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From: bml@netcom.com (Brian Leibowitz)
Subject: Re: Two on the same plane (Re: Coca-Cola rumor)
Date: Mon, 2 May 1994 23:57:51 GMT

I posted the list of succession a while ago - here is the law:

If by reason of death, resignation removal from office, inability, or failure to qualify there is neither a president nor vice president to discharge the powers and duties of the ofice of the president, then the speaker of the House of Representatives shall upon his resignation as speaker and as representitive, act as president. The same rule shall apply in the case of death, resignation, removal from office, or inability of an individual acting as president.

If at the time when a speaker is to begin the discharge of the powers and duties of the office of the president there is no speaker, or the speaker fails to qualify as acting president, then the president pro tempore of the Senate, upon his resignation as president pro and as senator, shall act as president.

An individual acting as president shall continue to act until the expiration of the then current presidential term, except that (1) if his discharge of the powers and duties of the office is found in whole or in part in the failure of both the president-elect and the vice president-elect to qualify, then he shall act only until a president or vice president qualifies, and (2) if his discharge of the powers and duties of he office is founded in whole or in part on the inability of the president or vice-president, then he shall act only until the removal of the disability of one of such individuals.

If, by reason of death, resignation removal from office, or failure to qualify, there is no president pro tempore to act as president, then the officer of the United States wo is highest on the following list, and who is not under any disability to discharge the powers and duties of president shall act as president; the Secretaries of State, treasury, defense, attorney general; secretaries of interior, agriculture, commerce, labor, health and human services, housing and urban development, transportation, energy, education.

(Legislation approved July 18, 1947; amended Sept 9, 1965, Oct 15, 1966, Aug 4, 1977, and Sept 27, 1979)[see also Constitutional Amendment XXV]

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From: silversm@law.harvard.edu (Jol Silversmith)
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.urban
Subject: Re: The Missing Secretary
Date: Tue, 03 Dec 1996 22:54:19 -0500

In article <582c5i$o0q@flood.xnet.com>, warinner@flood.xnet.com (Robert Warinner) wrote:

> I ran across this interesting bit of related Presidential trivia.
> Note that the most popular pick for odd man out apparently is the
> Secretary of Education. Since Veterans Affairs is new Cabinet post,
> where does the Secretary fall in the order of succession?

A 1988 amendment (Pub.L. 100-527) added the Secretary to the end of the list.