Explain the roles of the president as commander in chief and head of state in the United States.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Answers will vary. The U.S. Constitution states that the president "shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States, when called into the actual Service of the United States." As commander in chief of the nation's armed forces, the president exercises tremendous power.Under the Constitution, war powers are divided between Congress and the president. Congress was given the power to declare war and the power to raise and maintain the country's armed forces. The president, as commander in chief, was given the power to deploy the armed forces.Traditionally, a country's monarch has performed the function of head of state-the country's representative to the rest of the world. The United States, of course, has no king or queen to act as head of state. Thus, the president of the United States fulfills this role.The president engages in many symbolic or ceremonial activities, such as throwing out the first pitch to open the baseball season (an honor Trump has declined) and turning on the lights of the national Christmas tree. The president also decorates war heroes, dedicates parks and museums, receives visiting heads of state at the White House, and goes on official state visits to other countries. Some argue that presidents should not perform such ceremonial duties because they take time that the president should be spending on "real work." Most presidents, however, have found the role of head of state to be politically useful.