Text 11895, 81 rader
Skriven 2005-09-03 16:02:00 av FRANK SCHEIDT (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av ROY WITT
Ärende: El Presidente
=====================
-=> Quoting Roy Witt to Dan Ceppa <=-

 
 >>> Don't forget that Truman was exempt from that amendment.
 >>
 >> As it is, he could have been elected as many times or even more
 >> than FDR was.
 
 >> Wikipedia:
 
 >> "Under the XXII Amendment, no person may be elected president more
 >> than twice. Furthermore, no vice president or other person who has
 >> succeeded to the presidency, and served as president or acting
 >> president for more than two years, may be elected president more than
 >> once."
 >> Truman had served as President for more than 3 years of FDR's term.
 
 >> Wikipedia:
 
 >> "Consequently, the amendment, while limiting a person to two elected
 >> four-year terms as president, theoretically does allow a person to
 >> serve up to ten years in office. If a person serving as vice president
 >> succeeds to the presidency, and serves for less than two years of the
 >> original president's term, he or she may still be elected twice and
 >> thus serve a total of ten full years in office."
 >> You have to read that part in Article XXII that begins with; "But this
 >> Article" very carefully as it applies to the then incumbant President.
 
 > It does, but you need to read the full amendment.

 RW> I did.
 
 > Here's the salient clause:
 
 > "But this article does not apply to any person holding the office
 > of President when this article was proposed by the Congress, and
 > shall not prevent any person holding the office of President, or
 > acting as President, during the term within which this Article becomes
 > active from holding . . .  "
 
 > Except if there were rather extraodinary circumstances involved,
 > tha part of the amendment is directed squarely at Truman.

 RW> And this is what I alluded to.
 
 > Had Truman ran and won in 1952 he could not be removed from office
 > for the remainder of that term.  Such a term would have allowed
 > Truman some 11+ years in office.

 RW> Which is also what I alluded to.
 
 > At the same time, your are correct in that Truman wasn't fully
 > exempt from the amendment.  He would have been prohibited from
 > running a 3rd time on his own.

 RW> Correct again. So, your statement that he could have unlimited or a
 RW> 4th term is incorrect; which is also what I alluded to in the beginning
 RW> of this thread. 

The amendment specifically does *not* apply to Harry S. Truman as 
is clearly stated:  "this article does not apply to any person 
holding the office of President when this article was proposed 
by the Congress".  Hence Truman could have held office as long as 
he wished -- assuming he was elected each time.

Admittedly the phrase "when this article was proposed" 
complicates matters a bit.  However I'm sure Truman's lawyers 
could have held up that statement in the courts until he had 
lost interest in being President.  Then it wouldn't matter.  

That "proposed" phrase is so *typical* of lawyers since it 
could be subject to endless interpretations.  For example, it 
doesn't say specifically proposed by some member of *Congress*.  
It could have been proposed by a stand-up comic and *still* 
would be "proposed".

... "People voting Democrat ... Give them a boot to the head!"

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