ers and duties, lest Government collapse. Thus, the President depends on an assistant to the President, sometimes referred to as the "Assistant President," an office which does not exist in the Constitution.

It may fairly be assumed, without intending any disrespect, that, in loyally and conscientiously assisting the President, the "Assistant President" does some things which constitutionally must be done by the President himself.

I make no observation on how he does these things. He probably does them well, but he has no authority to do them at all. Not only does he have no authority to exercise Presidential power but the people have never passed on his qualifications to do what the President alone is supposed to do.

In the meantime, a man who possesses the constitutional and occupational fitness to be President, which fitness has been considered and approved by the people, stands by idly and impotently. Is it not the acme of absurdity that the Vice President, with all his proved capacity to assist the President, must employ all his time as a timekeeper of debates in a legislative body of which he is not a member and where he can neither speak nor vote-except in a tie, a rarity so exceptional as practically to be nonexistent? And is it not even more absurd that when that legislative body adjourns, the Vice President has no duties at all, except to keep healthy so as to take over in the event the President dies or resigns, the latter of which no President has ever done yet?

In no other sphere of activity-military, civil, commercial, industrial, or fraternal is a substitute chief officer held in idleness until the moment he is to become chief himself.

The vice commander of an army, division, or regiment has duties which are indispensable to the success of the military enterprise.

He renders continuous and unceasing assistance to his superior and is so intimately associated with what his chief is doing that in the event of an emergency he assumes command without a break in the continuity of operation.

The executive officer of a ship has duties of an extremely important character, aside from taking over the command of the vessel in the event the command devolves upon him.

The vice president of an industrial corporation is not kept hidden away from the office and the plants of the company until he is summoned to head the business of which he has been kept in complete ignorance. He works by the side of the president of the railroad or steel company or the automobile firm at all times, and he is qualified at every and any moment to undertake with up-to-date competence, the responsibilities of the president, should it become necessary to do so.

President Eisenhower is the only President who, while not utilizing the capacities of the Vice President to discharge Presidential functions (since he may not do so constitutionally), has at least allowed the Vice President to be kept minutely and intimately informed on the problems confronting the White House, and therefore, the people of the United States. It is nothing short of shocking to learn from former President Truman's memoirs that before he became President he was denied even the slightest knowledge on the atom. bomb. It was not until the day after he had been sworn in as President and had had his first Cabinet meeting that he learned of the

most destructive weapon in the world and learned further that he was the person who was to decide if and when to use it.

Under the constitutional amendment which I offer, Congress will supply the machinery to determine whether the President at any given moment is physically capable of standing on the bridge and giving the orders which will carry the vessel of the well-being of the American people through the storm which may threaten our security and even survival.

If, because of illness, the President lacks the strength and keenness of perception needed to guide the ship through heavy seas and foul weather, a suitable commission will so declare, and direct the Vice President to take the helm.

We could be confronted with such a situation tomorrow, a year, or a decade from now. And no one realizes that possibility more than President Eisenhower. He has expressed himself emphatically on the subject.

Several plans have already been discussed in this connection, but I am constrained to say, with all respect and courtesy to the authors of the various plans, that in my opinion they are not feasible either because they lack working practicability or because they encounter constitutional barriers.

Thus, one plan recommends that the President's Cabinet decide if and when the President should resign if disabled. Since the Cabinet is made up entirely of Presidential appointees, one cannot dismiss the thought that their judgment and decision could well be influenced by personal considerations.

Another plan proposes that Congress enact legislation which would permit the Vice President himself to decide when he should assume the President's office.

This plan, I respect fully submit, is unworthy of consideration. No person should have it in his own exclusive power to elevate himself to a higher office in a representative republic.

A Vice President who would crown himself in such a fashion would quickly find the crown tarnishing under the people's appraisement of an act which could be interpreted as selfish, egotistic, and unworthily ambitious.

