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Throttlebottom’s Revenge
How Political Satire Shaped the Perception of the Vice Presidency
Natalie Meyer
The vice presidency of the United States proves to be a paradoxical position, with
a sordid history of murder, deceit, incompetence, and ignorance paired with the
illustrious, whitewashed façade of the second in command. Although so close to near
absolute power over the executive branch, the position itself holds little power, save for
what the president chooses to give his symbolic “right hand man.” Many of the
fundamental problems within the office stem from the ambiguity of the constitution and
the failed vision for the vice presidency. Without direction from the constitution,
guidance from an attentive president, or common sense, many vice presidents faltered,
making mistakes that damaged the perception of the vice presidency.
Amendments to the constitution gradually clarified the role of the vice presidency
because of the deplorable history of vice-presidential incompetence and public pressure
brought on by honest political satire. One of the most influential and biting accounts of
vice presidential satire, the 1931 Pulitzer Prize winning Broadway musical “Of Thee I
Sing,” remained culturally relevant and effective decades after its initial release because
it referenced the true fundamental flaws of the vice-presidential position. Referencing the
early problems with the nomination process, “Of Thee I Sing” directed the public’s
attention back to the mistakes within the constitution and how the nomination process
described in the twelfth amendment resulted in a long history of vice-presidential
incompetence. Earlier satirists had already pounced on vice-presidential mistakes, from
the massive blunders of Aaron Burr, to the seemingly insignificant mistakes of George
2
Clinton. While it was painfully clear during Woodrow Wilson’s disability crisis that the
constitution did not establish a clear line of succession, it was not until the debut of “Of
Thee I Sing” that politicians attempted to clarify the constitution through the twentieth
amendment. The play inspired satirical criticism of subsequent problems that emerged,
and the criticism led to the twenty-fifth amendment in 1967. While the amendment
clearly established the line of succession, the problems of vice presidential incompetence
and the roles and responsibilities of the office still remain unsolved and forgotten, save
for the occasional biting reminder brought by satire.
In 1931, "Of Thee I Sing" opened on Broadway with sterling reviews for its acute
political satire of the presidency and vice presidency. In the play, Alexander
Throttlebottom, a candidate for the vice presidency, bumbles incompetently and ineptly
through the campaign. At one point, he goes into hiding, becoming a hermit, because he
fears that his presence might ruin the campaign. After his election, Throttlebottom sneaks
into the Oval Office via a guided tour, as he confesses that he was not aware that
politicians were allowed inside the White House unsupervised. When asked what he did
during his term as vice president, Throttlebottom, speaking about himself in the third
person, replies that he “sits around in the park, and feeds the pigeons, and takes walks,
and goes to the movies. The other day he was going to join the library, but he had to have
two references, so he couldn't get in.”1 Perhaps Throttlebottom's most endearing quality is
his honest, sincere ignorance. With no inkling of proper proceedings or decorum,
Throttlebottom does everything to the best of his ability, but his attempts always fall just
short of sub par.
1
George S. Kaufman and Morrie Ryskind, Of Thee I Sing (New York: Alfred A Knopf,
1932).
2
3
The scathing interpretation of the vice presidency in "Of Thee I Sing" unraveled
public confidence in the office. While politicians are no strangers to searing satire, the
massive backlash against the vice presidency painted the position as a superfluous,
ridiculous office. In a reaffirmation of its incalculable influence, the play won the Pulitzer
Prize for Drama in 1932. The Pulitzer Prize Committee stated:
This award may seem unusual, but the play is unusual… it is biting and
true satire on American politics and the public attitude toward them... Its effect on
the stage promises to be very considerable, because… by injecting genuine satire
and point into them, a very large public is reached… [It] has a freshness and
vitality which are both unusual and admirable. The play is genuine, and it is felt
the prize could not serve a better purpose than to recognize such work.2
In spite of the Pulitzer Prize Committee's decision, many audience members and
critics alike questioned if the representation of Throttlebottom, and the vice presidency,
was fair. In one of the early jabs at the vice presidency, two campaign managers,
Gilhooley and Fulton, struggle to remember the name of their party's vice presidential
candidate. Every time Throttlebottom calls the manager’s hotel room, either Gilhooley or
Fulton unceremoniously hangs up on the politician, as they simply have no idea who the
mysterious caller may be. Finally, after nearly an entire scene of bewilderment, the
managers finally discuss the nomination of the supposed candidate after realizing that
they do, in deed, have a vice presidential candidate after all:
Gilhooley: Well, think a minute. How did you come to nominate
[Throttlebottom]?
