IndiaWest: Your Trusted Source for Today's Global News
The Whole Equation: The Vice President as Advisor
1. The Whole Equation
The Vice President as Advisor
CISSM Forum
Aaron Mannes
November 6, 2014
1
2. Not half a dozen men have ever been able to keep the
whole equation of pictures in their heads.
F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Last Tycoon
Washington is Hollywood for ugly
people.
Paul Begala
2
3. Outline
1. Dissertation Overview:
Why & How has the vice presidency emerged
as a top presidential advisor
2. Future Work
What kind of advice does the President need?
3
4. Part 1: From Throttlebottom to Angler
I would a great deal rather be anything, say a professor of
history, than Vice-President
– Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt, 25th Vice President of the
United States
…the most dangerous vice president we’ve probably had in
American history
– Vice President Joe Biden describing his predecessor,
Dick Cheney
In just a few decades the vice presidency has shifted from
“Constitutional appendage” to the “Imperial Vice Presidency”
What Changed?
• Why has the vice presidency become a source of influence?
• Why have presidents been increasingly willing to follow
the advice of the vice president?
4
5. Methodology
• Influence is defined by Paul
Light as “an adviser’s ability
to change outcomes from
what they would have been.”
• Measuring influence by
surveying the literature and
lots & lots of interviews
• Process tracing by examining
specific instances of vice
presidential influence
• Little influence from regular
interaction between the
President and VP
5
6. Modern Presidency
H1A: When the president is able to
select his vice president, the VP is
more likely to exercise influence
Finding: absence of this factor
makes vice presidential influence
unlikely (present for 6 of 7
influential VPs)
• Until 1940, running mates were
usually selected by the party and
were often not known by the
president or a political rival
• Allowing the nominee to select his
running mate created the
possibility of choosing him based
on his skills and compatibility
• Example: Martin Van Buren
H1B: As the demands on the
president have increased, the vice
president will have greater
opportunities to exercise influence
Finding: absence of this factor
makes vice presidential influence
unlikely (present for 5 of 7
influential VPs)
• Despite the number of influential
VPs since the advent of the modern
presidency, the strength of this
factor was that it created the
possibility of the modern outsider
president
• Insider modern presidents did not
rely on their VPs nor did pre-modern
outsider presidents
6
7. The Semi-Institutional Vice Presidency
H2A: Vice presidents with their own staff are better able to
exercise influence.
Finding: absence of this factor makes vice presidential
influence unlikely (present for 5 of 5 influential modern VPs)
• In the 1970s, VPs were granted substantial personal staff
• Staff allowed the VP to follow issues, attend meetings, develop
areas of expertise, and use surrogates for influence
Example: Dan Quayle
– One of two un-influential vice presidents studied, Quayle
attracted extremely capable staffers and expanded the VP’s
office
– Staff helped him push issues of interest like missile defense
identified areas where he could play a role
7
8. Carter & Mondale Reshape the Vice Presidency
8
H2C: Vice presidents with regular access to the
President, and with access to White House
meetings and paper-flow for themselves and
their staff are better able to exercise influence
Finding: absence of this factor makes
vice presidential influence impossible
(present for 7 of 7 influential VPs)
• Without access to the president, the VP
cannot exercise influence
• Access to White House meetings and
paper-flow is also essential in order to
know what decisions are being
considered
9. H2B: Vice presidents with an office in the West Wing are better
able to exercise influence
Finding: absence of this factor makes vice
presidential influence unlikely (present for
5 of 5 influential modern VPs)
• Nothing propinks like propinquity
• Essence of vice presidential influence is time
with the president, it is much easier to see
the president with an office down the hall
• Policy is made by a process of osmosis
• Important, but not essential factor -
Mondale’s successor, Bush Sr., did not spend
as much time as in West Wing and during
Cheney’s period of greatest influence he was
often at an undisclosed location
9
10. H2D: Vice presidents who are discreet in advancing their policy preferences
and publicly loyal to the president are better able to exercise influence
Finding: absence of this factor
makes vice presidential influence
impossible (present for 7of 7
