Judicial Watch
Judicial Watch, the public interest group that
investigates and prosecutes government corruption,
announced today that Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton is
constitutionally ineligible to serve as Secretary of
State in the Obama administration.
According to the Ineligibility Clause of the United
States Constitution, no member of Congress can be
appointed to an office that has benefited from a
salary increase during the time that Senator or
Representative served in Congress. A January 2008
Executive Order signed by President Bush during
Hillary Clinton's current Senate term increased the
salary for Secretary of State, thereby rendering
Senator Clinton ineligible for the position.
Specifically, Article I, section 6 of the U.S.
Constitution provides "No Senator or Representative
shall, during the Time for which he was elected, be
appointed to any civil Office under the Authority of
the United States, which shall have been created, or
the Emoluments whereof shall have been increased
during such time." The provision is seen by most as
designed by our Founding Fathers to protect against
corruption.
Former President Richard Nixon circumvented this
constitutional provision after appointing former Ohio
Senator William Saxbe to the position of Attorney
General. The Nixon administration managed to force
legislation through Congress to reduce the salary for
the position of Attorney General to the level that
existed prior to Senator Saxbe's appointment. This
scheme, known thereafter as "The Saxbe Fix," was also
used to allow Senator Lloyd Bentsen to assume the
position of Treasury Secretary under President
Clinton.
"The Saxbe Fix" may reduce the salary of Secretary of
State to previous levels, but it does not affect what
is a clear constitutional prohibition. It cannot
change the fact that the salary had been increased
while Senator Clinton served in Congress. (President
Ronald Reagan reportedly did not appoint Senator Orrin
Hatch to the Supreme Court because of this provision.)
Simply put, the Constitution does not provide for a
legislative remedy for the Ineligibility Clause.
"There's no getting around the Constitution's
Ineligibility Clause, so Hillary Clinton is prohibited
from serving in the Cabinet until at least 2013, when
her current term expires," said Judicial Watch
President Tom Fitton. "Barack Obama should select
someone who is eligible for the position of Secretary
of State and save the country from a constitutional
battle over Hillary Clinton's confirmation. No public
official who has taken the oath to support and defend
the Constitution should support this appointment. And
aside from the constitutional issue, Hillary Clinton's
long track record of corruption makes her a terrible
choice to serve as the nation's top diplomat."