The term ends at noon, January 20, 2021

I’ve commented a few times about comments from others that the nasty guy could cancel the November election. The coronavirus could give him ample excuse to do so. Sarah Kendzior, who studies authoritarian regimes, frequently comments that people like the nasty guy are very hard to remove from power once they get in.

Carlton Larson, a professor of constitutional law at UC Davis, tweeted a long thread about what our Constitution says about that. He starts his discussion by replying to a tweet from Josh Douglas who is an election law professor. Douglas tweeted:

No, Trump cannot use his executive powers, even in a national emergency, to delay the November 2020 election. Only Congress can set the date of the presidential election.

Larson continues. The term of office of the nasty guy and vice nasty guy end at noon on January 20, 2021. It’s in the Constitution. If an election has not been held then the Presidential Succession Act is in play and the Speaker of the House becomes Acting President. If no Speaker, next is President Pro Tem of the Senate.

There might not be a Speaker because the House is fully elected when the President is. If no election there may be no House members and no Speaker. But that’s not true in the Senate where 2/3 of the senators are not up for reelection.

Of the one third whose terms expire this year, 23 are GOP and 12 are Dem. The remaining body, heavily Dem, would make sure the Acting President would be Dem. Yes, states allow filling vacancies, however they way they are filled varies by state.

So the nasty guy has no advantage in delaying the election (unless the Constitution is thoroughly shredded by then). Alas, there is a great deal of advantage in cheating in the election. That’s been done frequently.

Would the US military prevent the nasty guy’s departure? Remember he ceases to be commander in chief at noon on January 20, 2021. He is no longer protected by the Secret Service. He can be forcibly removed from the White House.