A presidential run by Michael Bloomberg could plunge the country into a constitutional crisis

[KamaAina]

http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-0225-ackerman-12th-amendment-bloomberg-20160225-story.html

In the next couple of weeks, Michael R. Bloomberg will decide whether to launch an independent bid for the presidency. That's an enticing prospect, since the continuing strength of Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders threatens to force a radical choice between two extremes. Nevertheless, before succumbing to centrist temptation, the former New York City mayor should take a hard look at the Constitution. He will find that his run for the White House could precipitate one of the worst constitutional crises in American history.

The problem is the 12th Amendment. Enacted in 1804, it establishes the rules for presidential selection if no candidate secures a majority of 270 electoral votes — a distinct possibility should Bloomberg enter the race. The sphere of competition will then move from the states to the House of Representatives, where Bloomberg will confront formidable challenges. He will have to persuade Republican and Democratic lawmakers to betray the tens of millions of loyalists who voted for their party's nominee. But he'll have to do more than gain a majority of House members. Under the amendment's special rules, each state delegation casts a single vote, and the winning candidate must convince 26 delegations to support him. Even if Bloomberg carries a few key states in November, his fate will be determined by representatives from regions that rejected his candidacy. In addition, there are 11 states with only one or two House members — and their idiosyncratic views will have a disproportionate say in the final choice.

Worse yet, if a state's delegation is equally divided, it can't vote at all. This means that the process will degenerate into a free-for-all as rival candidates engage in desperate efforts to nudge one or another fence-sitter in their direction.

At this point, a final factor will make for more melodrama. If the House can't pick a chief executive by Jan. 20, the amendment provides an interim remedy. It says that the new vice president will become acting president while the political bargaining continues.

The House? "I, a vulgar talking yam, do solemnly swear..."

[datguy_6]

1. So a Republican would be picked....great

[radical noodle]

2. Question

How do we know who the "new vice president" is without knowing who the new president is? Am I misreading this?

[NobodyHere]

4. It wouldn't be the new one. It would be Biden.

It's the same process if the president dies. So if Biden was somehow incapacitated it would be the Speaker of the House.

[1939]

5. The new Senate would elect the Vice President

He would have to be seated if the House couldn't reach an agreement on the new president.

I remember this being discussed back in 1968 if the Nixon-Humphrey-Wallace election deadlocked.

I don't think the House would allow that to happen and that there would be enough horse trading to seat someone by Jan 20.

[KamaAina]

6. From the article:

The three vice presidential nominees will be in the same position as their running mates — none will have gained a majority of the electoral college. Anticipating this eventuality, the authors of the 12th Amendment designed another system for resolving the vice presidential contest.

Under this secondary scheme, it's the Senate, not the House, that does the deciding, and a simple majority of senators suffices to make the choice. But the Senate can choose only between the top two, not the top three, candidates. As a consequence, Bloomberg's running mate might be barred from the competition from the start.

[flamingdem]

3. If it's legal he'll do it - he hates Trump

due to business deals gone bad.

[jwirr]

7. You mean another one like 2000 when the SCOTUS gave us

our unelected President. That would truly be interesting. A 4-4 court to decide who was going to be our ruler and 3 candidates to choose from.

Circus.

[elleng]

8. The best part:

3 New Yawkas!!!

[KamaAina]

9. And that's true whichever way the Dem race goes.

HRC lives in Chappaqua. Bernie's from Brooklyn.