Government in the United States, National, State and Local

Instances of Choice by the House.– Twice has the electoral college failed to make a choice, thus giving the election to the house of representatives.

In 1801, there was a tie between Jefferson and Burr, each having the vote of a majority of the electors. There were then sixteen states, of which eight voted for Jefferson, six for Burr, and two were evenly divided. On the thirty-sixth ballot the two divided states voted for Jefferson and he was elected, as the electors had originally intended.

The second instance occurred in 1825, when the electoral vote stood as follows: for Jackson 99; for Adams 84; for Crawford 41; and for Clay 37, no one having a majority. Under the Twelfth Amendment Clay was dropped from the list and the choice was confined to the three highest candidates. There were then twenty-four states, and of these the representatives of thirteen voted for Adams, seven for Jackson, and four for Crawford.

Election of the Vice President by the Senate.– The Constitution also provides that if no candidate for Vice President receives a majority of the electoral vote the choice shall devolve upon the senate, in which case the election shall be made from the two highest on the list. Two thirds of the senate constitute a quorum for this purpose, and a majority of the whole number is necessary to a choice. Only once has the choice devolved upon the senate, namely, in 1836, when Richard M. Johnson, candidate for Vice President on the ticket with Mr. Van Buren, failed to receive a majority of the electoral vote. He was promptly elected by the senate.

Methods of Nomination.– Neither the Constitution nor the laws of the United States make any provision in regard to the nomination of the candidates for President and Vice President. That is left entirely to the regulation of the political parties themselves. In the early history of the republic, before political parties had risen, no nominating machinery was devised, for none was needed.

Early Methods.– With the rise of political parties, however, the method of nomination by congressional caucus was introduced; that is, the members of Congress belonging to each political party assumed the power of selecting its candidate in secret conclave. In this way Jefferson was nominated by the Republican members of Congress in 1800 and 1804, Madison in 1808 and 1812, and Monroe in 1816 and 1820. In the same way the Federalist members put forward their candidates. In some cases, however, presidential candidates were nominated by state legislatures. In the course of time, strong opposition grew up against the method of nomination by members of Congress, and after 1824 the caucus system was never again resorted to. The new nominating machinery which took its place was the national convention, which came into use between 1831 and 1840.

The National Convention.– A national convention to nominate candidates for President and Vice President is composed of delegates from each state and territory in the Union, the number to which each is entitled being usually twice its number of senators and representatives in Congress.67 Altogether the national convention consists of about 1,000 delegates. For each delegate there is an alternate who attends the convention and in case of the absence of the delegate, takes his place.

Formerly the four delegates-at-large of each party were chosen by the state convention, and the other delegates by congressional district conventions. When direct primary laws were introduced, some states provided that the latter delegates should be selected by the voters of each party at the primary, leaving the delegates-at-large to be chosen as formerly by the state convention. In 1912 a number of states passed what are known as "presidential preference primary" laws under which delegates to the national conventions of that year were chosen. Some of these laws permit the voters to choose their delegates to the national convention but without allowing them to indicate their preference for any presidential candidate; others allow a direct expression of the popular preference for presidential candidates but make no provision for binding the delegates to nominate the candidate preferred by the majority of the voters; some, however, provide both for an expression of the popular preference and for binding the delegates to the national convention. More than one third of the states now have laws of one or another of these three types.

The Time and Place for holding the national convention are fixed by the national committee. The date usually falls in the latter part of June or early in July of the year the President is to be elected, and the place is usually some large city centrally located.

Procedure of a National Convention.– The convention is usually held in some spacious building especially erected for the purpose. Besides the delegations of the states, there are the alternates, hundreds of politicians who are not delegates, newspaper reporters, and thousands of spectators from all parts of the country, for all of whom accommodations are needed.

Organization of the Convention.– The convention is called to order by the chairman of the national committee, and the secretary of the committee reads the call for the convention. Next come the choice of a temporary chairman, and the appointment and report of committees on credentials, on permanent organization, on rules, and on resolutions much as in the state conventions described on pp. 153-155.

The Platform is a series of resolutions commending the national administration, or denouncing it, as the case may be, and setting forth the position of the party on the political issues of the day. Declarations are often made in the platform to attract or conciliate large masses of voters, sometimes when there is no real intention of carrying them out. The platform is usually adopted by the convention as reported by the committee on resolutions, but sometimes important changes are made on the floor after a spirited contest.

