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Posted
1 minute ago, Mr Dee said:

Scary if he plays that Trump card, but yes, I can see him doing it.

He already has an exemplar- Bibi Netanyahu has hinted very broadly that he will stay on as Israel's PM in spite of his pending trial (and probable conviction) due to the COVID crisis. 

Posted

I sniped this out of an LA Times article in terms of Trumpidiot trying to cancel the elections

 

The Los Angeles Times’ Evan Halper takes up the unsettling question of what would and would not happen if the pandemic is still raging this fall and Trump decides it’s no time for an election. To make one thing clear, Trump cannot just cancel a constitutionally mandated general election:

The president does not have that power. Legal scholars are widely in agreement on this point, as are both Republican and Democratic election officials. The nonpartisan Congressional Research Service reached the same conclusion when it investigated the question in the aftermath of 9/11.

 

Under the U.S. Constitution, Trump and Vice President Mike Pence cannot stay in office past their four-year terms without being reelected. If the election does not happen for any reason, constitutional rules of succession kick in.

Technically, says Halper, Congress could delay the election for a bit in the case of an emergency, but when the president and vice-president’s terms run out on January 20, 2021, they are out of office, period. And in that case, it seems, the next-in-the-line-of-succession official who is still in office would be empowered to occupy the Oval Office.

If, of course, there’s no general election in November, Trump and Pence aren’t the only elected officials out of a job, so crazy things could happen. While the Speaker of the House is third in the line of presidential succession, Nancy Pelosi is also up for reelection this year and so would face the same scenario as Trump and Pence if the election were to be canceled. The next in the line of succession who does not face voters in November is Chuck Grassley, the Senate’s president pro tempore. But then again, 23 Republican senators are up for reelection this year and would be on the sidelines as well, so we could have a Democratic Senate and perhaps a president pro tempore Pat Leahy (that position traditionally goes to the oldest senator of the majority party).

Posted
14 minutes ago, bustamente said:

I sniped this out of an LA Times article in terms of Trumpidiot trying to cancel the elections

 

The Los Angeles Times’ Evan Halper takes up the unsettling question of what would and would not happen if the pandemic is still raging this fall and Trump decides it’s no time for an election. To make one thing clear, Trump cannot just cancel a constitutionally mandated general election:

The president does not have that power. Legal scholars are widely in agreement on this point, as are both Republican and Democratic election officials. The nonpartisan Congressional Research Service reached the same conclusion when it investigated the question in the aftermath of 9/11.

 

Under the U.S. Constitution, Trump and Vice President Mike Pence cannot stay in office past their four-year terms without being reelected. If the election does not happen for any reason, constitutional rules of succession kick in.

Technically, says Halper, Congress could delay the election for a bit in the case of an emergency, but when the president and vice-president’s terms run out on January 20, 2021, they are out of office, period. And in that case, it seems, the next-in-the-line-of-succession official who is still in office would be empowered to occupy the Oval Office.

If, of course, there’s no general election in November, Trump and Pence aren’t the only elected officials out of a job, so crazy things could happen. While the Speaker of the House is third in the line of presidential succession, Nancy Pelosi is also up for reelection this year and so would face the same scenario as Trump and Pence if the election were to be canceled. The next in the line of succession who does not face voters in November is Chuck Grassley, the Senate’s president pro tempore. But then again, 23 Republican senators are up for reelection this year and would be on the sidelines as well, so we could have a Democratic Senate and perhaps a president pro tempore Pat Leahy (that position traditionally goes to the oldest senator of the majority party).

Sorry, but it has happened before. Trump has managed to find pretexts supported by his lackeys to ignore many constitutional rules already.

Posted
1 hour ago, Tracker said:

There is a real possibility that Trump, with the support of the GOP, could use the COVID crisis to delay or void the pending presidential election in November. Given his utterances in the recent past and neo-fascist attitudes, it is not beyond reality.

Can’t do it. I mean, he could try. But I’ve read some talk of this by constitutional scholars that makes it virtually impossible without support from both houses.  Regardless of what happens on November, current term expires with the inauguration in January. So unless he wants to advance Nancy to the presidency, he won’t mess with it. 
 

Now, might the GOP try to come up with a way to bury the Dem vote? Sure. 

Posted
15 minutes ago, do or die said:

Ole Lou Dobbs, who even late last week on Fox, was calling the virus a hoax.....has tested positive. 

Did trump call it a hoax? he says he tested negative but do you believe him? I don't

Posted

And I have doubt that the chicanery will get a lot worse as the crisis deepens and the presidential election nears. Trump has no compunction about utilizing any means whatever, legal or illegal to remain in power and thus be afforded protection against prosecution. The craven GOP sycophants have supported the position that anything the president does, if he "thinks" it is in the public, good is legal.

Posted
25 minutes ago, FrostyWinnipeg said:

Why the CFL? They don't need to do anything yet. I'm sure they're speaking to the teams but nothing needs to be decided. 

Unlike the Olympics because there are test events needed to test the facilities, national and international events needed to decide who will go and 10s of thousands of people from around the world in attendance. 

Posted
6 minutes ago, The Unknown Poster said:

I can’t imagine the Olympics not postponing.   It would be a massive gamble going a head with it.   Yes it’s July so plenty for time to have things stabilize (and I think they will) but it’s too soon.  Push it to the fall. 

I don't see a problem with that, I'm old enough to remember when the Sydney Olympics were held in September, but I don't recall a virus or anything I think it had to do with weather.

Posted
42 minutes ago, JCon said:

Why the CFL? They don't need to do anything yet. I'm sure they're speaking to the teams but nothing needs to be decided. 

Unlike the Olympics because there are test events needed to test the facilities, national and international events needed to decide who will go and 10s of thousands of people from around the world in attendance. 

It also depends how long the US-Canadian border is closed. 

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