Lippman: Who introduced him to you?
Fulton: Nobody introduced him. I picked his name out of a hat. We put a
lot of names in a hat, and this fellow lost.3
2
3
The Pulitzer Prize Committee, Announcement of the Pulitzer Prize, in Of Thee I Sing.
Kaufman and Ryskind, Of Thee I Sing p. 11.
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4
For some audiences, the banter demeaned nomination standards, while others
praised the criticism of a seemingly flawed process. The jab at the unimportance of the
vice presidency alluded to the perception of the office as a throwaway position. After all,
even the presidential candidate in “Of Thee I Sing,” John P. Wintergreen, cannot
remember Throttlebottom’s name, and snatches Alexander’s snack right out of his hand,
thinking that the vice presidential candidate must be a waiter or hotel worker.
While the constitution should have been the backbone of the vice presidency,
propping up the worthiness and responsibilities of the position, the constitution originally
failed to shape the office effectively. Initially, the original constitutional provisions for
electing both the president and vice president worked well. However, John Adams, the
first vice president famously said, "I am the Vice President. In this, I am nothing. But I
may be everything."4 Adams understood the paradoxical expectation of the vice
presidency: almost a duty to be seen, but not heard in politics. Venting his frustrations
over the powerlessness of the office, Adams correctly perceived the inherent problem
with having a weak, ineffective position with such a high profile and potential for power.
Like Adams, Throttlebottom understood the power, or lack thereof, of the office, as he
religiously ducks out of campaign functions to become a hermit during Wintergreen’s
campaign.
Initially, before the ratification of the twelfth amendment, the vice-presidential
position was filled by the candidate with the second highest number of votes. This was
enacted to prevent the Alexander Throttlebottoms of the world from becoming vice
president. In theory, the two most qualified politicians would be elected to the presidency
4
As quoted in Michael Dorman, The Second Man, ( New York: Delacorte Press, 1968),
p.6.
4
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and vice presidency, respectively. The initial provision of Article II, Section 1 of the
constitution stated that "the executive power shall be vested in a President of the United
States of America... together with the Vice-President...In every case, after the choice of
President, the person having the greatest number of votes of the electors shall be the
Vice-President. But if there should remain two or more who have equal votes, the Senate
shall choose from them by ballot the Vice-President."5 The Founding Fathers envisioned
that the two highest, most qualified individuals would fill the presidency and vice
presidency; however, with the emergence of the two-party system, that voting method
proved unfeasible, allowing numerous Throttlebottoms to slip through the campaign
process.
While the initial idea of ambiguous voting seemed logical, since voters could not
distinguish between which candidate they had chosen for the presidency or vice
presidency, John Adams nabbed the presidency in 1797. However, his opposing
candidate with the second highest number of votes, Thomas Jefferson, became the vice
president by default. The nearly black and white differences between Adams and
Jefferson destroyed the potential for a cooperative union. The dissention within the
administration demonstrated the limitations of the vice president's power, contradicting
the previous assumption that the vice president and president automatically entered into a
cooperative, symbiotic relationship.
In the election of 1800, a tie occurred within the same party. Both Thomas
Jefferson and his supposed vice-presidential pick, Aaron Burr, tied with enough votes to
become president. Aaron Burr made a grab for the title role as president. Jefferson, seen
5
The Constitution of the United States of America Article II, Section 1.
5
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as the lesser of two Democratic Republican evils by the Federalists in the House of
Representatives, won the tiebreaker, despite the conflict within both parties over the
decision.