influential VPs)
• After consulting his predecessors,
particularly his mentor VP
Humphrey, VP Mondale adopted a
set of low-key influence strategies
• Because VPs cannot be fired, they
need to be particularly careful to
demonstrate loyalty and discretion
• Influential VPs have restricted their
advice to the president in private or
in small trusted groups and publicly
supported presidential decisions
Example: John C. Calhoun
- NOT a model of vice presidential discretion
- Headed a political faction and publicly
opposed both presidents he served
- Later, when he sought to reach out to
Jackson, the president was not amenable
10
11. Outsiders & Insiders
H3A: Outsider presidents are more likely to select running mates for personal
and political compatibility, increasing the likelihood that the President will
include the VP as a top advisor
Finding: Presence of this factor makes vice presidential influence probable
(present for 4 of 5 modern influential VPs)
H3B: Outsider presidents are more likely to be inexperienced in areas such as
national security affairs and not have strong national security teams, thus
creating opportunities for vice presidential influence
Finding: Presence of this factor makes vice presidential influence probable
(present for 7 of 7 influential VPs)
• Outsider presidential candidates often recognize their unfamiliarity with Washington
politics and national security issues and select running mates for their expertise
• When national security challenges (inevitably) confront outsider presidents,
experienced VPs can help the president make decisions and understand options
11
12. H3C: Outsider presidents are more likely to seek their vice
presidents’ input in the appointments process, which increases
the VP’s opportunities for influence
• Finding: Presence of this factor
makes vice presidential
influence probable
• This factor was split into two
components:
- cabinet & bureaucracy allies present for
4 of 7 influential VPs
- White House allies present for 4 of 5
modern influential VPs
• Allies in cabinet and bureaucracy less
frequent for modern VPs
• Allies in White House are helpful as
sources of information and as
alternative voices advancing the VP’s
position
Example: George H. W. Bush
- Bush was not selected for his expertise and,
having been a campaign rival, was distrusted
by Reaganites
- Reagan recognized the need for DC
experience on his staff and appointed Bush
advisor Jim Baker as White House chief of
staff
- With Baker as chief of staff, Bush could not be
cut out of policy process and had alternate
means to reach president
12
13. Vice Presidential Needs
Opportunity
Capability
Access
• Without access the VP cannot
influence policy
• Given access, the VP needs
the capability to influence
policy
• Even if these elements are
present, the president has to
give the vice president the
opportunity to give advice
• Opportunities exist when
outsider presidents
encounter unfamiliar issues
14. Part II: The President’s Needs
E l e c t o ra l
Advantage
TRUST
1. First and foremost,
Presidents want to get
elected – the Vice
President is chosen for
political reasons
2. Presidents need VPs that can be
trusted (that aren’t pains in the
ass).
3. Finally, when both of these
conditions are satisfied, the
President may turn to the Vice
President for advice
14
15. Areas & Modes of VP Influence
Areas
• Big decisions, particularly
life & death issues
• Balancing politics and
policy, particularly with
Congress
• Tools and institutions of
national security
• Insight into foreign
governments
Modes
• Advice on these different
elements
• Activity, the vice president
can take on some of the
President’s burden – liaising
with Congress, visiting
foreign countries, chairing
commissions
• Personnel, vice presidents
have insider staffers who can
help President’s staff get
things done
15
16. Advice Activity Personnel
Life & Death • Gore on Bosnia
• Biden on Afghanistan
• Bush on Terrorism
• Bush on Grenada
• Bush on Terrorism
Politics &
Congress
• Mondale on China
• Mondale on Mid-East peace
process
• Cheney on Expanded Surveillance
• Biden on Afghanistan
• Gore on Bosnia
• Gore on NAFTA
• Mondale on Defense
Authorization Veto
Tools &
Bureaucracy
• Cheney on the surge
• Biden on Afghanistan
• Bush on Terrorism
• Cheney on expanded surveillance
• Bush on Terrorism
• Biden on
Afghanistan
• Gore on Bosnia
• Cheney on Expanded
Surveillance
• Mondale on
Intelligence Reform
Foreign
Governments
• Bush on Gorbachev
• Mondale on Mid-East Peace
Process
• Biden on Afghanistan
• Gore on Bosnia
• Mondale on Mid-
East peace process
• Bush on Gorbachev
• Quayle on Asia & Latin
America
16
We are measuring influence – how do we know if a VP is influential?
