He required subordinates to seek his approval for their actions, and accepted personal responsibility for their conduct. While he consulted with the Senate on appointments, he insisted that the president alone had the authority to fire an appointee, he had the power to control every member of the executive branch. He took a strong hand in foreign policy. As president, Washington demonstrated the value of a strong executive in the hands of a trustworthy person. He stayed within the bounds of presidential authority outlined by the Constitution and the acts of the First Congress organizing the executive branch. For example, Washington repeatedly sought the "advice and consent" of the Senate in making appointments to office and in executing treaties with foreign governments, as the Constitution required. In the meantime, the Senate's refusal to respond immediately to Washington's consultations helped to establish that body's right to both give and withhold its advice and consent. His appointments supported the idea that the best-qualified people should be running for office. By the time Washington retired from the presidency in 1797, he had established that the power of the president was vested in the office, not in the individual who held the