Moakley Bill Proposes Special Election

Rep. J. Joseph Moakley (D-Mass.) has introduced a bill in Congress calling for a special election of the president and the vice president in the event both offices are left vacant by resignation, impeachment, disability, or death.

The bill, introduced two weeks ago, says that the secretary of state shall notify all 50 governors of the vacancies, and a new national election would be held the following November.

In addition, the speaker of the House of Representatives--or, if that office is vacant, the president pro tempore of the Senate--would serve as acting president until the election, according to the bill.

Moakley said yesterday the idea for the bill came from a speech on the subject by Boston Mayor Kevin H. White which "sparked my imagination."

"Whenever people think of changing the presidential succession laws," the congressman said, "they think in terms of a constitutional amendment. But a simple Congressional statute will do it."

Moakley said the bill's constitutional justification originates in a law passed in 1792 and revoked 94 years later, which empowers Congress to provide for presidential succession.

"It doesn't make sense for a man like Nixon to be able to appoint his own successor," Moakley said. "This bill would, I think, restore to the general public the faith they have lost."

Another reason for changing the succession laws, Moakley said, is that many Democrats are afraid to vote for impeachment because they would be charged with trying to reverse the results of the 1972 presidential election. Having a new national election for president would "let Democrats off the hook," he added.

Many Congressmen object to Moakley's bill because they feel it is a "Democratic ruse to have the people go to the polls when the Republican party is at its lowest point," he said.

Berger's Law

When drafting the bill, Moakley's office conferred with constitutional expert Raoul Berger, Warren Senior Fellow in American Legal History at the Law School.

Berger said yesterday that when the offices of president and vice president are vacant, "a special election was not only authorized, but mandated by the second Congress."

"In fact," Berger said, "if Carl Albert did assume the presidency, I believe his right to hold it might be challenged in the courts on the grounds of constitutionality."

The Moakley bill is awaiting action in the House Judiciary Committee. "Being practical," Moakley said, "I don't think the bill is going to pass. I just think it is a good idea."