Moreover, there have not been lacking examples in our history where the President and Vice President were of divergent political views even though belonging to the same political party, and there have been painful occasions where the Chief Executive and the Vice President were personally hostile to each other.

One suggested bill provides that a commission representing the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the Government determine Presidential inability.

Senator KEFAUVER. What bill is that we are talking about here? Mr. MUSMANNO. Mr. Chairman, I did not endeavor to particularize the individual bills because I did not want to be seemingly criticizing the wisdom of any particular Congressman or Senator, but I have read all the bills on the subject which I have been able to obtain, and from all of them I have gathered what the various plans are, and I am indicating that none of those plans in my respectful opinion meets the needs of the situation.

Senator KEFAUVER. Yes. Very well, Judge, I understand. There are several bills which would bring in the legislative, executive, and

judicial branches and I did not know if you had reference to any particular one or not, but you have satisfactorily explained your atti

tude.

Mr. MUSMANNO. Very well.

(Discussion off the record.)

Senator KEFAUVER. All right, sir, will you proceed?

Mr. MUSMANNO. With regard to the suggestion that the chairman just made, might I respectfully interpolate here that the ratification of a constitutional amendment does not take as long as is generally supposed. David Lawrence, in an article which he wrote recently on this subject, reminded us that the 21st amendment repealing the 18th amendment was ratified in 10 months after submission.

The 17th amendment, providing for the popular election of Senators was ratified in 13 months.

The 19th amendment, which of course as we know granted women suffrage, was ratified in 14 months, and the 20th amendment was ratified 11 months following submission by Congress.

I really believe, Mr. Chairman, and I am sanguine in this hope, that if Congress would adopt a constitutional amendment on this subject quickly, that we could still have a ratification of the amendment by the end of this year.

Before our brief discussion on constitutional amendments, I was referring to the bill which provides for a commission representing the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the Government. While the plan involved in that proposed legislation might meet constitutional requirements it still would not satisfy, because twothirds of the Commission would be made up of persons not elected by the people and, to that extent, the plan would deny the people an authoritative voice in the selection of their President.

Another serious objection to this indicated plan is that since the Supreme Court might be called upon to evaluate its constitutionality, the Chief Justice and the senior Associate Justice who are declared to be members of that proposed Commission would be disqualified from considering the case, thereby depriving the country of a full judicial review at the time it would be most needed.

The Chief Justice of the United States has already informed Congress that the entire membership of the Supreme Court is opposed to such a plan. Of course, the Court's wishes should be respected.

Still another plan declares that the President should voluntarily resign if disabled, and if he refuses to resign, impeachment proceedings could be initiated to compel him to do so.

This would be a most sorry solution of the problem. It would make of a President's unfortunate illness the matter of a "state trial" with all the agonies which go with it, not only to the principals involved, but to the Nation itself.

The only logical governmental body to decide Presidential inability is Congress which is responsible directly to the people.

Under the constitutional amendment I propose, Congress would, as I have stated, provide the machinery for determining Presidential inability. I am sure that Congress can and will work out a suitable plan to meet every contingency.

I personally would recommend that Congress enact a law resolving the Judiciary Committees of the Senate and House into a permanent

Presidential Inability Commission. The membership of such a Commission would be large enough and representative enough to speak for all parties, all geographical sections of the country, and all current points of view.

At the same time, it would be small enough to meet and act quickly. The chairmen of the committees would be empowered to call a joint meeting of the committees at any time, whether Congress be or not be in session.

The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee would preside over the Commission. This Commission, made up, as it would be, of persons elected by the people and commanding the respect of the entire country, would be entrusted with the delicate and grave task of determining whether a President, because of inability to discharge his powers and duties, should be displaced by the Vice President.

In the event the Commission found the President unable to attend to the responsibilities of the Presidential office, the Vice President would become President for the period of the President's disability. When the President would have recovered his health or in any way have overcome his inability to act, the Commission would restore him to office and the elevated Vice President would revert back to his original office.

