Pelosi Helping Clinton Avoid Constitutional Hurdle

This isn't terribly surprising, but it's still worth a quick note: Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office is confirming that she'll support Congressional efforts to get Hillary past the legal hurdle that the wingnuts have thrown down between her and the Secretary of State gig.

As I noted below, the Senate leadership is working to craft legislation that will make it possible for her to take the post despite a Constitutional clause saying that members of Congress are ineligible to take an appointed post if the salary for the post in question has increased while the member was in elected office.

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[111]

That pesky Constitution and those annoying wingnuts who think it should be followed! As Governor Bush said, "It's just a G-d d-mned piece of paper!" By all means Ms. Impeachment Is Off The Table Pelosi, please ensure that you circumvent the Constitution when it gets in the way.

[GerryS]

is nancy mikey jackson's mommy, or did his plastic surgeon just use a photo for an idea for the end result?

[ecotopian]

If everything else were the same and the only real difference was instead of a Democratic president there was an Republican, we Democrats would be up in arms if a a Republican Speaker of the House was doing this. Should we start using iokiyad now? It seeming to be the case.

[Bobleblah1]

Pelosi looks like a walking corpse.

All that evil and sickness has a way of destroying the temple.
Her fraudulence has been at shameful proportions for years, but life's irony for Pelosi is
going to be simply brutal. People like this scheme and lie and cut corners and break oaths, and lie and lie and maim and lie their whole adult lives. All to achieve power that will NEVER be theirs. They grasp and squeeze tighter and tighter in hopes of holding firmly on to power. Alas the harder they squeeze, the quicker the power they never truly had slips through their fingers like grains of sand.

THERE ARE CONSEQUENCES FOR YOUR ACTIONS IN THIS LIFE AND THE NEXT.

Or .........................maybe you actually are smarter than the universe and your schemes will actually trump the balance that the Universe requires. (LOL)
You know; Nancy probably fashions herself as a god.
too bad her godly powers cant make her look alive.
Funny how that god thing works.

[TheFriendlyAtheist]

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 wherof shall have been encreased during such time; and no person holding any office under the United States, shall be a member of either house during his continuance in office.
Let's all chill-out. A careful reading of this clause makes it pretty clear that what the writers were trying to do is to keep either Senators or Representatives from also serving in appointed positions at the same time as they are serving in congress; and to keep those who are serving in appointed positions from also serving in congress. The Supreme court has already ruled that neither an individual citizen or even an individual Senator has standing to challenge a nomination confirmed by the entire Senate.

[bascombe]

where do these pithy little rules come from? these millionaire muffinheads have tooooooooooooo much time on their hands.

[ObjectiveRealist]

I'm not sure that will cut the mustard; Article 1, Section 6 prohibits a member of Congress from accepting an appointment for which the "emoluments" have been "encreased" during that person's term in Congress. Decreasing the emoluments to previous levels does address the purpose of the prohibition, but doesn't change the fact that the emoluments *were* increased.

Don't mind me, I just dislike Hillary since her frivolous reply, "it hurts my feelings" to the question about President Obama leading her in New Hampshire polls, early in the primaries. Then-Senator Obama's answer, "you're likable enough," convinced me that under his composed demeanor he has what it takes to defeat a vicious popularity contest politician.

Yes, he can.

And if he now believes she'll make a satisfactory SoS, I'll trust President Obama. He probably knows her better than I do, after all.

[ebbtide]

I'm sorry. I am just getting turned off to politics as we have in this country. A woman who lied her butt off during a prinary, and all those lies are dismissed as just politics. No wonder, dear people, that people do not show up to vote. They see it all as a great big club and themselves as the fringe having no control at all over the process. Big deal. You vote. Yea, your guy got elected, and we have the Clintons, liars and evil during their disasterous campaign once more in the headlines and being heroes now. Feh. You can take this system and shove it. NExt? Chelsea Clinton running for Senate?

[bubbuh]

Chelsea Clinton is much too young, assuming dhr is even interested. And, you certainly are too sorry.

[realityczech4u]

Chelsea Clinton is too absorbed practicing true Clintonian values. Her work for a hedge fund is strict dedication to accumulating wealth. Unlike the parents, she doesn't even toss in some public service along the way. It's just money, money, money for young Chelsea.

[TheBaffler]

The gullible Dems should've skipped the middleman and just elected HRC. All this change has the rotten smell something familiar.

[ObjectiveRealist]

You know what would really help? Prohibiting *all* corporate donations to politicians and political parties. We all know that the problem is corporate influence before The People's interests. So, why don't you bring a referendum to that effect in your state, and I'll do the same in mine, and by 2012 stricter donation rules than even Barack Obama has introduced will be the law of the land. Democracy might require more effort than voting every couple of years. It might even require "eternal vigilance."

[BlueBoomer]

Am I dense, or does that clause effectively eliminate ANY long-time sitting senator, etc...
For example, if Joe Biden wasn't VP, would it make him technically ineligible for SOS?... Or Ted Kennedy, if he weren't ill/old?...and what about John Kerry?...or Richard Lugar...Wouldn't they ALL be "caught" in that rule?

[Excitedforfuture]

Exactly -- anyone who was in office when the raise was voted in. This is all so silly!!! Some people just need to be angry!

[realityczech4u]

As I recall, the Congress was not anticipated to be a full time job let alone a lifetime job.

[FCBarca]

More playing with the laws by the Clintons when a perfect 'out' is available to us all to save us from this monster

[thewoodywest]

Didn't Nancy take an oath to protect and defend the Constitution?

[darthdarcy]

She sure did, but betrayed that oath and made herself an accessory of the Bush Cheney Mafia..!

[BSERIUS]

Clinton sidesteps the constitution ... Seems that phrase has been one we have heard time and again....And seeing as Barack got by that pesky being born in the USA , why shouldn't she get by .

[Excitedforfuture]

http://www.yestodemocracy.com/yes_to_democracy_no_to_pu/2008/08/wingnuts-away-.html

http://www.whatsyourevidence.com/

Reports that Obama's COLB is Authentic (10/31: Updated to reflect that Hawaii Dept. of Health has issued statement that state officials have personally examined Obama's original birth certificate and "there's no doubt Barack Obama was born in Hawaii."

SORRY TO BURST YOUR BUBBLE!

[ron ray]

so what's the big deal? If Hilary is willing to see the job's pay cut so she can take it, I say go for it. Or maybe hire her to run GM.

we're giving the wall street clowns trillions. hillary will take the state job for less so she can serve. more power to her,

[Okieborn]

When did the Cogress of this great nation start doing what the hell they want !!
Your Wrong Nancy !!!!!!

[SurrealPumpkin]

It's happened before that someone was appointed to a cabinet post out of senate. Standard practice is to move the relevant cabinet salary back to pre-raise levels. Constitutional, I don't know, but it does meet the spirit of the article that no one can benefit from voting an increase in pay and then taking the job.

[bubbuh]

In this particuler case, 1909/; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saxbe_fix

[Excitedforfuture]

Thank you for that link!!!

[scooperss]

People it is NOT okay if pelosi does something like this just like it wouldn't be okay if mcconnell did it!!!!!

She's ignored us and now SHE'S ignoring the Constitution.

[bubbuh]

It's good to ignore ignoramuses: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saxbe_fix