European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 7, 1968, Darmstadt, Hesse                              F by Jim Arnold staff writer or politics 1968 has already been i confusing tragic and bitter year. A president has dropped out of the run Ning in a strange political sacrifice an other candidate Lias been cruelly assassinated and both parties Are split by conservative Liberal wings. But ahead is yet another possible twist to this convoluted year. If George Wallace s third party candidacy should deprive either of the major presidential candidates of a electoral College majority and More and More political pros and commentators Are conceding that event As a Dis Tinct possibility the responsibility of electing a president and vice president would devolve upon the Congress. Simple enough however the manner in which Congress would choose the president and vice president raise some disquieting possibilities. The Constitution provides that Whereon candidate receives an electoral col lege majority for president the House with each state having one voter must choose from one of the top three candidates with a simple majority needed for  Senate however chooses the Alabama s George Wallace has he muscle enough to toss the Choice of president into the House a a vice president with each senator voting individually from the top two can  Means that the House could elect a president from one party while the Senate named a vice president from another , if the House were to choose the third Man from the top three the the Senate would be forced to name a Man from another party since the Vic presidential candidate with the third highest number of votes presumably of the same party As the third presidential candidate would not be eligible. Now what would happen next Jan uary if Wallace succeeded in prevent ing either the democratic candidate Hubert Humphrey let us say or the Republican candidate again let us say Richard Nixon from getting a Clear Victory since the duty of choosing a presi Dent and vice president would devolve upon the next Congress not the current one and there is no Way of knowing what the lineup will be in that con Gress let us speculate on what the cur rent Congress might  on strict party lines the House would elect Humphrey with 29votes to 18 for Nixon. The delegations from three states Illinois Montana an Oregon Are split evenly Between democrats and republicans and prob ably would not cast their votes. And the Senate too would elect the democratic candidate with a Clear majority of 64 votes to 35 for the re publican. The seat of the late sen. Robert f. Kennedy of new York i vacant but even if it were filled by a Republican it would give the gop only36 votes that s what would happen on a strict party vote of the current Congress. But what would happen if the voting was t along party lines let us assume that the delegation from the six deep South states Ala Bama Georgia Louisiana mississippian North and South Carolina where Wallace s strength is greatest vote for Wallace. That would leave the democrats with 23 states and the re publicans with 18 and make the three split states Illinois Montana and Ore gon vital if All three went for Humphrey then he would squeeze in with Abare majority of 26 votes. If Only one of the three failed to vote democratic however and All other states held firm then the House would be unable to name a president. Well come Back in a minute to what would then happen. The question of electing a vice Page 12 Uri reps. Morris Udall Lef Tcharles e. Goodell have backing for plan to have White House go to Man winning popular vote president in the Senate is More Clear Cut. Even with the loss of the 12 deep South senators the democrats Wouldhave 52 votes one More than the simple majority of 51 required by the Constitution. All right so now we have a Vic president elect but no president elect. Now what happens the 20th amendment to the Constitution provides that if a president shall not have been chosen before the Tim fixed for the beginning of his term noon on the 20th Day of january Orif the president elect shall have failed to qualify then the vice president elect shall act As president until a president shall have qualified. This would seem to mean that Tho vice president chosen by the Senate would become president but would serve Only until the House was Able to agree on a president. Presumably since the 20th amendment sets no time limit the House could make a decision any time during the next four years mean ing in effect that the vice president elect serving As president would be a lame Duck from the Day he took of fice always facing the possibility that he could be demoted to vice presi Dent at any time an impossible Situa Tion for a chief executive. But wait there is a further com plication that would probably require a supreme court decision to resolve. The 12th amendment provides that. If the House of representatives shall not choose a president whenever the right of Choice shall devolve upon them before the fourth Day of Marc next following the beginning of the president s term at the time the Amend the stars and stripes ment was written then the vice presi Dent shall act As president As in the Case of the death or other constitutional disability of the president. This would seem to mean that if the House failed to name a president by March 4, then the vice president name by the Senate would become president for the full term with no other action by the Congress possible. It might Well be that the supreme court would have to decide if the language of the 20th amendment Pujji Sedes the language of the 12th a ment. If it does so Rule the status the president would be Uncertain i chaotic for the next four years so Wallace whose avowed puppis to deprive the democratic in Tho presidency could end up m the american people of a pump wednesday