A two-thirds vote of the Commission would be required to declare the President unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, and a similar vote would be needed to restore him to office, once the disability ceased.

Circumstances could combine to prevent the President from fulfilling the duties of his office for reasons other than ill health. Now that our Presidents fly long distances over oceans, deserts, and mountains a President's plane could be lost, so that days, even weeks, could pass with no news as to whether he had survived.

A President could conceivably become captive of circumstances or hostile forces. These things could happen when momentous questions could be demanding immediate answers. In such situations where the President would be unable to perform his duties, even though presumably healthy, the Commission would be empowered to direct the Vice President to become President until the President's inability would have been removed.

But even more important than the matter of succession to the Presidency is the need to ease the burdens of the President to the end that there will be less chance of his becoming physically incapacitated while in office. No President can possibly do all the things which the Constitution of 1787 requires of him in the setting of 1958.

He cannot sign all the documents he is supposed to sign, he cannot read all the reports submitted to him to read, he cannot meet and talk to all the people which in the full discharge of his functions it would be expected he should meet. He cannot handle all the details of recommendations for legislation, he cannot go into the minutiae of the entire Military Establishment; he cannot supervise the whole diplomatic corps. He cannot review all the criminal convictions under Federal statutes to determine whether he should exercise the Presidential pardoning power.

The President of 1958 must attend to matters which could not even have been imagined in George Washington's and John Adams' days.

The President of today is studying problems provoked by sputnik, he must be schooled in missiles, satellites, and rockets, he must confer with scientists, he must consider a revamping of our educational system with emphasis on the science of survival.

He must study the globe and concern himself with what is happening in all the European countries, in the Middle East, Far East, Africa, and wherever else the Soviet threat of world domination rears its python head to strike at our lifelines.

He must study the budget and the tax rate. He must worry over charts depicting trends in our national economy, he must keep his finger on the pulse of NATO and our ever-growing number of alliances. He must preside over Cabinet meetings.

He must appoint judges and promote Army and Navy personnel. He must consider foreign aid and reciprocal trade agreements. He must ponder questions involving enforcement of court decrees and the possibility of calling out the National Guard in domestic turbulences.

As head of a political party he must meet with party leaders and map out political policy and program in various parts of the Nation. Ever since Suez, scarcely a day has passed that some crisis has not snarled the President's desk. He must watch the United Nations on its ever-revolving carousel and international alinements and realinements.

There are national security meetings to attend and advise. There is royalty to receive and entertain. He must give news conferences where he is placed under cross-examination which requires him to answer questions and elucidate on every phase of our complex Government, complicated foreign affairs, and technological advances in aircraft, satellites, and intercontinental missiles.

He must appear on television where he must be reassuring to a nation of eager people seeking light and guidance, and in preparing for the performance he must keep in mind the triple role of a wise statesman, a spiritual counselor, and a charming actor.

Senator KEFAUVER. Judge, that is one of the best descriptions of the duties of a President I have ever seen. It is very vividly given. Mr. MUSMANNO. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman

While the President is doing all these things, necessarily breaking many of the rules of good health in exerting himself beyond the suburbs of endurance, the Vice President stands by like a man at the edge of a frozen lake with a rope in his hand which he is forbidden to throw to the skater who has broken through the ice.

Under the plan I recommend, the Vice President not only throws the rope but he hastens to the rescue in a durable launch which will take aboard all other national safeguards struggling in the cold waters of indecision and delay.

If this constittuional amendment is adopted Congress would of course provide for a separate establishment for the Vice President. He would have his own staff and he would have his own mansion. Naturally he would no longer preside over the Senate where he is at present a robot who makes no decisions and a metronome which controls no tempo or rhythm. I provide that the Senate shall elect its own president as well as president pro tempore. The Vice President would thus dedicate all his time to the executive branch of the Government, to which he belongs and of which he is an inalienablbe integral part.