THOUGHTS ON THE PRESIDENTIAL LINE OF SUCCESSION – PART 1

Have you ever given much thought (or for that matter, any thought) as to who is next in line to become President in the event that both the President and Vice-President die or for some other reason are unable to perform their duties?  I hadn’t until recently when the Democrats were hell bent on Impeaching President Trump and realized that if they succeeded in their effort, they might then turn their attack dogs on Vice President Pence and try to impeach him also.

Had they been successful in their efforts, guess who was next in line after the Vice-President to become President.  The Speaker of the House – Nancy Pelosi!  Yep, the Lead Attack Dog herself.

Article II, Section 1, Clause 6 of the US Constitution authorizes Congress to provide for a line of succession beyond the vice-president.  Congress has done so on three different occasions – The Presidential Succession Act of 1792, The Presidential Succession Act of 1866 and The Presidential Succession Act of 1947.

The Presidential Succession Act of 1792 provided for succession to the presidency in the event both the office of the president and the vice president were vacant, first by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate and second, if need be, the Speaker of the House of Representatives.  The statute provided that the presidential successor would serve in a temporary capacity as Acting President, holding office only until a special election could be held and a new president and vice president could be elected.

The Presidential Succession Act of 1886 was prompted by Congress’ recognition that the number of presidential succors needed to be increased, since twice within the span of four years there was no one in the presidential line of succession.  This act changed the line of succession to members of the president’s cabinet in the order of the establishment of the various departments, and stipulated that any official discharging the powers and duties of the presidency must possess the constitutional qualifications to hold the office. The President Pro Tempore of the Senate and Speaker of the House were excluded from the new line.  Also, the provision mandating a special presidential election when a double vacancy arose was eliminated.

The Presidential Succession Act of 1947 restored the Speaker of the House of Representatives and President Pro Tempore of the Senate to the line of succession but reversed the order from their 1792 positions.  It also placed them ahead of the members of the Cabinet, who were again positioned in the order of the establishment of their department.

This was done at President Harry S. Truman’s request, who became president after President Franklin D Roosevelt’s death, and stated his belief that the president should not have the power to appoint to office “the person who would be my immediate successor in the event of my own death or inability to act,” and that the presidency should, whenever possible, “be filled by an elective officer.

Following is the current list of presidential successors, in order of succession.

(1) Ineligible to be President

(2) Eligibility Uncertain

While I whole-heartedly agree with President Truman’s belief that the office of the President should be filled by an elective officer, I vehemently disagree with the selection of the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate as the first two Presidential Successors, and that ANY non-elected official or officer should be part of the presidential line of succession.  I also disagree with any presidential successors after the Vice-President Acting as President for the remainder of the presidential term..

Tune in tomorrow for Part 2 of this blog to learn why I disagree so strongly with the current plan of succession and what changes I would propose.