This turns out to be a tough problem – like interpreting the world through shadows on the walls of the cave – VPs are tight-lipped about what they tell the president
Best I could do was survey the literature – memoirs, analyses by long-time Washington observers - and on the whole the results were consistent
Many said Gore, Mondale, and Cheney were influential – no one said Quayle was influential
Unique technique I used was to employ process tracing on specific instances of vice presidential influence to see what factors made their influence possible
I read everything I could – memoirs, journalist accounts, Bob Woodward – but at the core were a series of interviews – almost every National security advisor to the vice president – five national security advisors to the president, three chiefs of staff to the vice president, many, many other staffers from the NSC & OVP – and one vice president
Little influence – it is possible that the instances of influence are all there is – but one staffer observed that through interacting almost daily over years, the President and Vice President are almost bound to have some influence on one another – but it will be subtle and on small things
Explains an increase in VP activity, but not necessarily influence
Staff included William Kristol, Carnes Lord, Karl Jackson, Spencer Abraham
Increased foreign policy staff from 2 to 5, functional differentiation including first international economics advisor to VP
FSO with expertise in Latin America encouraged Quayle’s activity there
2nd VPNSA, Karl Jackson, said he took the job to better push Asian issues
Griffith Bell cited Mondale’s West Wing office as a great cause of administration’s problems
Osmosis - Accounts of Mondale frequently and informally checking with key advisors and the president – and vice versa
Nothing propinks like propinquity: Office created an appearance of power, which made others more likely to consult with and appeal to the VP
For pre-modern VPs White House office wasn’t as essential since access to the White House was far less restricted – but the two influentials made it a point to have living spaces near White House
Griffith Bell cited Mondale’s West Wing office as a great cause of administration’s problems
Osmosis - Accounts of Mondale frequently and informally checking with key advisors and the president – and vice versa
Nothing propinks like propinquity: Office created an appearance of power, which made others more likely to consult with and appeal to the VP
For pre-modern VPs White House office wasn’t as essential since access to the White House was far less restricted – but the two influentials made it a point to have living spaces near White House
VPs must be loyal, discreet in policy deliberations, not force Presidents to choose between them and cabinet members, and not leak
Mention Humphrey
Mention exchange through newspapers under John Quincy Adams
Eaton affair contrast with Van Buren – who “rowed to his object with muffled oars”
H3A – Cheney is perfect example, Biden also – choice based on competence and experience was also politically smart
Often factor in running mates experience for political reasons
Carter relied heavily on Mondale for Congress, Gore on Congress, environment, arms control, telecommunications, Cheney on energy, Congress, and national security overall, Biden on foreign affairs – particularly Iraq and Congress
Mondale, Bush, and Biden don’t really have allies in bureaucracy
Cheney’s allies in White House limited
Opportunity appears to exist most prominently with outsider presidents – so what is it that outsiders need
In other words – I want to peel off a couple more layers of the onion – what is this insider knowledge
Life & Death – Gore (Iraq & Bosnia), Cheney (Afghanistan, Iraq, intel), Biden (Afghanistan)
Politics & Policy – Hobart (gold standard), Mondale (Defense veto), Cheney (intel)
National security institutions – Bush (Poland sanctions, Grenada), Gore (Bosnia), Cheney (Iraq surge, intell), Biden (Afghanistan)
Other countries – Van Buren (France), Mondale (Israel), Bush (Japan, France), Gore (Russia, Egypt, South Africa), Biden (Afghanistan-Pakistan, Iraq)