El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1912-10-16

I vice president should be unable to eX-
! ercise the duties of the office either
! by reason of death, removal or disa-
bility, it would fall upon the should
/ ers, of the secretary Of state to act
/ as president" were he qualified, OF,
! if it should have to pass him it would
/ next fall upon the shoulders of the
secretary Of the treasury, and so on
/ down through the list Of cabinet
( officers as far as the secretary Of agri-
! culture. He and the secretary Of com
| merce and labor were omitted from
| the succession act Of 1856 because
I their positions bad not then been
created.
Would Convene Congress.
The man who thus would act as
president is required by the success
( sion law to call a session Of con-
gress within, 20 days, and to lay before
IL the fact Of the vacancy IN the pres
idency after which 1t would become
the duty Of that body to call a special
election for the filling of the vacancy
in the presidential and vice presiden-
by some that in the event the forth
coming election is forced into con-
esress and the house should fail to
choose a president and the senate a
vice president secretary Of state Phi
lander {. Knox would become presl-
dent, some going so far as to say that
he would serve for four years. The
first statement may be true, while the
other certainly is not. No careful
reading of the constitution will re-
veal any direct authority for any sue
cessiOn in the event of a failure to
elect. The constitution and the law
both authorize this succession in the
event that vacancy occurs through
death, removal or disability, but
neither makes any provision for |
vacancy through failure to elect
1t is reasonable to suppose, how |
ever, that should such situation
arise, the provision in the case of va
capcies from death, removal or disa-
b1nues, would apply. In that event,
however, Mr.. Knox would only N"act /
as president. until a special election I
could be held. He is required by the /
law authorizing him TO take up the 4
re1nS OF government, to call congress 4
together, if 1t is not already in ses- |
sion, so that 1t can provide for spe-
cial election How long it would re- !
quire for such an election to be held /
IS hard to forecast In the first place, /
congress would have to agree upon /
the time and the terms Of the election. !
Then time probably would have to be /
allowed for another pre-cOnventiOn /
canvass and another pre- election cam
paign- 1t is very probable that IN
der these conditions the election (
would be called for the usual Tues
day after the first Monday OF NOvem-
Der, and that the electoral voting and /
the congressional counting would De ]
moved up Just one year Then another
congress would be in session, and
house deadlock would hardly be prob
able
intermediate Elections Required.
It is odd that some eminent au-
thOritieS in congress have asserted
in years zone by that the secretary
of state, or his cabinent successor,
would serve out the four year term
acting as president" An inspection
Of the debates Of the constitutional
convention shows that there was no
intent in that body that any person -
reaching the presidency by any route I
laid out by congress should serve a
full term Randolph, Of Virginia.
moved that congress provide fOr sue /
cession IN the event OF the death, dis /
ability OF removal of the president I
and vice president, and such officer
as was selected hereunder should (
serve until the time OF electinE a z
president shall arrive" Madison op-
posed that part of it, saying that IL I
would prevent congress from filling
vacancy by an intermediate cleo
tiOn. He therefore moved an amend /
ment providing until such disability
be removed or a president shall be
elected. That amendment became a
part Of the constitution, and was in
cOTpOrated in the succession act Of
1892 as well as in that of 1887.
When cabinet officer succeeds to
the presidency what will he be called?
The constitution does not say that he
shall become president. Would we
in the face of that omission call him
president? 1t does provide that he
shall act as president" VIII he be
only Mr.. Acting President?
It IS interesting to follow the de-
bate Of the constitutional convention !
concerning the presidential success
sion. Elbridge Gerry had opposed the
assignment Of the duty of presiding Z
over the senate to the vice president.
Ia .u~N
and vice president would be so init I
mate that they might just as well ]
make the president the presiding Of {
ficer of the senate Governor Morris
replied that then this would be the
first time in history that an heir ap- I
parent was fond of his father. One |
thought that the vice president ought
to have something else to do besides Z
and that was why he
favored giving him the presidency Of
the senate.
Provision For Succession.
The clause under which congress |
has right to provide a presidential |
succession comes from the constitu-
non prior to its amendment It pro- ]
-ides that In case the president and [ ]
vice president resign. die are dis J
abled. or are removed from office
congress may by law provide what
officer shall then act as president
Ind such officer shall serve accord
ngly. until the disability be removed. =
IT president shall be elected No
me yet has decided what shall con-
ititUte a disability" Some assert Y
hat il cannot occur until the presi- 1
lent is certainly no longer able to / O
discharge the duties Of the office. I ;
However. why would it then say "un-
il the disability be removed" Some ( a
-ssert that when Garfield was lying Z 7
It the point of death his sabiIity 4
'egan when he was shot, and that
he same was the case with Mckinley. I C
The first presidential succession act ! {
vas passed by congress in 1892. It ~
provided that in the event that both Z
he president and the vice president I s
ould not serve, that the president Of
he senate should act as president 81
nd that he in turn, was to be under
tudied by the speaker of the house o
f representatives This provision Il
vas made in the law regulating the n
lection OF the president. 1t con- .
inued to be the law until the success II
ion act of 1886 was framed. v
This latter act provides for the sue Is
ession Of the officers Of the cabinet ! ~,
n the order of their rank down to %
nd including the secretary Of the in Z a
erior, and provides for the calling of / IN
special election. 1t limits the ac- { vi,
ession Of these officers only to those ! "
Tho have been confirmed by the I u