirds of the Senators who are present agree. Also with the advice and consent of the Senate, he shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers, and Consuls, Judges to the Supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose appointments are not otherwise provided for. So these decisions do not fall on the President alone. He makes his recommendations and then it goes before the Senate who then votes ya or nay for his selections. We all know how slow that can move along.

The President has the power to fill all vacancies that may happen during the Recess of the Senate, by granting Commissions, but these appointments expire once the next session of the Senate begins.  

Section 3 Article II although a short section it covers quite a bit of the responsibilities of the President. The President is not in this alone as we have said throughout Article II so it is his responsibility to occasionally give Congress information through a State of the Union address. There are also occasions where the President can call for sessions of the House or the Senate or both under extraordinary occasions.

It is also his responsibility to receive all foreign Ambassadors and other public Ministers. It is the responsibility of our President to see to it that all laws are faithfully executed and he has the power to Commission all the Officers of the United States.

Section 4 Article II this section of Article II talks about impeachment of the President, Vice President, and any civil officers such as Cabinet Secretaries or judges. Actually Section 4 of Article II states: 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.

We had a President who lied under oath to Congress and because of this was impeached by the House of Representatives but got a pass from the Senate so he got to stay in the White House making the United States a laughing stock. Why was this allowed? Why was Bill Clinton allowed to stay in office? Maybe that is what people screaming for Trump’s impeachment should be asking themselves. Was it OK with them to have a President represent them who cheated on his wife, had sex with an intern in the Oval Office, and then went before Congress, laid his hand on the Bible and swore to tell the truth but straight faced lied to America? I know people are saying it was only perjury. That’s true a misdemeanor but Martha Stewart went to jail for perjury so what made Bill Clinton any better than Martha.  

So as you can see our President has a lot to do in the course of his day but Congress is supposed to work with him not against him. If this is not done correctly then our well-oiled machine of a government becomes squeaky and questionable. This isn’t something knew but it’s sad after all these years of working to build an amazing country we still have people who are elected to serve their constituents and only end up worrying about themselves but throw the Constitution around as if they live by it.

This document should be something all Americans hold near and dear to their hearts. They should know it and understand it so they know what to expect from their representatives and their President. They need to know what is in this document so they can understand their rights and the laws of this great nation. So many big mouths with little to no knowledge of what they are talking about. I do not claim to be a know it all. I am going over this document as I write it for you and break it down but I can tell you this, I studied it in school, my parents talked about it and its importance to this country when I was growing up, my grandparents talked about how important it was that our forefathers had the forethought to lay all this out for us so we had a secure guide to help us develop a better country, to see to it that no one can come in and take out rights away. We the People of this great nation need to stand united and see to it our Constitution is enforced to its fullest, correctly, and not to benefit those who wish to do us harm foreign or domestic.

May God Bless America and remind Americans how wonderful their lives are in this great nation.