Sat Mar 16, 2019, 11:22 PM
Progressive Jones (6,011 posts)
Serious question? Is there a mechanism/procedure in the US Constitution for
"nullifying" a Presidency that was obtained illegally?
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28 replies, 3070 views
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Author | Time | Post |
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Progressive Jones | Mar 2019 | OP |
CaliforniaPeggy | Mar 2019 | #1 | |
The Velveteen Ocelot | Mar 2019 | #2 | |
TygrBright | Mar 2019 | #5 | |
The Velveteen Ocelot | Mar 2019 | #6 | |
Shrike47 | Mar 2019 | #3 | |
elleng | Mar 2019 | #4 | |
Poiuyt | Mar 2019 | #7 | |
onenote | Mar 2019 | #14 | |
Codeine | Mar 2019 | #24 | |
briv1016 | Mar 2019 | #8 | |
sarisataka | Mar 2019 | #9 | |
Iggo | Mar 2019 | #10 | |
rampartc | Mar 2019 | #11 | |
Sgent | Mar 2019 | #12 | |
onenote | Mar 2019 | #13 | |
Sherman A1 | Mar 2019 | #15 | |
Codeine | Mar 2019 | #26 | |
Sherman A1 | Mar 2019 | #27 | |
AncientGeezer | Mar 2019 | #16 | |
Progressive Jones | Mar 2019 | #17 | |
MineralMan | Mar 2019 | #18 | |
Hekate | Mar 2019 | #20 | |
MineralMan | Mar 2019 | #21 | |
Hekate | Mar 2019 | #22 | |
Hekate | Mar 2019 | #19 | |
Codeine | Mar 2019 | #23 | |
Codeine | Mar 2019 | #25 | |
getagrip_already | Mar 2019 | #28 |
Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sat Mar 16, 2019, 11:24 PM
CaliforniaPeggy (144,594 posts)
1. If there is, I've never heard of it.
Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sat Mar 16, 2019, 11:27 PM
The Velveteen Ocelot (105,765 posts)
2. Nope, the only way to get rid of a president legally is to impeach him.
Response to The Velveteen Ocelot (Reply #2)
Sat Mar 16, 2019, 11:47 PM
TygrBright (20,067 posts)
5. Impeachment does not "get rid" of a President.
Only removal from office by the Senate can do that.
Constitutionally, Bright |
Response to TygrBright (Reply #5)
Sat Mar 16, 2019, 11:48 PM
The Velveteen Ocelot (105,765 posts)
6. Yes, I know that. Impeachment is the beginning of the process.
You can't start the conviction process without impeachment first. "Impeachment" is used as a colloquial term for the entire process.
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Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sat Mar 16, 2019, 11:27 PM
Shrike47 (6,913 posts)
3. No.
Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sat Mar 16, 2019, 11:30 PM
elleng (122,000 posts)
4. Not clearly, but Robert Reich suggested something might be attempted.
IF TRUMP IS GUILTY, HIS PRESIDENCY MUST BE ANNULLED.
https://www.newsweek.com/robert-reich-if-trump-guilty-his-presidency-must-be-annulled-opinion-1092345 |
Response to elleng (Reply #4)
Sat Mar 16, 2019, 11:59 PM
Poiuyt (17,671 posts)
7. If the 2016 election were annulled, then that would place Hillary as president
While I can see circumstances where the Republicans could be persuaded to impeach and convict Trump, they would NEVER yield power that they now have.
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Response to Poiuyt (Reply #7)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 06:28 AM
onenote (39,088 posts)
14. If the 2016 election was "annulled" neither Trump nor Clinton would be president.
Annulled is not the same as reversed.
So who would be the President? It's a question that doesn't need to be answered because there is no process by which a US presidential election can be "nullified" (or reversed for that matter). This has come up a ridiculous number of times. |
Response to Poiuyt (Reply #7)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 02:53 PM
Codeine (25,586 posts)
24. A) No it wouldn't
and B) Annulment simply does not exist.
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Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 12:04 AM
briv1016 (1,570 posts)
8. Let's be honest. This country will go to war before we "nullify" an election.
Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 12:38 AM
sarisataka (15,243 posts)
9. This has been brought up about 1000 times
The answer is still no.
We may have a pathetic Presidency but since it was done as outlined under the terms of Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution it is not "illegal" |
Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 12:41 AM
Iggo (46,317 posts)
10. Death. Resignation. Impeachment. 25th Amendment.
That's it.
