Chapter 13 The Presidency Presidents have three primary goals while in office to achieve good public policy to win reelection and to be historically relevant Congress plays an important role in each Because the constitution is vague on presidential power it varies greatly from president to president Leadership of the public is the preeminent governing strategy of contemporary presidents Presidential decision making is a complex process with many variables to be considered President s skills for dealing with congress his ability to bargain with legislators pick the right issues to prioritize and act quickly before his honeymoon period wanes In an ideal scenario presidents are also able to convince the public to contact their representative or senator This strategy is called going public Thee most targeted and potentially best way for presidents to reach a large national audience and influence public opinion is through a nationally televised address The most common of these is the president s State of the Union address The misery index which is an additive measure of the monthly unemployment and inflation rates shows how the state of the economy relates to presidential approval
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