The Nominations.– After the adoption of the platform, the nomination of candidates for President is in order. The clerk calls the roll of the states in alphabetical order so that each is given an opportunity to present the name of its choice. The vote is then taken by a roll call of the states, the chairman of each state delegation usually announcing the vote of the state. Under the rules of the Republican party the delegates vote as individuals, so that the vote of a state is often divided between two or more candidates, unless the conventions which appointed the delegates have instructed them to cast the vote of the state for a particular candidate. According to the "unit rule" of the Democratic party, the state delegations vote as units and not as individuals, so that there is no division of a state's vote; the majority of each delegation determines how the votes of the state shall be cast.68 The rules of the Democratic and Republican parties also differ in the majority necessary to nominate a candidate.

The Vote Necessary to Nominate.– According to the rules of the Republican party, a majority of the delegates is sufficient to nominate, but under the rules of the Democratic party the concurrence of two thirds of the delegates is required. Thus if there are 1,000 delegates in the convention, 501 may nominate under the Republican rule, while 667 would be required under the rules of the Democratic party. The large majority necessary to nominate in the Democratic convention has often resulted in the defeat of the leading candidate and the nomination of a "dark horse," that is, a candidate whose name has not been previously presented to the convention or which has not been prominently kept before it. Presidents Polk and Pierce were nominated in this way.

Nomination of Vice President.– Usually there is little contest over the nomination of the Vice President, the nomination usually being given to some one supported by a defeated faction or group of the party, or to a particular section of the country. Thus if the presidential nomination goes to an Eastern man, the vice presidential nomination is likely to be given to a Western man. In view of the comparatively large number of Presidents who have died in office it is to be regretted that so little consideration is given to the nomination of candidates for Vice President.

Notification of the Candidates.– The candidates are formally notified some weeks later by a committee specially appointed for the purpose. The nominee in a formal speech accepts the nomination and pledges himself to support the platform. Usually this is followed by a letter of acceptance in which the views of the nominee are elaborated more at length. This completes the formalities of nomination, and the next step is to inaugurate the campaign for the election of the nominees.

Conduct of a Presidential Campaign.—The National Committee.– The main task of managing the campaign falls on the chairman of the national committee. This committee is made up of one member from each state and territory, and is chosen by the national convention which nominates the candidates.69 The chairman is usually an experienced political leader with a wide acquaintanceship, and is a trusted friend of the presidential candidate, by whom, in fact, he is usually selected.

Soon after the adjournment of the convention, the national committee meets and organizes. In addition to the national chairman a treasurer and a secretary are chosen. The treasurer raises and has custody of the enormous funds expended in the conduct of the campaign. As the national chairman may be compared to a general who commands the forces, the treasurer is the man who raises the sinews of the war.

Work of the National Committee.– The headquarters of the committee are usually established in New York city, with branch offices in Chicago or Washington, though during the campaign of 1908 the principal headquarters were located in Chicago. The work of the committee is usually divided among bureaus or divisions, one of which has charge of the mailing of campaign literature, another is engaged in the tabulation of reports, another looks after the employment and assignment of speakers, another has charge of the organization of voters' clubs throughout the country, etc.70 Large quantities of campaign literature, consisting of a "Campaign textbook," speeches of the candidates or of members of Congress, pamphlets, leaflets, posters, lithographs, and in fact everything calculated to influence the voters, are sent broadcast throughout the country and particularly in the close or doubtful states where the principal efforts of the committee are concentrated.71

Activity of the Presidential Candidate.– Formerly it was not considered proper for the presidential candidates themselves to take an active part in the campaign by traveling about the country and making speeches, but in recent years there has been a change in this respect. Mr. Bryan in 1896 traveled about the country and delivered hundreds of speeches in behalf of his candidacy, and he pursued a similar course in 1900 and again in 1908 when he was the Democratic candidate. In the latter year, Mr. Taft, the Republican candidate, likewise entered actively into the campaign and delivered more than 400 speeches in thirty different states. In 1912 Mr. Wilson and Mr. Roosevelt made extensive campaign tours and delivered many speeches. Similar tours were made in later campaigns.

Raising and Expenditure of Campaign Funds.– The management of a national political campaign requires the expenditure of large sums of money for printing, postage, telegrams, express, rent of halls, music, expenses of speakers, organizing clubs, and the like. This money is spent solely under the direction of the national chairman, who until recently was not required to render an account of the moneys contributed for this purpose.

