Can Bill Clinton be Vice President??

[kerryin2004]

I argue yes, because of the following but I wanted to get your opinions on what you think! I think this would guarantee a democrat win in november..



Professor of Constitutional Law and Vice Dean of the Columbia University Law
School, Michael C. Dorf:
Can a man who has been president for eight years be elected and serve as vice-president? The language of the amendment certainly does not expressly apply to a vice-presidential candidate. But other constitutional provisions guarantee that the vice-president becomes president upon the death, incapacity, impeachment, or resignation of the president. Thus, if a two-term president became vice-president that would raise the specter of a possible third presidential term, a specter that would become a reality if any of these unfortunate events were to befall the president under whom we
had been serving as vice-president. Some might argue that, as a result, the vice-presidency of a two-term president would be unconstitutional. In support of this argument, one might also cite the 12th Amendment, which provides that "no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States." President Clinton is certainly ineligible to be elected to another
presidential term, based on the 22nd Amendment. Some might infer from the 12th Amendment that he is therefore also ineligible to be elected to a vice-presidential term. But these naysayers would be wrong. The Constitution permits Clinton to be elected vice-president, and if necessary to ascend for a third time to the presidency as careful attention to the language of the
12th and 22nd Amendments shows. The 12th Amendment would allow a Clinton vice-presidency. Its language only bars from the vice-presidency those persons who are "ineligible to the office" of President. Clinton is not ineligible to the office of president, however. He is only disqualified (by the 22nd Amendment) from being elected to that office. This is no mere semantic distinction. Article II of the Constitution carefully defines exactly who is "eligible to the Office of President": anyone who is a natural born citizen, at least 35 years old, and has been a
U.S. resident for at least 14 years. Bill Clinton can serve as vice
president, because the 22nd Amendment's prohibition on running for a third presidential term is not a condition of the office of the president. The 22nd Amendment states: "No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice." The language is quite clear. It places no limits whatsoever on how many terms someone may serve as president, only how many terms he may be elected. The 22nd Amendment does not set conditions on what the 12th Amendment calls eligibility to the office of president. Anyone who is born here and has lived here for 14 years becomes eligible to be president on his or her 35th birthday and is then eligible forever.

[Kool Kitty]

1. No, I think not.

[libbygurl]

2. Looks like he can, but

...probably not a good idea. For one thing, he would steal Kerry's thunder, to put it VERY mildly. I miss Clinton.

[NinetySix]

3. I think you assume...

...that since the 12th precedes the 22nd amendment, that the 12th holds precedent. But I think both would be considered simultaneously integral parts of the Constitution, and that since no person who has held the office for eight years can be elected for a subsequent term, that is sufficient to disqualify Clinton.

As an aside, the 22nd amendment, in my opinion, limits democracy just like any term limit legislation, and it's time it was scrapped already.

--edited for spelling (bot?? no, BOTH.)

[unblock]

7. as a basic matter of constitutional law,

greater weight is generally given to the subsequent amendment.

[R3dD0g]

4. I don't know whether legally he could or not.

But, I will tell you that Clinton sucks the oxygen from anything he's involved with.

Since he left Arkansas, there is no Democratic party. It still exists, but it's mostly just a bunch of milquetoast losers.

That's the curse of Clinton. He's so charismatic, politically astute and just damned smart that when he leaves the room everybody else is left looking like dogfood.

[MrSlayer]

10. That is so true. It's a shame Kerry had to follow him at the Unity thing.

I watched it on C-Span and Clinton had me applauding out loud at home. And then Kerry came on and while his speech was very good it just paled in comparison. That's not a knock on Kerry at all because he's good. It's like having a good band like Bad Company close for an all timer like The Stones.

[Bucky]

5. Legal experts tend to agree that he can, but the law is so ambiguous that

it'd probably have to go to the Supreme Court. Clearly Clinton serving as VP would violate the spirit of the 25th, which intends to support the principle of rotation of office. Clinton was great, but I don't think we're so poor in talent that we have to start recycling old candidates unlike that other party does.

Besides, Hillary would just kill him.

[Nevernose]

6. Only in a very technical sense

Although he wouldn't be voted to the presidency, per se, he would be voted to a position that, God forbid, might realistically become the presidency someday.

I don't think any] Supreme Court would go for it, much less the Supremes that gave us *.

[realdeal22k]

8. Not a chance

The vice must not have served their max term to be eligible for another possible term. Sorry. Bill is Godly but even he must obey the constitution.

[mb7588a]

9. The only Con Law prof. to ever say so...

and he's wrong. :)