The 20th Amendment says “the terms of the president and vice president shall end at noon” on January 20....“the terms of their successors shall then begin.” That is all very well and good, but if their successors have yet to be determined because of mail in voting, the outcome is a worrying one indeed.
People have been touting Nancy Pelosi as the " caretaker " because she is Speaker of the house. HOWEVER, it is reasonable to assume that if the election outcome is not known, then there would be a distinct possibility that there would be no House. The terms of all members of the House would end, as stated in the Constitution, on January 3
However, the senate would potentially be holding the reins in the interim, as the majority of members are not up for re election. The president pro tempore of the Senate is currently Charles Grassley. Given that the Senate is a Republican majority, I cannot help but think that this is a very important fact for all to ponder in the event that things are still in a state of flux in 2021.
Now, I am clearly no scholar of American Civics and do not pretend to be so I would be most interested to hear from people more versed than I am as to what the ramifications would be should this occur.
I read the 20th Amendment where it stated
“Congress may by law provide for the case wherein neither a president elect nor a vice president elect shall have qualified, declaring who shall then act as president, or the manner in which one who is to act shall be selected, and such person shall act accordingly until a president or vice president shall have qualified.”
Obviously, this brings us to who is elected to both Houses of Congress.
What I feel confident in saying however is that it is vitally important that Trump supporters vote for Republican Senators and members of Congress as a matter of urgency. Never before has it been more grave and more vital to have a Republican House and Senate.
If the election is not decided by January 20, then I simply cannot see how Pelosi could be in the House after January 3 if votes are still being counted. All members of the House would be sitting biting their nails and chewing their knuckles and gnawing their limbs off.
But the Senate would be sitting ready to act in a caretaker capacity.
Certainly, those Senators whose seats are up for grabs this term will be needed more than ever. And Senator Grassley, President Pro Semptore of the Senate, is a very important person.
In conclusion, I feel more confident than I did when I feared that the leftist dance group Nan Xi and the CCP were in the running to put their spoke in the wheels of American Governance.
Senator Grassley sounds like a good man to have in the wings, should an understudy be required.
Please keep him safe.
BLOG COMMENTS POWERED BY DISQUS