Aaron Burr, elected as the vice president instead of the president, continued in the
Adams-Jefferson tradition of personal and professional conflicts. While Burr had the
potential to contribute actively and positively to the Jefferson administration, his vice
presidency damaged the perception of the office with enduring consequences. Unlike the
innocent and loveable Throttlebottom, Burr earned a sordid reputation. Burr ran for
Governor of New York without his party's loyalty, and slunk back to Washington when
he lost. His infamous duel with Alexander Hamilton, led his enemies to dub him a
murderer and crook. Mirroring the sentiments of countless satirists and inflicting the
punch lines of any Burr-bashing jab, a journalist from the Connecticut Courant scathingly
criticized Aaron Burr by describing him as "inspired... with confidence to break the laws
of decency and decorum, and [he must bear] the indignant and condemning looks of our
injured and insulted citizens."6 The remark captured the undercurrents of resentment that
usually manifested in snide, backhanded comments or flitting gossip. In a more biting
form of criticism, Tapping Reeve, the Chief Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court
quipped, “If you want your constitution killed at once, vote for little Aaron- if to die of
consumption, vote for Thomas Jefferson.”7 The public backlash, through blatant satire
and subtle clues, reaffirmed that Burr damaged public perception of his office.
6
"Extract of a letter from Philadelphia," Connecticut Courant, August 8, 1804.
7
Richard Saunders, "LETTER III, From Mr. Richard Saunders, to a friend in a
neighboring State." Connecticut Courant, July 27, 1808.
6
7
Through comics, unflattering newspaper editorials, veiled, and not-so-veiled
threats, public opinion of Burr and the vice presidency reached an all-time low after his
disastrous campaign for Governor and duel with Hamilton. Expressing a common
sentiment, Rodger Saunders wrote that "[Aaron] Burr... ought to have been hanged,
although not by his friends the democrats whom he brought into power."7 Saunder’s
relentless mocking of Burr’s reputation for alleged murder of Alexander Hamilton
mirrored countless articles in the outpouring of anti-Burr, and anti-vice-presidential
propaganda.
In 1804, to prevent another Jefferson-Burr fiasco from occurring, the twelfth
amendment was ratified and adopted into the Constitution. The public outcry against Burr
doubtlessly influenced the political climate in which the amendment was created, and
probably spurred the ratification. The amendment stated that "[voters] shall make distinct
lists of all persons voted for as President, and of all persons voted for as Vice-President,
and of the number of votes for each, which lists they shall sign and certify."8 Thus, the
ambiguous voting ceased because voters could specify whom they wanted for the
President and Vice President. Intended to fix the disastrous results of the Jefferson-Burr
tie, the new amendment hoped to prevent the future catastrophe of having another
presidential, vice-presidential power struggle.
The twelfth amendment did not address the vagueness of the original provisions
of the vice president assuming the presidency. Commenting on the ratification of the
new amendment created over a hundred years earlier, "Of Thee I Sing" criticized its
ambiguity. In “Of Thee I Sing,” to escape a marriage to the illegitimate daughter of an
8
The Constitution of the United States of America Amendment XII.
7
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illegitimate son of an illegitimate nephew of Napoleon, President John P. Wintergreen
and the French Ambassador use the amendment as a loophole.
French Ambassador: When the President of the United States fails to fulfill his
duty[President] Wintergreen: That's it! I've got it!
All: Got what?
[President] Wintergreen: It's in the Constitution! When the President of the United
States is unable to fulfill his duties, his obligations are assumed byThrottlebottom: The vice-president!
Chief Justice: Article Twelve!9
The play criticized the twelfth amendment by implying that the constitutional
provision did nothing to prevent incompetent politicians from becoming president, and
did nothing to clarify the conditions under which a vice president could assume the
presidency. In “Of Thee I Sing,” the twelfth amendment serves as the climatic loophole
through which Throttlebottom assumes the presidency and saves the day for President
Wintergreen. When he uses the twelfth amendment for his gain, Throttlebottom
demonstrates that the amendment did nothing to fix the fundamental problems of
incompetence and power within the vice-presidential office.
In the same year of the ratification, unfortunately, another incompetent vice
president was elected to office, affirming the criticism of "Of Thee I Sing." In 1804,
Jefferson chose George Clinton for his running mate. Once elected, Clinton followed the
history of Vice Presidential incompetence during his term. While he had once been a fine
and capable politician, his considerable age impaired his ability to perform the tasks of
the vice president, as he often miscounted the votes in the Senate, if he bothered to show
9
Kaufman and Ryskind, Of Thee I Sing p. 170-171.
