In Morrison v. Olson (1988)
the Court held that because the independent counsel is an “inferior” not a “principal” officer, the provisions of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 creating the independent counsel do not violate the Appointments Clause of the Constitution, do not violate the limitations of Article III, and do not do not impermissibly interfere with the President’s authority under Article II in violation of the constitutional principle of ___ of powers.
A primary question in how the Supreme Court has interpreted the powers of the president revolves around whether Article II’s vesting clause, that “The executive Power shall be vested in a President . . .” was (1) just a naming of the office or (2) a general ___ of power. (Describing these two different views of executive power, including writings describing each position by the founders, and cases defining the contours of this power, would be a good essay question.)
In Immigration and Naturalization Service v. Chadha (1983) the Court held that the legislative ___ provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act violate the Constitution’s Article I, Sections 1 and 7, requirements that all legislation must receive bicameral approval and be presented to the president.
The Court's holding in Mississippi v. Johnson (1867) re: executive functions was extended in Nixon v. Fitzgerald (1982). The Court held in Nixon v. Fitzgerald that there is absolute Presidential immunity from damages for liability for ___ within the “outer perimeter” of the President's official responsibility.
In Korematsu v. United States (1944) the Court held that the orders forcing Japanese Americans into internment camps did not violate the Constitution because the military authorities and Congress determined that doing so was necessary to the national ___ and safety.
In Trump v. Vance (2020) the Court held that Article II and the Supremacy Clause do not preclude the issuance of a ___ court criminal subpoena to a sitting President.
In Myers v. U.S. (1926) former president and Chief Justice Taft, writing for a 6-3 Court, held that
under the Constitution the President does have the exclusive power of removing executive officers of the United States, specifically a first-class ___, whom he had appointed by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.
In Clinton v. ___ (1997) a unanimous Court
held that
1) a president does not have immunity from private suit based on unofficial actions, 2) the doctrine of separation of powers does not require federal courts to stay private lawsuits against a president until the president leaves office.
In Hampton & Co. v. United States (1928) the unanimous Court held that as long as Congress lays down “by legislative act an ___ principle to which the person or body authorized to [exercise the delegated authority] is directed to conform, such legislative action is not a forbidden delegation of legislative power.”
A judge who looks at interbranch interactions using the lens of ___ does not see a need for strict divisions among the branches; rather a fluid system of shared rather than separated powers is preferable.
The Constitution prevents only extreme departures from the separation of powers, so that too much power does not accumulate in one branch of government.
The federal courts should be flexible and enable experimentation, not discourage it.
This flexibility is necessary to handle emerging problems in a creative and expeditious manner. (Discussing these two views, with case examples, would be a good essay question.)
In Humphrey’s Executor v. U.S. (1935) the Court
distinguished between a President’s removal power for officials who exercise purely executive powers, who can be ___ removed at will, from those who carry out quasi-legislative and quasi-judicial functions, who cannot be ___ removed at will if Congress says they cannot.
In Humphrey’s Executor v. U.S. (1935), in a unanimous decision, the Court held that
the Federal Trade Commission Act's ___ on the President's power to remove a commissioner only for the grounds of inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office is a constitutional ___ on the removal power of the President.
The 25th Amendment ratified in 1967 authorizes the president to nominate a new vice president when a vacancy in that office occurs. The new VP takes office upon confirmation by ___ vote in both houses of Congress. The 25th Amendment also provides a protocol for when a president is temporarily unable to carry out the duties of the office.
In Ex Parte Milligan (1866) the Court held that there was no authority to declare martial law, suspending civil rights, in Indiana during the Civil War, thus the ___ court had no authority to try and sentence Milligan.
In Murphy v. Ford the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan held that President Ford did have the constitutional power to pardon former President Nixon for his offenses against the United States. Even though Nixon had been neither indicted nor convicted of an offense against the United States, Ford could nonetheless pardon him because the pardoning power is "___" except in cases of impeachment.
President generally has more leeway and less constraints when exercising executive power with regard to foreign ___, than when exercising executive power with regard to domestic ___.
In U.S. v. Nixon (1974) a unanimous Court decided that the separation of powers doctrine does not preclude judicial review of a President’s claim of executive privilege, and that a general assertion of executive privilege does not prevail over the administration of justice in a ___ case.
Pursuant to Article II Sec. 4, the President (as well as the “Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States”) “shall be removed from Office on ___ for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” (Describing the process, the applicable standard, along with the instances this process has been invoked, would be a good essay question.)
Article II describes the selection procedure for the President, commonly called the Electoral College, which was the result of a compromise between the founders who wanted the President elected by a vote in Congress, and those who wanted the President chosen by ___ vote.
In Hamdi v. Rumsfeld (2004) the Court held that the U.S. government violated Hamdi's Fifth Amendment right to Due Process by detaining him indefinitely, without access to an attorney, based solely on an Executive Branch declaration that he was an "enemy combatant" who fought against the United States.
The Court additionally held that the separation of powers doctrine does not require federal courts to accept Executive Branch determination that an American citizen is an "___ combatant.“ That question must be settled in Court.
Article II provides with regard to succession to the office of the President that "in Case of the Removal of the President from Office, or of his Death, Resignation, or Inability to discharge the Powers and Duties of the said Office, the Same shall devolve on the ___ President."