The Raising of Campaign Funds.– Prior to 1884 the expenditures on account of a national campaign were comparatively small and were raised by the party in power largely by assessments on federal office-holders; but the civil service law enacted in the year previous forbade assessments of this kind and thus cut off an important source of supply. More attention then began to be turned toward the great corporations, many of which desired to become the beneficiaries of special legislation or to secure immunity from government interference with the management of their business. In a recent campaign, one corporation, a life insurance company, contributed $200,000; one railroad company gave $100,000; and many others $50,000. Sometimes a corporation contributes equally to the campaign funds of both parties, on the principle that it is a wise policy to be on good terms with each.

Contributions of Corporations now Forbidden.– The raising and spending of so much money as a part of the process of electing a President has recently given rise to a demand that the sources of national campaign contributions should be made public. Moreover, it is coming to be regarded as an evil that the large corporations who desire beneficial legislation or immunity from prosecution should have become the chief contributors to campaign funds. This feeling led to the enactment by Congress in 1907 of a law forbidding national banks and other corporations which have charters granted by Congress, from making contributions to the campaign funds of any party at any election, national, state, or local. The law also prohibits any corporation, whether chartered under the authority of the national government or not, from making campaign contributions at any election at which the President of the United States or any member of Congress is to be chosen.

Publicity of Campaign Contributions.– In 191 °Congress passed a law requiring the treasurer of each national party committee to make and publish after the election a sworn statement showing every contribution of $100 or more received by him, every expenditure of $10 or more, and the totals of all other contributions and expenditures.

Finally, in 1911, Congress went still further and passed a law requiring the publication of such statements before the election. The elections affected by these acts are those of President and members of Congress. The act of 1911 forbids any candidate for representative to spend or promise more than $5,000, and any candidate for senator more than $10,000, in his campaign. And such candidates are required to file statements of all campaign receipts and expenditures.

The Succession to the Presidency.– The Constitution declares that in case of the removal of the President from office, or of his death, resignation, or inability to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the same shall devolve upon the Vice President. In case of the removal, death, resignation, or inability of both the President and the Vice President, Congress is authorized to provide for the succession. The only way in which the President may be removed is by impeachment and conviction. President Johnson was impeached, mainly for the violation of the tenure of office act, but the senate failed by one vote to convict him. Had he been convicted the office would have been declared vacant. There has been no instance of the resignation of a President.72 Five Presidents have died in office: Harrison, Taylor, Lincoln, Garfield, and McKinley. In each case the dead President was succeeded by the Vice President. No case of inability to discharge the duties of the presidential office has ever been construed as existing, though in fact such a case existed from July 2, 1881, when President Garfield was shot, to September 19, when he died. A similar case existed during the period in which President McKinley lingered on his deathbed, from September 6 to September 14, 1901. In neither case did the Vice President assume the reins of office until death had made the office vacant. Likewise during President Wilson's serious illness in 1919-1920, the Vice President did not act.

Succession Law of 1792.– Congress provided by law in 1792 that in case of the removal, death, resignation, or inability of both the President and the Vice President, the president pro tempore of the senate should succeed, and after him the speaker of the house. There were several practical and political objections to this arrangement, however. In the first place, there might be considerable periods of time when there was no president pro tempore of the senate or speaker of the house, and consequently no one to succeed in case of a vacancy.73 Another objection to the law – political in character – was illustrated by the situation that existed in 1886. The Democratic Vice President Hendricks had died, and in case the presidential office had become vacant it would have been filled by a Republican president of the senate. Thus the executive branch of the government would have passed from the hands of the party that had carried the country at the last election, to the other party, merely by the death of a public officer.

Succession Act of 1886.– In 1886 Congress changed the law so as to give the succession to the presidency to the members of the cabinet, in the order of the creation of their departments, in case of the death or removal of both the President and the Vice President. As the members of the cabinet usually belong to the same party as the President and Vice President, the office in such a contingency would remain in the control of the party which elected the President at the last election. No special provision has yet been made, however, in regard to the succession in case the President elect and Vice President elect should die after their election by the electoral college on the second Monday in January and before their inauguration on the 4th of March. The electoral college could not be reconvened because it becomes functus officio immediately after electing the President. As the law stands, the succession would probably go to some member of the old cabinet, who might be of the opposite party. In such a case, however, Congress might provide for a special presidential election.

