Can the president spend money without Congress' approval?

Answer 1

The President cannot spend money without the approval of Congress and cannot directly authorize the spending of money.

The president makes an annual budget request to congress describing how the various departments of the executive branch will use the budget. There is also discretionary spending which has to be asked for annually which and the president irons out with congressional Appropriations Committees. Extra defense spending, for example, has to be asked for individually. The various departments that fall under POTUS recommendations include Education, Housing, Treasury, State (Foreign), Interior, etc.

Congress brings in Dept Secretaries and questions them and it goes in/out of committee before it goes to the floor of the two houses. It passes by simple majority (after pork, or, paper-clipped add-ons mysteriously appear, usually to benfit one congressman's region). Because it is a resolution, not a bill, it does not go back to POTUS to be signed/vetoed. It just goes into effect from congress.

From the dot gov:

" the President's budget must request a specific funding level for appropriated programs and may also request changes in tax and entitlement law."

The entitlement programs are:

Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Nutrition Assistance, Retirement Benefits, Veterans' Disability, and Unemployment Insurance

This is an oversimplification that doesn't take into account, for example, Reconciliation. The entire process, enveloping all three branches of government is difficult even for congressman to learn fully. The president has a team of advisers just for budgetary spending. Congress has the Congressional Budget Office, committee experts, advisers, and aides. It's all part of the "Balance of Power" and the current budget procedures date to the Nixon era (except for the Byrd rule, which is also more complicated).

Answer 2

Three things the president can do without congress are (1) Veto a bill (2) grant pardons for federal offenses (3) call out the national guard to deal with an emergency such as a natural disaster.

Answer 3

The expressed powers of the President of the United States are mostly set down in Article II of the Constitution. The powers are of two sorts: those exercised alone, without legislative approval, and those that require consent of the Senate or House. Powers of the President Alone: commander in chief of the armed forces; commission officers of the armed forces; grant reprieves and pardons for federal offenses (except impeachment); convene Congress into special session; receive ambassadors; take care that the laws be faithfully executed; make use of the "executive power" of the office, such as the veto power; give an annual State of the Union Address to Congress; appoint officials to lesser offices.

Answer 4

No

Several wars have started without a declaration of war by Congress, Korea (we were mandated to go as members of the UN security council) and Vietnam to name two. What Congress has done is authorize spending for the wars.

In 1964, Lindon Johnson received full war making powers under the "Gulf of Tonkin resolution" which stated that the President could do anything and everything to secure South Vietnam for US interests. It wasn't until a short time later after the Vietcong bombing of the US airbase at Pleiku did LBJ send true US combat forces to Vietnam.

The perception that presidents had assumed more authority to commit forces than the Constitution's framers had intended led Congress in 1973 to pass the War Powers Resolution (also known as the War Powers Act) over President Nixon's veto.

The main purpose of the resolution was to assure that both the executive and legislative branches participate in decisions that might get the United States involved in war. Congress wanted to circumscribe the president's authority to use armed forces abroad without a declaration of war or other congressional authorization, yet provide enough flexibility to permit the president to respond to attack or other emergencies.

Specifically, the War Powers Resolution requires the president to provide written notification to Congress of the introduction of U.S. armed forces into hostilities within forty-eight hours of such action. The president must explain the reasons forces were inserted in a hostile situation, the executive's authority for doing so, and the scope and duration of the military action. In addition, the president is required to terminate the use of military forces after sixty days unless Congress has declared war.

Almost every president since has insisted that the War Powers Resolution was unconsitutional. Bush claimed that he did not need a congressional declaration of war to use military force against Iraq. However, to bolster political support for the commencement of hostilities with Iraq, and to obtain legislative legitimacy for the participation of U.S. troops in a multinational coalition, the president requested a congressional resolution supporting the implementation of the UN Security Council resolution authorizing member states to use "all necessary means" to restore peace to the region.

Answer 5

The president is the CEO over the 15 major department of the federal government. He can issue presidential directives to tell them what to do and how to interpret their purpose of their jobs. He can tell justice not to enforce laws that he does not like. He can order stricter enforcement of laws he likes. The president is also commander-in-chief of the military and can give them orders without Congressional approval. He has considerable leeway on how funds are spent.

Answer 6

No- the president does not have the power to appropriate money.

Answer 7

NO