Is Dick Cheney Unconstitutional? (Final Version)

7 Pages Posted: 12 Nov 2007

Abstract

During a recent policy kerfuffle, Vice President Dick Cheney's office briefly argued that the Vice President is really a legislative official, and hence not subject to some obligations of the Executive branch. Though Cheney's office quickly shifted its argument to less controversial statutory grounds, it turns out that the Vice Presidency's legislative character is, in fact, quite significant. To the extent that the Vice President is a legislative official, however, it is likely that extensive delegation of Presidential authority to the Vice President, of the sort that Vice President Cheney has enjoyed, is probably unconstitutional and certainly unwise. This Essay argues for congressional action to limit the Vice President's role in Executive business.

Keywords: cheney, bowsher, vice president, separation of powers, legislative, executive

Suggested Citation

Reynolds, Glenn Harlan, Is Dick Cheney Unconstitutional? (Final Version). Northwestern University Law Review, Vol. 102, 2007, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1029363

Glenn Harlan Reynolds (Contact Author)

University of Tennessee College of Law ( email )

1505 West Cumberland Avenue
Knoxville, TN 37996-1810
United States
865-974-6744 (Phone)

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