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up at all.10 Referring to vice president George Clinton’s ridiculous errors in presiding
over the senate, Throttlebottom brazenly refuses to perform his duties fully:
Throttlebottom: The Senator who's from Alaska?... Check!... The Senator
who's from Nebraska?
The Senators from other States
Will have to bide their time,
For I simply can't be bothered
When the names don't rhyme!11
Throttlebottom’s complete lack of respect for his one and only job pinpoints the problem
within such a seemingly unimportant job. Since Clinton managed to botch his one and
only duty spectacularly, satirists seized the opportunity to prove that the only job of the
vice president was as superfluous as it seemed.
Besides Clinton’s ridiculous errors in presiding over the senate, numerous other
vice presidents from the early 1800s to the early 1900s made key blunders. Andrew
Johnson appeared at his inauguration dinner completely drunk and clearly intoxicated.
One of Johnson’s critics composed a ballad in his honor:
Oh, it was not a glorious sight,
To see the crowd of black and white
as well as Andy Johnson tight
At the inauguration.12
After President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination in 1865, Andrew Johnson took
the oath of office, merely weeks after he gave his infamous drunken inaugural
performance. Still sore from the numerous heckles he endured after his foolish lapse of
judgment, Johnson faced the enormous task of Civil War reconstruction, ironically, a task
10
11
Dorman, The Second Man, p. 25-26.
Kaufman and Ryskind, Of Thee I Sing p. 170-171
12
C. Brian Kelly, and Ingrid Smyer-Kelly, Best Little Ironies, Oddities, and Mysteries of
the Civil War, Tennessee, Cumberland House Publishing, 2000 p. 219.
9
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that fueled more criticism. The trail of missteps did not end after Johnson’s unfortunate
presidency; Woodrow Wilson’s vice president also made several key mistakes early into
his tenure.
1912, Woodrow Wilson, the former president of Princeton University and former
governor of New Jersey ran for the presidency. However, because Woodrow Wilson was
seen as a progressive Easterner, the Democratic Party sought to use his running mate to
help balance Wilson's lack of appeal in other areas of the country. Thomas Riley
Marshall used his home state of Indiana's 29 delegate votes to help Wilson nab the
candidacy at the National Convention. In return, Wilson chose him as his running mate.
With Wilson’s victory over both Roosevelt and Taft in the general election, Marshall
became vice president.
Armed with a cynical sense of humor, Marshall entered his role as the vice
president with grace and aplomb. Occasionally, his wit reflected poorly on the respected
attorney, as when he famously declared on the Senate floor “what this country needs is a
really good five-cent cigar!"13 Marshall’s impressive record as Governor of Indiana
earned him the reputation as being more conservative than president Wilson. Ironically,
one of Marshall’s greatest downfalls was his recognition of the role of the vice president.
Like John Adams and countless vice presidents before him, Marshall truly believed that
the role of the vice presidency was to stay subservient to the President. Almost
prophetically, in his opening address to the Senate, Marshall stated, “Senators: Custom
calls for the utterance of a few words upon the occasion; otherwise I would gladly remain
13
"MARSHALL'S STATE SHOCKED: Indiana Friends Had Hoped for His Recovery,"
New York Times, 2 June 1925.
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silent...”14 Marshall’s eagerness to hide behind the vice-presidential office ultimately
doomed him to flounder in one of the most perilous times in American politics: Wilson’s
disability crisis. Unlike Throttlebottom, Marshall seemed to be a fully capable candidate,
although he proved that even competent politicians still make costly mistakes.
