GOVT-110 Midterm: The Role of the Vice President
Document Summary
Assumes presidency if the president becomes incapacitated. Thirteen vice presidents have gone on to become president, eight because of the death of a president. (gerald ford became president after richard m. nixon resigned, and the rest were elected to the office. ) The only duty the u. s. constitution assigns the vice president is to act as presiding officer of the senate. But the vice president also serves as ceremonial assistant to the president and is an important part of the president"s administration. Presides over senate and has the tie breaking vote. This isn"t done too much because we want there to be a separation of powers. Vp usually doesn"t go to senate everyday to preside over it just opens sessions (mostly ceremonial) Vp comes to preside over during controversial debates so the minority party won"t get a chance to talk, presiding officer has to recognize. 2nd place winner became vp at one point and was elected separately.
