Is Hillary Ineligible For Cabinet?
A conservative watchdog group called Judicial Watch is arguing that thanks to a Constitutional clause known as the "Emoluments Clause," Hillary Clinton cannot legally become secretary of state until her Senate term expires in 2013.
Article I, Section 6, of the Constitution says this: "No Senator or Representative shall, during the Time for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil Office under the Authority of the United States which shall have been created, or the Emoluments whereof shall have been increased during such time."
The word "Emoluments" is a reference to salary or compensation.
Judicial Watch's argument, then, is that because President Bush signed legislation increasing the salary (or Emoluments) of the secretary of state in January 2008 – while Clinton was in the Senate – she cannot, by virtue of this clause, be appointed to the office during her elected term.
Senate Democrats are now working on legislation to pave the way for Clinton to become secretary of state, despite the clause. There is precedent for doing so: As the New York Times notes, "In the past, Congress has gotten around this by passing a resolution cutting the salary for the office at stake back to what it was before the nominee's most recent election."
The maneuver even has a name: The "Saxbe fix," named after Richard Nixon attorney general nominee Sen. William Saxbe. Bill Clinton also used the Saxbe fix when nominating Sen. Lloyd Bentsen as treasury secretary.
But Judicial Watch says the Saxbe Fix doesn't do the job, since "it cannot change the fact that the salary had been increased while Senator Clinton served in Congress."
"Simply put, the Constitution does not provide for a legislative remedy for the Ineligibility Clause," the group claims.
Clinton spokesman Philippe Reines dismissed the group's criticism.
"This is a Harvard Law grad nominating a Yale Law grad here, so all parties involved have been cognizant of this issue from the outset," he told the Times. "But putting frivolous lawsuits by fringe groups aside, this issue has been resolved many times over the past century involving both Democratic and Republican appointments and we're confident it will be here too."
And CBS News legal analyst Andrew Cohen doesn't expect it to be a serious issue.
"This is a non-story raised by the same people who hounded the Clintons a decade ago," he told Hotsheet. "It's going to go away as quickly as it came on."
© 2008 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. Article I, Section 6, of the Constitution says this: "No Senator or Representative shall, during the Time for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil Office under the Authority of the United States which shall have been created, or the Emoluments whereof shall have been increased during such time."
The word "Emoluments" is a reference to salary or compensation.
(AP)
Senate Democrats are now working on legislation to pave the way for Clinton to become secretary of state, despite the clause. There is precedent for doing so: As the New York Times notes, "In the past, Congress has gotten around this by passing a resolution cutting the salary for the office at stake back to what it was before the nominee's most recent election."
The maneuver even has a name: The "Saxbe fix," named after Richard Nixon attorney general nominee Sen. William Saxbe. Bill Clinton also used the Saxbe fix when nominating Sen. Lloyd Bentsen as treasury secretary.
But Judicial Watch says the Saxbe Fix doesn't do the job, since "it cannot change the fact that the salary had been increased while Senator Clinton served in Congress."
"Simply put, the Constitution does not provide for a legislative remedy for the Ineligibility Clause," the group claims.
Clinton spokesman Philippe Reines dismissed the group's criticism.
"This is a Harvard Law grad nominating a Yale Law grad here, so all parties involved have been cognizant of this issue from the outset," he told the Times. "But putting frivolous lawsuits by fringe groups aside, this issue has been resolved many times over the past century involving both Democratic and Republican appointments and we're confident it will be here too."
And CBS News legal analyst Andrew Cohen doesn't expect it to be a serious issue.
"This is a non-story raised by the same people who hounded the Clintons a decade ago," he told Hotsheet. "It's going to go away as quickly as it came on."
Popular in Politics
- FBI director acknowledges domestic drone use 148 Comments
- Obama and Berlin: Faded echoes meet new realities
- Obama on NSA programs: Americans "not getting the complete story" 259 Comments
- Immigration reform would cut deficit, analysis shows 82 Comments
- Next up for Obama: Major effort on climate change
- House Republicans pass 20-week limit on abortions 596 Comments
- Smooth, on-time Obamacare rollout no sure thing: GAO
- IRS readying to pay $70M in employee bonuses, senator says
The Constitution literall says "he"
and no one could argue the Founding Fathers intended it to apply to a Woman.