When Woodrow Wilson went to France to promote the League of Nations, he put
Marshall in charge of presiding over Cabinet meetings. Fearing that it may be
unconstitutional, Marshal did so only at Wilson’s insistence, although he handled the new
responsibilities well while the president was absent. In “Of Thee I Sing,” reporters
chastise the vice president’s attempted involvement in politics by alluding to Marshall’s
brief stint at Cabinet meetings, and the seeming “vacations” to France taken by Wilson:
Reporters: [Singing it, of course]
We don’t want to know about the moratorium
Or how near we are to beer,
Or about the League of Nations,
Or the seventeen vacations,
You’ve had since you’ve been here.15
While “Of Thee I Sing” painted Wilson’s trips as “vacations,” the reality of the
situation was much more stark than many initially realized. After Wilson returned home
form France, he ventured on a speaking tour. Already frail from his recent travels, the
strain of more traveling pushed Wilson into a fragile state, until his health collapsed on
September 26, 1919. Unfortunately, despite Woodrow Wilson's numerous qualifications
for office, his failing health during the critical campaign to secure ratification of the
treaty ending World War I brought about one of the greatest leadership crises in
American history.
14
Thomas Marshall, "Inaugural Address." Senate of the United States, Washington,
Government Printing Office, 3 Mar. 1917.
15
Kaufman and Ryskind, Of Thee I Sing p. 145.
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12
Initially, his personal physician, Admiral Cary Grayson downplayed the severity
of Wilson’s health. One day after Wilson’s collapse, a comic in the New York Tribune
portrayed Wilson’s railway car chugging along in the distance, with the donkey and
G.OP elephant belatedly collecting stray pieces of coal. Tugging along empty baskets
labeled “CAMPAIGN FUEL,” the two mascots symbolized the fractured efforts of both
parties to pick up the pieces after Wilson’s disastrous turn of events.16 Accurately
portrayed in the comic, the chaos after Wilson’s collapse prompted an enormous public
relations effort to mask the severity of the incident.
A satirical comic published the day after Wilson’s initial collapse on the Johnson
speaking tour.
16
Editorial Cartoon 1 -- No Title, New - York Tribune, 27 Sept. 1919.
12
13
Concealing the severe health problems that the president faced, Admiral Grayson
attributed the President’s failing health to stress. “President Wilson's condition is due to
overwork... His condition is not alarming, but it will be necessary for his recovery that he
have rest and quiet for considerable time.”17 In actuality, Wilson suffered from cerebral
thrombosis, and his health deteriorated quickly in one of the most pivotal moments in
American politics.
Without Wilson to lead the country, many questioned the fate of America’s
involvement in the League of Nations, as the Senate stood divided on the US’s
involvement. The more pressing issue, however, was the constitutional precedence for
presidential disability. By all standards, Wilson was unable to fulfill his duties as
president for a month, and when he once again began participating in policymaking, his
heath degraded his capacity to serve. Thomas Marshall took no action to claim the
presidency. Damning the vice presidential office in the eyes of many, Marshall failed to
step in to lead the government at one of its weakest points.
While the constitution did not explicitly grant vice presidents in Marshall’s
position the right to assume the office of president, or even acting president, many
believed that Marshall would have made a competent and capable president had he
attempted to use the constitutional vagueness to his advantage. As the satirical comic
after Woodrow Wilson’s illness suggests, both parties scrambled to pick up the pieces
after the president was unable to fulfill the requirements of office. Marshall had a golden
opportunity to restore the reputation of the vice presidency. The pointed barbs at
17
“Wilson Suffers Nervous Collapse; Cancels His Tour;” The New York Tribune 27
Sept. 1919.
13
14
Wilson’s disability all fundamentally criticized the perceived weakness of President
Wilson’s administration. Had Marshall tried to reclaim the office as his own, or assume
more of Wilson’s responsibilities, he could have, at the very minimum, faced the
fundamental problems of the vice presidential position and stirred interest in fixing the
problems within the constitution and vice-presidential position. After Marshall’s failure
to assume the presidency, four bills were proposed in congress to clarify the constitution,
but none of the amendments passed.
Without further clarification from the constitution, vice president Charles Dawes
made several errors while presiding over the senate in 1925. Under President Calvin
Coolidge, Dawes made a mistake when he misjudged when a critical vote would be
taking place. Coolidge wanted to replace the former Attorney General with Charles
Warren, a highly controversial choice because of his alleged ties to sugar monopolies,
and promptly sent the nomination to the Senate.18 The president recognized that the
controversy over Warren might force Dawes to cast a tie-breaking vote in favor of the
new Attorney General. On March 9, 1925, Dawes asked if the vote would occur that
afternoon, but numerous Senators assured him that he would not be needed until then, so
Dawes retreated to his hotel room for a nap. Unfortunately for Dawes, many speakers
declined to comment, and the vote began much earlier than anticipated.
