Office of The President

Once in office, the president is expected to be:

• A political leader who is above politics
• The nation's chief economic manager
• Someone who can unify the nation in spite of its differences
• A moral leader
• A world leader and peace-builder
• A morale builder, counselor, and cheerleader
• A crisis manager

Obviously, the expectations placed on presidents are more than any one individual can meet. It should not be surprising, then, that the executive branch and the office of the president have grown significantly since George Washington first took office in 1789. Washington purposely played down the status of the office, not wanting the people to revere him as anything but a patriotic man willing to serve his country. He dealt personally with the Congress and the Courts, not relying on intermediaries to carry his messages for him. Jefferson employed a staff of two — a messenger and a secretary. By 1900, the White House staff had grown to a mere dozen.

White House and executive branch staff grew slowly during the first half of the twentieth century. A virtual explosion of expectations and executive activity occurred during Franklin Roosevelt’s administration, highlighting the need for additional staff. The number of people working for the president spiked during FDR’s tenure and has steadily increased since that time. The executive office of the president now employs more than five hundred people.¹³

The president’s “cabinet,” comprised of the various department secretaries, has also grown substantially over the years. The Congress originally created the Departments of State, War, and Treasury. Washington’s original cabinet, then, had three members. The cabinet today includes the secretaries of the Departments of State, the Treasury, Defense, the Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, Labor, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, Energy, Education, and Veterans Affairs, and Homeland Security. The head of the Justice Department, the attorney general, is also a member of the cabinet.

In addition to these individuals, the president consults regularly with the National Security Council, the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Armed Forces, the Council of Economic Advisors, the Office of Management and Budget, the Office of Policy Development, and several other advisors and staff members. The president also oversees the activities of the White House Legislative Liaison Office and other, more informal communications with the legislative branch. The executive branch has become a large, sprawling, and increasingly difficult-to-manage organization. While the huge staff and vast resources of the office have the potential to strengthen the presidency, presidents are just as likely to feel overwhelmed and constrained by the size and scope of the executive branch as they are liberated by it.

^13.John P. Burke, "The Institutional Presidency," in The Presidency and the Political System, Michael Nelson, ed. (Washington, D.C.: CQ Press, 1998), 412–5.