141 Heartbeat

June 27, 2024 a debate between Joe Biden, aka “the Corpse” and former President Donald Trump was held on CNN and freely distributed to any network or streaming service that wished to carry it. Not only the nation but the world saw a display that those watching conservative media had seen for the last thee years.

The Corpse, gave new meaning to the word incomprehensible. Too many of the corpse’s words were mumbles. Sentences finished wordless. He said he fell asleep during the debate.

Aside from the diehards, people thought the Corpse lost big time.

The corpse took a weekend to discuss with his family if he should continue running. The result of that discussion was a resounding yes. Next we see that Hunter Biden is also attending the White House meetings to keep track of the Corpse.

This will not be a discussion of should he or should he not. It is a discussion of “What does the Constitution say?”

From Article II Section 2 I Quote the following from the United States Constitution:

No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President; neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty five Years, and been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States.…

Before he enter on the Execution of his Office, he shall take the following Oath or Affirmation:—"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

That’s it. The Constitution does not in anyway state that the President when running even have a “heartbeat”.

It seems that the founders did not consider that someone of the Corpse’s condition would run for office. They assumed that those running would be alive and coherent.

In fairness to the founders they did put this in the same article:

In Case of the Removal of the President from Office, or of his Death, Resignation, or Inability to discharge the Powers and Duties of the said Office, the Same shall devolve on the Vice President, and the Congress may by Law provide for the Case of Removal, Death, Resignation or Inability, both of the President and Vice President, declaring what Officer shall then act as President, and such Officer shall act accordingly, until the Disability be removed, or a President shall be elected.

But the Constitution itself did not define how a president would be incapable. This is left to the Twenty-fifth Amendment:

Section 4. Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.

Thereafter, when the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that no inability exists, he shall resume the powers and duties of his office unless the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive department or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit within four days to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office. Thereupon Congress shall decide the issue, assembling within forty-eight hours for that purpose if not in session. If the Congress, within twenty-one days after receipt of the latter written declaration, or, if Congress is not in session, within twenty-one days after Congress is required to assemble, determines by two-thirds vote of both Houses that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President; otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of his office.

If the president does not resign on his own, Section 4 defines a method.

That said, it is the conclusion of editorialpinups.com that running for the office as long as Article II Section 1 eligibility requirements are met, there is no need for a heartbeat. Literally speaking, a dead person, one with no heartbeat, could be elected to be President of the United States. It is after the election that a method is defined to remove.