References.– Andrews, Manual of the Constitution, pp. 166-177. Beard, American Government and Politics, ch. ix. Bryce, The American Commonwealth (abridged edition), chs. vi, vii, lii-liv. Fuller, Government by the People, ch. vii. Harrison, This Country of Ours, chs. iv-v. Hart, Actual Government, pp. 261-267. Hinsdale, American Government, chs. xxix-xxxi. Stanwood, History of the Presidency. Woodburn, The American Republic, pp. 116-136.

Documentary and Illustrative Material.– 1. Congressional Directory. 2. Copy of the call for a national convention. 3. Addresses of the temporary and permanent chairmen of the last national convention. 4. The Democratic and Republican campaign textbooks. 5. Copy of the election returns. 6. Specimen ballots containing the names of candidates for presidential electors.

Research Questions

1. How many votes is your state entitled to in the electoral college? What proportion of the total electoral vote is that? Can you give the names of any of the presidential electors from your state at the last election?

2. What was the popular vote received by the Republican candidate for President in your state at the last election? By the Democratic candidate?

3. Name the Presidents who received only a minority of the popular vote.

4. Suppose a vacancy should occur in the electoral college of a state by the death of an elector, is there any way by which it could be filled?

5. Suppose the candidate for President should die after the popular election in November and before the meeting of the electors in January, for whom would the electors cast their vote? Have there been any actual instances of this kind?

6. Suppose the President elect should die before the votes are opened and counted by Congress, who would be declared President?

7. Have there been any instances since 1820 in which a presidential elector voted against the candidate of his own party?

8. What would be the principal advantage in extending the term of the President and making him ineligible to succeed himself?

9. Do you think the custom a wise one which prohibits the President from serving more than two terms?

10. What were the controversies at issue in the disputed election of 1876?

11. What were the objections to the method of nomination by congressional caucus? Who was the last candidate to be nominated by this method?

12. Tell something about the first national convention held in the United States for the nomination of candidates for President and Vice President.

13. How many parties nominated candidates for President and Vice President in the last presidential election? Give the popular vote received by each, in your state and in the country as a whole.

14. Read the platforms of each party and contrast their positions on the leading political issues.

15. How many delegates is your state entitled to in the national convention? Who were the delegates at large from your state in the last Democratic national convention? In the last Republican national convention?

16. Where did the Democratic and Republican parties hold their last national conventions? Who was the permanent chairman of each?

17. What is your opinion of the "unit rule" followed by the Democratic party? Of the "two-thirds" rule?

18. Do you think it would be a wise rule to apportion the delegates from each state to the national convention on the basis of the party strength rather than on the basis of population?

19. Since the people of the territories take no part in national elections, ought they to be allowed to send delegates to the national convention?

20. What is your opinion of the proposal to nominate candidates for President and Vice President by direct primary as state officials are nominated in many states?

21. What is meant by the doctrine of "availability" in choosing candidates for President? What presidential candidates has your state furnished?

22. Is Mr. Bryce's assertion that great men are rarely elected President true? If so, why?

23. Do you think presidential candidates should make campaign tours and deliver campaign speeches?

CHAPTER XVI

THE PRESIDENCY (CONTINUED): INAUGURATION; POWERS AND DUTIES

The Inauguration.– It is no longer the practice to notify the President officially of his election, and so without certificate of election or commission, he presents himself at the national capital on the 4th of March to take the oath of office required by the Constitution and to enter upon the discharge of his duties. Toward noon on that day he proceeds to the White House, as the official residence of the President is styled, where he joins the outgoing President and both are driven to the Capitol, followed by a procession. The oath of office is usually administered by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court on a platform erected for the purpose at the east front of the Capitol, and in the presence of a vast throng of spectators from all parts of the country.74 Following the custom set by the first Chief Executive, the President delivers a short inaugural address in which he foreshadows in a general way his policy as President, after which he returns with the Ex-President to the White House, where he reviews for several hours the procession of visitors.

Inaugural Pageantry.– The inauguration of the President is made the occasion of a great pageant, to which hundreds of thousands of visitors throng from every part of the Union. In the procession which escorts the President to the Capitol are militia companies, headed by governors of states, and civil organizations of every variety. Owing to the inclemency of the weather which often prevails at this season of the year, it has been proposed to change the date of the inauguration, but since this will involve an amendment to the Constitution if the inauguration is to take place at the beginning of the presidential term, the success of the movement is doubtful.75

Compensation of the President.– The Constitution declares that the President shall, at stated times, receive for his services a compensation which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the time for which he has been elected. He is also forbidden to receive any other emolument either from the United States or from any state.