Welcome to a Constitutional Convention

Introduction

  1. Declarations

    2.  
  2. Legislative Branch

    3.  
  3. Executive Branch

    4.  
  4. Judicial Branch

    5.  
  5. Electoral Branch

    6.  
  6. Nominations & Elections

    7.  
  7. Federal Service

    8.  
  8. Federal Finance

    9.  
  9. Authority & Responsibility

    10.  
  10. Citizenship

    11.  
  11. Limits on Government Power

    12.  
  12. Amendments

Nomination & Election Schedule
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VII.  FEDERAL SERVICE

A.  Obligations and Privileges

1.  All persons elected or appointed to a federal office shall take the following oath:

“I promise to preserve and protect the Constitution of the United States of America, to carry out the functions of my office to the best of my ability, and to perform the duties thereof with integrity.”

2.  A special law, that may be passed in only years ending in one to be effective in the following year ending in seven, requiring the approval of 14 Senators, 65% of the Representatives, and the President, will selectively increase or decrease in increments of five years the minimum and maximum ages of the President and Vice President, Senators, Representatives, federal judges, and members of the Electoral College[1]. 

3.  Laws will define the remuneration of elected and appointed federal officials which will be effective for President, Vice President, and executive appointees: after the next presidential election; for each Senator and Representative: after the next election in his or her District; for members of the Election Board: on July 1st after a delay of three years.

4.  The remuneration of federal judges shall be changed and become effective with every change in remuneration of members of the Executive Branch.

5.  No person holding an elected federal office shall hold an appointed federal office.

6.  Until the expiration of his or her current term in office, an elected federal official cannot be called into a judicial proceeding as a defendant, except voluntarily or for a felony, but legal actions may be filed and held in abeyance without counting time against a statutory limit. 

7.  After leaving office, unless impeached or expelled, federal officials will receive retirement benefits defined by law. 

B.  Removal from Office

1.  The House by the vote of 65% of the members can initiate a Bill of Impeachment that specifies why a person should be removed from elected or appointed office.  The grounds for impeachment shall be actions that knowingly undermine the Constitution, treason, corruption of office for personal gain, and major felonies.

2.  The Senate will conduct impeachment trials.  Against the President or Vice President, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court will preside; otherwise the Vice President will preside.  The vote of 14 Senators will convict. 

3.  A Senator may be expelled from the Senate by the vote of 14 Senators.  A Representative may be expelled from the House by the vote of 14 Senators or by the vote of 65% of the House.  The grounds for expulsion are the same as for impeachment. 

4.  Anyone impeached and convicted or expelled is removed from office, ineligible for any pension or any further government service, and liable to civil penalties and criminal indictment.


Footnotes:

[1] An age limit is important and will become more important in the future.  Currently, there is concern about the potential senility of over-aged elected officials and judges.  With the continuing advances in medicine, the average age of incompetence will surely increase – which would seem to call for an increasing age limit for the various offices.  But there is an alternate view: that an age ceiling is required because of gains in the health of senior citizens.  Assume that science provides a significant increase in average live span, perhaps a vigorous life through 120 or 140, and further assume that this increased life span is matched by a reduced birth rate.  The result will be a serious problem for politics: the aging population will give political power to the aged; without statuary limit, the average President and Senator might be over 100 years old; these leaders will be quite out of touch – 75 years out of college and with great grandchildren, if any, struggling to put great-great grandchildren through school.  The handling of the age problem should be held open for future legislation.  The restriction on when this legislation might pass insures that a sitting Senator cannot drummed out of the office on the basis of age.

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