President (redirected from Presidents)

president, in modern republics, the chief executive and, therefore, the highest officer in a government. Many nations of the world, including the United States, France, Germany, India, and the majority of Latin American nations, have a president as the official head of state. However, the actual power of the presidency varies considerably from country to country. In Germany the presidential power is relatively weak. True executive power rests with the chancellor, and all acts of the president must have his approval or the approval of one of his ministers. The presidential power in India is similarly subordinated to a cabinet of ministers and restricted primarily to ceremonial functions. By contrast, France (under the Fifth Republic), the United States, and some Latin American countries have given the office of the president considerable authority. In Latin America heads of state have not infrequently assumed dictatorial powers, while retaining the title president. The power of the French president is such that he may dissolve parliament at any time, although not more than once a year, and may veto parliamentary bills. He is commander in chief of the armed forces and possesses extraordinary emergency powers. In the United States, Article II of the Constitution provides for the office of the presidency, which is held for four-year terms and filled by election through the electoral college. The president is given full responsibility for the execution of the laws and is therefore the head of all executive agencies. With the consent of Congress he appoints cabinet members and any other executive officials he sees fit. As commander in chief of armed forces the president has control over the military, although Congress tried to limit his war-making power with the War Powers Act of 1973. He is also responsible for the conduct of foreign affairs, although his treaties and appointments must be approved by the Senate and his expenditures by the House of Representatives. To be eligible for the presidency one must be a native-born citizen, over 35 years old, and at least 14 years resident in the United States. The Twenty-second Amendment (1951) limits a president to two four-year terms. For a list of U.S. presidents, see Presidents of the United States, table.

Bibliography

See M. Cunliffe, American Presidents and the Presidency (1972); L. Fisher, President and Congress (1972); F. I. Greenstein, Leadership in the Modern Presidency (1988); L. Fisher, Presidential War Power (1995).

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president

In government, the officer who serves as head of state and sometimes also as chief executive. In countries where the president is chief of state but not of government, the role is largely ceremonial, with few or no political powers. Presidents may be elected directly or indirectly, for a limited or unlimited number of terms. In the U.S., the president's chief duty is to ensure that the laws are faithfully executed, which he does through various executive agencies and with the aid of his cabinet. He also serves as commander in chief of the armed forces, nominates judges to the Supreme Court, and makes treaties with foreign governments (contingent on Senate approval). The office of president is used in governments in South and Central America, Africa, and elsewhere. In western Europe executive power is generally vested in a prime minister and his cabinet, and the president, where the office exists, has few responsibilities (though France is a significant exception).

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president

1. the chief executive or head of state of a republic, esp of the US

2. (in the US) the chief executive officer of a company, corporation, etc.

3. the chief executive officer of certain establishments of higher education

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President 

(1) In many public, scholarly, and scientific establishments and in many organizations and the like, including international ones, the elected head—for example, the president of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, the president of the International Council of Scientific Unions, the president of the International Academy of Astronautics, or the president of the Soviet-French Friendship Society.

(2) The head of state in countries with a republican form of government. In parliamentary republics, including Italy, India, the Federal Republic of Germany, Turkey, and Lebanon, the president is elected for a constitutionally defined term, either by the parliament or by a special collegium based in the parliament. In presidential republics the president is elected outside of parliament, either by direct elections, as in France, Panama, Paraguay, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Bolivia, or by indirect elections, as in the United States and Argentina.

In presidential republics the president has broad, real powers, since he combines the functions of head of state and head of government. The constitutions of parliamentary republics formally assign broad powers to the president, but in fact these powers are exercised by the prime minister. This arrangement is sometimes further strengthened by the institution of countersignature. In the socialist states of Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, and the People’s Democratic Republic of Korea, the head of state is also a president, elected by the highest representative bodies. The president of the Republic of Cuba is elected by the Council of Ministers.