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Social Studies 5: What Does the President Do? 21 Views
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Description:
Hail to the chief... You know, unless they're from an opposing party. Then you can just post mean jokes about them on the internet.
Transcript
- 00:04
[Dino and coop play music]
- 00:13
Quick, name the first job that pops into your head… [Person holding beaker]
- 00:16
…We don't know why we waited for you to answer. We can't actually hear you. [Beaker explodes]
- 00:20
…Anyway. Maybe you said doctor, or teacher, or dragon breeder…
- 00:23
All of those are obvious choices because everyone knows exactly what they do. [Person touching tablet]
Full Transcript
- 00:28
A doctor helps make people feel better when they're sick, a teacher teaches, a dragon
- 00:32
breeder breeds dragons. [Dragon breathes fire]
- 00:34
But some jobs aren't as self-explanatory.
- 00:37
Have you ever thought about what the President of the United States does? [Person ponders]
- 00:40
Sure, you've probably seen the President giving speeches, meeting other politicians,
- 00:44
and pardoning turkeys every November. [Turkey is pardoned]
- 00:46
But that can't be it, right?
- 00:48
Well, let's check out what happens on the very first day of a Presidency. [January 20 circled in red]
- 00:52
When a President is sworn into office, they vow to “preserve, protect, and defend the
- 00:56
Constitution of the United States...” [Coop teaches]
- 00:58
And that kind of sums it all up!
- 01:00
It's the job of the President and the Executive branch to make sure everyone in the country
- 01:04
lives by the laws of the Constitution. [President holds branch]
- 01:06
Of course, we'd probably get in trouble with your teachers if we simply left it at that
- 01:10
and called it a day, so in the interest of staying in their good graces, let's cover [Hands raise]
- 01:14
some of the other roles and responsibilities of the President:
- 01:17
They're the Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy, meaning they get to call the final
- 01:22
shots when it comes to military action. [People playing Battleship]
- 01:24
They have the right to grant reprieves and pardons––remember the turkeys?––as
- 01:28
well as the right to make treaties – so long as they have the approval of two-thirds
- 01:32
of the senate. [The Senators sitting in Senate]
- 01:33
The President also has the right to nominate and appoint – again, with the Senate's approval
- 01:37
– ambassadors, consuls and supreme court judges. [People standing]
- 01:40
Yeesh, Senate…controlling much?
- 01:42
Well…yeah, actually. [Person holds Kryptonite]
- 01:44
The president doesn't have absolute power…they're kept in check by other branches of government.
- 01:48
For instance, the president also has the right to make recommendations to Congress –
- 01:53
though there's no promise that Congress will be very interested in listening. [President speaks]
- 01:57
And lastly, the President is able to appoint head officials to the US federal agencies, [Flag waves]
- 02:02
like the Department of Defense, the CIA, the Federal Reserve, NASA, and so on. [Department seals]
- 02:07
Hey, we've always wanted to check out Mars…how about it POTUS?
- 02:10
Put in a good word for Shmoop at NASA? [President recommends]
- 02:13
Those are just a few of the many official roles and responsibilities of the President.
- 02:17
Of course, there are many unofficial ones as well... [Phone displays President]
- 02:20
like making funny faces on camera...
- 02:22
kissing lots of babies heads... [Kisses baby]
- 02:24
and yes, even dancing on Ellen. [People dancing]
- 02:25
It's all part of the job.
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