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The Continuity of Government Commission was a
nonpartisan Nonpartisanism is a lack of affiliation with, and a lack of bias towards, a political party. While an Oxford English Dictionary definition of ''partisan'' includes adherents of a party, cause, person, etc., in most cases, nonpartisan refers sp ...
think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-govern ...
established in 2002 in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
by the
American Enterprise Institute The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, known simply as the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), is a center-right Washington, D.C.–based think tank that researches government, politics, economics, and social welfare. A ...
(AEI) and the
Brookings Institution The Brookings Institution, often stylized as simply Brookings, is an American research group founded in 1916. Located on Think Tank Row in Washington, D.C., the organization conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in e ...
following the
September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commerc ...
. Its purpose was to examine how the three branches of the
U.S. federal government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a f ...
might reconstitute themselves after a catastrophic attack (
decapitation strike Decapitation is a military strategy aimed at removing the leadership or command and control of a hostile government or group. The strategy of shattering or defeating an enemy by eliminating its military and political leadership has long been utiliz ...
) on the nation's capital, and to make recommendations for
constitutional A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these prin ...
and
statutory A statute is a formal written enactment of a legislative authority that governs the legal entities of a city, state, or country by way of consent. Typically, statutes command or prohibit something, or declare policy. Statutes are rules made by le ...
changes that would facilitate the
continuity of government Continuity of government (COG) is the principle of establishing defined procedures that allow a government to continue its essential operations in case of a catastrophic event such as nuclear war. COG was developed by the British government befo ...
. Former presidents
Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...
and
Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. ( ; born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. He was the only president never to have been elected ...
served as its honorary co-chairmen.


Recommendations

In 2003 the Commission published its first report, which dealt with the death or incapacitation of several members of
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
in the event of a terrorist attack. It recommended a
constitutional amendment A constitutional amendment is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly altering the text. Conversely, ...
to allow Congress to legislate for the temporary appointment of members of both houses of Congress in case a large number of members were either killed or rendered unable to perform their duties. The
United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and po ...
already is covered by measures that allow replacements to be readily made to fill vacancies. The commission warned that it takes an average of four months to stage the special election needed to fill a vacancy in the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
, which meant that an attack on members of the House could kill or incapacitate so many members of the body that it would not be able to operate at all and might appear illegitimate if it did so. A major attack could mean that Congress would have to confirm a Vice President or fill a vacancy on the
Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. Federal tribunals in the United States, federal court cases, and over Stat ...
without the needed quorum to perform its obligations.Clymer, Adam
"THREATS AND RESPONSES: CONGRESS; Panel Calls for Amendment to Fill House Seats in Emergency"
''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', June 6, 2003. Accessed October 12, 2009.
The Commission's recommendations were based on already existing state constitutional provisions which allow for succession of state legislators. In 2009, its second report recommended amending the rules for succession to the presidency, by removing members of Congress from the line of succession, and including people who do not normally reside in Washington, D.C. in case of a catastrophic attack on the city. Also in 2009 the Commission published a "mini-report" summarizing its First Report, and criticizing as inadequate legislation enacted by Congress in 2005 to deal with the event of a catastrophic attack on Congress. In 2011 its third full report dealt with measures to keep the Supreme Court in operation in the event that its membership falls below a
quorum A quorum is the minimum number of members of a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure, such as a legislature) necessary to conduct the business of that group. According to '' Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised'', the ...
(that is, fewer than six justices). The Commission recommended creating an "emergency interim court" of senior judges which could hear cases instead of the Supreme Court, with a right of appeal to the Supreme Court once the Supreme Court was quorate again. After publishing its third report the Commission was dissolved.


Members

In addition to former presidents
Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...
and
Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. ( ; born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. He was the only president never to have been elected ...
serving as the Commission's honorary co-chairmen, other members have included former elected officials, academics, cabinet officials and senior policy advisers such as
Philip Bobbitt Philip Chase Bobbitt, (born July 22, 1948) is an American author, academic, and lawyer. He is best known for work on U.S. constitutional law and theory, and on the relationship between law, strategy and history in creating and sustaining the St ...
,
Lloyd Cutler Lloyd Norton Cutler (November 10, 1917 – May 8, 2005) was an American attorney who served as White House Counsel during the Democratic administrations of Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton. Early life and education Cutler was bo ...
,
Kenneth Duberstein Kenneth Marc Duberstein (April 21, 1944 – March 2, 2022) was an American lobbyist who served as U.S. President Ronald Reagan's White House Chief of Staff from 1988 to 1989. Early life and education Duberstein was born to a Jewish family in Br ...
,
Charles Fried Charles Anthony Fried (born April 15, 1935) is an American jurist and lawyer. He served as United States Solicitor General under President Ronald Reagan from 1985 to 1989. He is a professor at Harvard Law School and has been a visiting profess ...
,
Newt Gingrich Newton Leroy Gingrich (; né McPherson; born June 17, 1943) is an American politician and author who served as the 50th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U. ...
,
Jamie Gorelick Jamie S. Gorelick (; born May 6, 1950) is an American lawyer who served as the Deputy Attorney General of the United States from 1994 to 1997, during the Clinton administration. She has been a partner at WilmerHale since 2003 and has served on ...
, Nicholas Katzenbach, Lynn Martin, Kweisi Mfume,
Robert H. Michel Robert Henry Michel (; March 2, 1923 – February 17, 2017) was an American Republican Party politician who was a member of the United States House of Representatives for 38 years. He represented central Illinois' 18th congressional distric ...
,
Leon Panetta Leon Edward Panetta (born June 28, 1938) is an American Democratic Party politician who has served in several different public office positions, including Secretary of Defense, CIA Director, White House Chief of Staff, Director of the Office of ...
,
Donna Shalala Donna Edna Shalala ( ; born February 14, 1941) is an American politician and academic who served in the Carter and Clinton administrations, as well as in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2019 to 2021. Shalala is a recipient of the Preside ...
and Alan K. Simpson.


Influence in other countries

Having reviewed the Commission's 2003 recommendations, the
Australian government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Governmen ...
released plans in 2005 under which members of Parliament who survived an attack would be moved to a secure bunker that would allow them to maintain the functions of government, and also addressed the issues of mass vacancies caused by such an attack.Nicholson, Brendan
"Government plans bomb-proof bunker for MPs"
''
The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...
'', February 18, 2005. Accessed October 12, 2009.


References

{{Reflist


Further reading


''Model Continuity of Congress Statute'', 4 Pierce L. Rev. 191 (2006); 4 U.N.H. L. Rev. 191 (2006).

Sanford Levinson, Comment, ''Assuring Continuity of Government'', 4 Pierce L. Rev. 201 (2006); 4 U.N.H. L. Rev. 201 (2006).

''Overruling INS v. Chadha: Advice on Choreography: A Reply to Professor Sanford Levinson'', 4 Pierce L. Rev. 207 (2006); 4 U.N.H. L. Rev. 207 (2006).


External links


First report
"The Continuity of Congress," May 2003. (Archived a

Accessed: 2021-05-08)
Second report
"The Continuity of the Presidency," June 2009. (Archived a

Accessed: 2016-03-24)
Mini report
"Continuity of Congress: Where We Are Eight Years After 9/11," 2009.
Third report
"The Continuity of the Supreme Court," October 2011. (Archived a

Accessed: 2020-06-02) Think tanks based in the United States United States presidential succession Think tanks established in 2002 Continuity of government in the United States 2002 establishments in the United States 2011 disestablishments in the United States