Date: May 27, 2006 7:36:29 PM PDT
Subject: Presidential Succession: Hastert Next in Line after Bush and Cheney
- 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.
- 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.
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- An individual acting as President under this subsection shall continue so to do until the expiration of the then current Presidential term ...
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- --Presidential Succession Act of 1947
- (codified as Title 3, Chapter 1, Section 19 of the United States Code
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On 9/11, Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert was taken to a "secure location" in order to guarantee that at least one officer in the line of succession would survive the attacks.
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Wayne Madsen Report, May 26, 2006
What if the United States
experienced a constitutional crisis
and no one reported it?
The recent statements by House Speaker Dennis Hastert that the Bush White House was overstepping the bounds of its constitutional separation of powers by allowing the FBI to storm into a member of Congress' office, and then "leaking" Justice Department information to intimidate the Speaker after he publicly complained about the raid, indicate that this nation is experiencing a drastic constitutional crisis.
The fact that the corporate media is not reporting this as a crisis is understandable when one considers that social studies (once called "civics") in this nation's education system is relegated to an afterthought and our corporate media talking heads have as much knowledge of the U.S. Constitution as anyone who has ever passed a high school GED.
Hastert was joined in his criticism of the White House by the Republican Majority Leader in the Senate Bill Frist and the House Majority Leader John Boehner.
When one considers that Hastert is the third ranking constitutional officer of the United States, his stark criticisms of White House unconstitutional behavior (regardless of Hastert's possible involvement in illegal campaign contributions), exceed anything this nation ever witnessed in Watergate.
In that case, we were talking about impeachment, partly for White House-sanctioned break-ins of Democratic National headquarters and Daniel Ellsberg's psychiatrist's office. Never once did House Speaker Carl Albert complain about the Nixon administration breaking into the offices of congressmen without a search warrant. Nor did Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield or House Majority Leader Tip O'Neill ever face such concerns.
A number of Democrats have welcomed Hastert's sudden realization that the Constitution and the separation of powers clause is now under assault by the unitary fascist executive created by the neo-cons.
Yet some Republicans continue to support Bush. These include the core of the Christian evangelical-Ziocon alliance, most evident by anti-Hastert comments from Senators David Vitter (R-LA) and Norm Coleman (R-MN), respectively.
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Hastert vs. Bush: The Speaker has the constitutional power and authority to replace Bush and Cheney
It is now clear, even to the Republican leadership in Congress, that the neo-cons are an anti-constitutional blight upon our nation. The true and most loyal neo-con agents of influence in Congress have now publicly identified themselves (Vitter, Coleman, Lieberman, Cornyn, Kyl, etc.).
It is high time for them and the Democrats to initiate impeachment proceedings against this criminal gang and return this nation to normalcy and democracy.
Hastert has it in his power to not only remove Bush and Cheney through impeachment, but he can replace them as a caretaker president until the 2008 election.
That would be the best outcome in an overall bad situation.
