POL 102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 13: Divided Government, White House Counsel
5 Apr 2018
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Many formal institutions were created to help the president and conduct the business of the executive branch. These can be understood as concentric circles with the president as the center of power. The white house staff is comprised of ~450 people. The various cabinet departments have about 1. 7 million employees. The cabinet is a group of the top-ranking officials of every major federal department, plus other officials included by the president. The full cabinet meets periodically with the president to discuss major administration priorities and policies. Individual cabinet members consort with the president regarding their specific policy domain. The eop generates policy alternatives and suggestions that are faithful to the preside(cid:374)t"s politi(cid:272)al age(cid:374)da. It does not administer programs like the cabinet departments do, and does not have large staffs of career civil servants. Most positions in the eop do not require senate confirmation. The closest group of people to the president is the white house staff.
