After the Vice President, who is is next in line for the presidency? The Speaker of the House right? After that it is the Secertary of State, or so I always thought. But the truth is, it is somewhat muddled, and in fact designating the Speaker third in line is inherently dangerous to our Republic.
These rather obscure ramblings were inspired by a post at RedState that championed the idea that ex-senator DeMint should replace Boehner as Speaker of the House. The idea springs from the fact that nowhere in the Constitution does it specifically say that the Speaker has to be a member of the House. In fact there were the recent protest votes for Allen West and Colin Powell at the beginning of the present congress.
Which led me to examine the idea of a bloodless coup. Could the House of Representatives appoint a Speaker of the House unelected by the people? Could this Speaker initiate impeachment of both the President and Vice President, and with the consent of two thirds Senate, install himself as the president?
Probably not, but it is a interesting diversion. If you have time to waste, follow me below the fold.
If both the President and Vice President become incapable of holding the office, who is next in line? I always thought it was a given that the Speaker of the House was third in line. I also somehow imagined that it was in the Constitution. It is not. In fact it seems to be in opposition to what the constitution actually says.
Article 2, Section 1, Clause 6
In Case of the Removal of the President from Office, or of his Death, Resignation, or Inability to discharge the Powers and Duties of the said Office, the Same shall devolve on the Vice President, and the Congress may by Law provide for the Case of Removal, Death, Resignation or Inability, both of the President and Vice President, declaring what Officer shall then act as President, and such Officer shall act accordingly, until the Disability be removed, or a President shall be elected.
There is nothing in there about the Speaker of the House. It is an “Officer' who is next in line. 'Officer', in capital notice, was understood to mean a member of the executive branch at the time of writing of the Constitution. The Speaker as third in line only comes into law in 1947.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That
(a)
(1)
if, by reason of death, resignation, removal from office, inability, or failure to qualify, there is neither a President nor Vice President to discharge the powers and duties of the office of President, then the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall, upon his resignation as Speaker and as Representative in Congress, act as President.
(2)
The same rule shall apply in the case of the death, resignation, removal from office, or inability of an individual acting as President under this subsection.
(b)
If, at the time when under subsection (a) a Speaker is to begin the discharge of the powers and duties of the office of President, there is no Speaker, or the Speaker fails to qualify as Acting President, then the President pro tempore of the Senate shall, upon his resignation as President pro tempore and as Senator, act as President.
I know what the law is about. We need a clear line of succession for the presidency. At the end of World War II it was important to make sure that the executive branch was occupied without political ranker. I just am not sure the law is constitutional. (Somehow I had the misguide idea that the Secretary of State was fourth in line. Now I am not sure where I got that from.) A lot could be made of 'Acting President' I suppose. What is the difference between an 'Acting President' and a 'President?' Thoughts?
To be sure, this Slate article lays to rest the idea that the House can, or at least would, elect a Speaker who is not a member of the House.
Do you have to be a member of Congress to be Speaker?
Probably. The Constitution states only that “The House of Representatives shall chuse their Speaker and other Officers.” Many journalists, as well as the clerk of the House of Representatives, take this to mean that an outsider can be elected speaker. Even the Explainer once repeated this popular bit of constitutional mythology. Unfortunately, it probably isn’t true. The drafters of the Constitution likely took for granted that the speaker had to be a member of Congress. In his 1801 Manual of Parliamentary Practice, Thomas Jefferson likened the election of the leader of the Senate—and, by implication, the speaker of the House—to the British Parliament’s tradition of physically dragging the elected speaker of the House of Commons to the chair. That comparison is revealing, because the speaker of the House of Commons is elected from its membership. In addition, state legislatures always drew speakers from their own memberships, even though the state constitutions in place at the time the federal Constitution was drafted did not explicitly require it. Perhaps the clearest indication of the Framers’ intent comes from longstanding practice: Every speaker of the House has been a member of Congress. To the Explainer’s knowledge, no one from the founding generation ever cast a vote for a non-member. (The modern habit of voting for non-members is merely an act of protest, in any event.)
I am not sure what the word 'chuse' means. Who knows, maybe there is a Constitutional challenge there. :) Even if the language is a bit ambiguous, the House is not likely to elect a Speaker who is not a member. But, as to the order of succession, could a Constitutional challenge be raise if the Speaker was elevated to the Presidency? I think not. Before a challenge could reach the Supreme Court the new 'Acting President' will have been sworn in. Thus, in the words of the great America thinker 'Joey' of the T.V. series
Friends, making it a 'Moo' point, something even a cow could understand. He would already be president. It might make a difference in the future, but the former Speaker would be president.
But still - I have this lingering doubt. Could the the Speaker of the House Boehner impeach both the President and Vice President and become president? Could the House elect DeMint Speaker and do the same? Could DeMint offer Rush Limbaugh, or to take it to the ludicrous extreme, Alex I-would-shove-my-foot-up-his-ass-but-he-would-probably-like-it Baldwin as the Vice President and than promptly resign?
None of this is likely to happen, but we came close with Nixon and Ford. What do you think? Is a bloodless coup possible in America?