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Judicial Watch Asks Court to Declare Hillary Clinton Constitutionally Ineligible to Serve as Secretary of State
Files New Motion in Lawsuit on Behalf of State Department Foreign Service Officer
| Source: Judicial Watch
WASHINGTON, DC--(Marketwire - July 8, 2009) - Judicial Watch, the public interest group
that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, announced today
that on July 2 it filed a motion with a special panel of three federal
judges in the District of Columbia asking the court to declare Hillary
Clinton ineligible to serve as Secretary of State. The Judicial Watch
lawsuit, filed on behalf of a U.S. Foreign Service Officer and State
Department employee David C. Rodearmel, maintains that the "emoluments
clause" of the U.S. Constitution prohibits Mrs. Clinton from serving as
Secretary of State until January 2013, and that Mr. Rodearmel cannot be
forced to serve under the former U.S. Senator, as it would violate the oath
he took as a Foreign Service Officer in 1991 to "support and defend" and
"bear true faith and allegiance" to the Constitution of the United States
(Rodearmel v. Clinton, et al., (D. District of Columbia)).
Government lawyers had previously filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit.
Judicial Watch filed an opposition to the motion to dismiss, as well as a
"cross motion for summary judgment."
According to Article I, Section 6 of the U.S. Constitution: "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
encreased during such time." The text of the provision is an absolute
prohibition and does not allow for any exceptions. However, as noted in
the motion, "the 'compensation and other emoluments' of the office of the
U.S. Secretary of State increased during Mrs. Clinton's tenure in the U.S.
Senate, including as many as three times during the second, six-year term
to which she was elected."
Congress attempted to circumvent this constitutional provision by "rolling
back" compensation for the position of Secretary of State to the level in
effect on January 1, 2007, when Mrs. Clinton's second term in the Senate
began. The motion maintains: "This [fix] does not and cannot change the
historical fact that the 'compensation and other emoluments' of the office
of the U.S. Secretary of State increased during Mrs. Clinton's tenure in
the U.S. Senate." Judicial Watch also notes that throughout the nation's
history, "the Ineligibility Clause was readily understood and applied
consistent with its plain language." Only relatively recently have
government officials attempted to get around this constitutional provision
through legislative quick fixes.
"Congress must not be allowed to do an end run around the U.S.
Constitution," said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. "Hillary Clinton
is ineligible to serve as Secretary of State until 2013. The Constitution
is crystal clear on this point. We hope the court puts a stop to this
naked attempt to circumvent the Constitution in the name of political
expediency."
To view Judicial Watch's court filing, please visit www.judicialwatch.org.