So those that believe in a literal interpretation of the Constitution must interpret all of the language in that fashion- not just the little phrases that turn them on one day- they are worse that the activists judges I swear.
Now it if was a true cost of living increase it can very easily be interpreted as not an increase an the amolumnet at all- it does not say an increase in salary does it?
Of course they are just sniping for the heck of it-
Posted by hatesthecolt
I can%u2019t wait to see the punitive damage suits as soon as he is impeached for fraud for maybe $5-10 mil each, that anyone that gave his campaign money can sign. You know they will pull Oprah in to it, he couldn%u2019t of done it with out her 9 billion. I can just hear all of his followers saying I%u2019ll never join a class action suit against the Messiah. Then one day a neighbor comes home with a new car, the next day with a new boat, then a moving van drives up and they ask where are you going, to my new million dollar house, they%u2019ll through the Messiah under the bus too.
Posted by hatesthecolt
You fail to understand the mistake he has made. All of his other forgeries or concealed documents that he is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to conceal have been under the privacy laws saying only he can see those doc%u2019s. Well now he has forged a doc that is under the freedom of information act, so lawyers have gotten this doc and he can%u2019t change it back. This will have nothing to do with his supreme court cases, this is a defined federal offence. Now you may ask why did he forge his draft card. Maybe two reasons, one, the BC that he said he had on page 26 of his first book is his Kenyan BC and therefore he did not have to file a draft card. Or two, he could of just said I don%u2019t want to file a draft card like the ones that went to Canada, and now it is politically correct to file one. Problem he filed a 2008 draft card with a 1980 date. Then you can ask him, good luck, wasn%u2019t he Barry Soetoro back then and why his 1980 draft card has Barack Obama on it. So yes that is a crime, how ever you spin it%u2019s still a crime.
Posted by hatesthecolt
With 5 cases in the supreme court. VA, SC, AL electoral college%u2019s refusing to cast their votes until BO shows papers, many other electoral colleges waiting for the results from VA,SC,AL before they will cast their vote on the 15th, BO defying a supreme court ruling that was set for 12-1-08 to show papers, 15 other law suits filed, his forged selective service card, he has 3 law firms defending him spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to defend himself, question is, from what, why? Questions about his mothers busy month of Aug where she bore him in Hawaii, enrolled and started classes in WA the same month. A rally at the supreme court on Friday when the full court hears BO case. And with full page editorials in news papers running asking for papers, but the obedient MSM is following their money and saying nothing, when will Oprah release them. And all the libs can say is get out your tin foil hats, do they think this is going away?
The forgery alone in a crime and will get him impeached, and don%u2019t believe me just get your own copy from the freedom of information act and see for yourself. Remember Nixon got impeached for only being accused of a crime, BO has committed a crime.
Obama not an AMERICAN citizen? he should not be confirmed. How bold and arrogant he is???
Posted by chihuahu
Maybe if I type this in all caps it will break trhough:
THIS IS NOT REAL!!!! THERE IS NO CITIZENSHIP ISSUE! AND IF THERE WERE, THESE GUYS WOULDN''T HAVE STANDING TO BRING IT. OBAMA WILL BE SWORN IN ON JANUARY 20TH. GET OVER IT ALREADY!
Well that was a waste. Your side LOST. GET OVER IT. You never have anything remotely interesting to say so just bugger off back to your trailer.
Posted by chihuahu
The dingbats who have this itch about Obama''s nationality probably also believe in creation; that it wasn''t a 757 that hit the Pentagon on 9/11; that we never went to the moon and other lunacies. Do you really think that the FBI, CIA, Secret Service, NIS and God knows how many other agencies could be fooled by Obama and yet small minded nutters such as yourselves are not?