Oops, forgot one: Defeat in General Election. |
Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 12:57 AM
rampartc (4,763 posts)
11. no
pretty much impeachment and ammendment 25.
the vote of the electoral college was enough for the founders to consider the presudency to be obtauned legally. of course the founders did not bother to consider modern propaganda, primary voting, or even political parties in their "document written by geniuses to govern idiots." |
Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 01:07 AM
Sgent (5,799 posts)
12. The constitution
does not envision a popular election of the president.
The President is elected by the electoral college -- which is selected by the state legislatures (who have all decided to do popular election). |
Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 06:25 AM
onenote (39,088 posts)
13. No. End of discussion.
Want to permanently remove a president? Impeach and convict.
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Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 07:58 AM
Sherman A1 (38,958 posts)
15. No
There is not. Impeachment by the US House of Representatives and Conviction/Removal by the US Senate are the only means.
But the US Constitution is available to read online for any of those so interested. |
Response to Sherman A1 (Reply #15)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 02:56 PM
Codeine (25,586 posts)
26. The number of Americans who have never
read the Constitution is a bit confounding.
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Response to Codeine (Reply #26)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 02:58 PM
Sherman A1 (38,958 posts)
27. It is indeed just that
While there is no Stupid Question so to speak. I am often confused by the seeming lack of effort to google the document and read through it. Don't recall it being all that long or tough a read.
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Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 12:17 PM
AncientGeezer (2,146 posts)
16. Not even remotely.
Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 12:59 PM
Progressive Jones (6,011 posts)
17. Thanks to all who posted. nt
Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 02:10 PM
MineralMan (144,949 posts)
18. No, there's nothing like that.
Have you read the document?
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Response to MineralMan (Reply #18)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 02:15 PM
Hekate (81,915 posts)
20. I have an easily-available explanatory version. Modern-English explanations next to the original...
...18th century language. I had already waded through the orginal in jr. college decades ago, but this little gem came to me in my late 40s and was most welcome.
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Response to Hekate (Reply #20)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 02:26 PM
MineralMan (144,949 posts)
21. I don't have a lot of trouble with the language in it.
Anyhow, I read it for the first time in 6th grade. It was required. The teacher went through the whole thing, explaining each part of the Constitution in language we could understand. Then, I read it again in my sophomore year of High School, in our civics class, and the teacher went through the whole thing again. We even had to rewrite portions of it in our own words and were graded on how well we captured the intent.
After that, of course, reading it was optional, but I did read it from time to time again. It's not a very long document, and takes not too long to read it through. I have a copy on my computer, in pdf format, ready to call up if there is a question about the Constitution. For me, knowledge of the Constitution and the basics of what is in it and what that means seems to be a fundamental thing that everyone who is interested in politics or history should have. It's hard for me to imagine not being familiar with that document if I'm going to take part in political discussions. I continue to be surprised that such knowledge isn't more common than it is. There are many websites that have copies and explanations of the Constitution. One has to be careful, though, about which ones to choose, since some explain the Constitution from some pretty strange political positions. A good understanding of our founding document should be an essential bit of knowledge for anyone interested at all in politics. It explains why we do as we do, and why we do not do things in other ways. It is the foundation of our system of government. Why wouldn't people who frequent DU want to know it and understand it? I can't understand that at all. |
Response to MineralMan (Reply #21)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 02:33 PM
Hekate (81,915 posts)
22. I wish I'd had that early experience. As it was, reading it in jr college was rewarding...
...and I didn't struggle too badly with the language as I had read most of the King James Bible when I was about 9 years old, and that of course is much older. (On my own initiative, as my ex-Catholic agnostic mother rolled her eyes.)
I picked up the explanatory version more as a refresher than anything else, and also to refer others to it. |
Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 02:12 PM
Hekate (81,915 posts)
19. No
Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 02:52 PM
Codeine (25,586 posts)
23. The document isn't very long
and is the basis of our entire political system. You should try reading it one of these days; it’s of rather considerable importance.
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Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 02:55 PM
Codeine (25,586 posts)
25. The Presidency was not obtained illegally.
The President is elected by the Electoral College. They cast their votes and he obtained the majority of those votes. He is, by the only legal measure, legally the holder of said office.
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Response to Progressive Jones (Original post)
Sun Mar 17, 2019, 03:50 PM
getagrip_already (10,202 posts)
28. besides the fact that it doesn't exist, consider for a moment if it did....
If the term annulled is taken literally, then virtually every function of government the executive branch touches would be basically null and void after Obama left office.
All payments, all debts incurred, all appointments, all bills signed, all actions taken by the DoJ, all actions taken by the EPA/FCC/FAA/IRS/etc/etc would be void. It would be shear chaos. It would basically end government as we know it. The US Government would likely never recover. It's just a bad thought, as much as we would like parts of it, we could never take all of it. |