Once the Republicans realized that the voting would begin, they frantically
phoned Dawes at his room and tried to delay the role call. Leaping into a taxi, Dawes
raced to the Senate, but a Democratic senator who initially supported Warren changed his
mind and voted against nominee. The vote ended without Dawes and he failed to secure
18
Dorman, The Second Man, p.125.
14
15
the Attorney General position for Warren in a highly embarrassing mistake. The entire
debacle seemed to be a scene out of “Of Thee I Sing,” as the bumbling Throttlebottom
could have easily made the same seemingly innocent mistake and preferred a comfortable
nap to another boring Senate discussion. Senator George Norris from Nebraska
immortalized Dawes’s epic taxi ride in a parody of “Sheridan’s Ride,” which he read
aloud on the Senate floor in Dawes’s honor:
Hurrah, Hurrah for Dawes!
Hurrah! hurrah for this high-minded man...
Oh, Hell an' Maria, he has lost us the fight.19
Like the mistakes of past vice presidents, Dawes’s mistake caused a public outcry
against politicians. Only in 1933, two years after “Of Thee I Sing” debuted on
Broadway, and one year after the play won the Pulitzer Prize, was the twentieth
amendment ratified. Exhibiting Marshall’s inaction and Dawes’s mistake, the nearly
damning satire pointed out the problems within the constitution. Spurred by history and
humor, the amendment was ratified. Among other provisions, the amendment specified,
“If, at the time fixed for the beginning of the term of the President, the President elect
shall have died, the Vice President elect shall become President.”20 Unfortunately, the
twentieth amendment did not clarify the conditions under which a vice president could
assume office when a sitting president is incapacitated. Twenty-five days later after the
ratification, Guiseppe Zangara attempted to assassinate president-elect Franklin D.
Roosevelt. Had he succeeded, the vice president-elect, would have been sworn into office
under the new constitutional provisions. While the amendment helped clear up some of
19
As quoted in United States Congress, Vice Presidents of the United States, 1789-1993.
Mark O. Hatfield, Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1997.
20
The Constitution of the United States of America, Amendment XX Section 3.
15
16
the questions surrounding the succession of the vice presidency, it did not do enough to
define accurately and clearly the roles of the vice presidency.
After the latest constitutional development, it appeared to the public in the 1930s
that the general caliber of the vice presidents did not improve. Roosevelt’s relationship
with his vice president, John Nance Garner, steadily deteriorated towards the end of the
president’s second term in office. In 1940, Garner steadily campaigned against Roosevelt
seeking a third term in office, to the point where the vice president even announced his
own intention for the presidential nomination. Roosevelt’s next vice presidential pick,
Henry A. Wallace, once again damaged the perception of the vice presidency as
numerous vice presidents had done before him.
In the 1920s and 1930s, Wallace had followed the teachings of Nicholas Roerich,
an eccentric Russian philosopher. Convinced by Roerich that there may be a second
coming of Jesus Christ, Wallace sent the philosopher to Mongolia under the guise of
developing new agricultural technology. During Wallace’s campaign for vice president,
Republicans found correspondences written in the 1930s from Wallace to Roerich.
Dubbed the “Guru Letters,” the snippets allowed to surface hinted of counter-cultural
sentiments. The future vice president claimed that the bizarre letters were forgeries. In the
end, newspapers did not publish the letters, but the damage to Wallace’s reputation, and
the reputation of the vice presidency, was done. At a news conference in 1948, Wallace
refused to answer questions regarding the guru letters. In an article titled “WALLACE’S
GAG GIVES NEWSMEN A SHINING HOUR,” a reporter quipped, “some people [here]
defended you and your actions in 1940 and 1944. You owe it to them to clear up this
16
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matter.”21 Wallace then replied that he would, but on his own terms. The controversy and
conflict after the Guru Letters once again damned the role of the vice presidency because
of the sheer absurdity of Letters scandal.
After yet another blow to the office brought by Wallace, the gaps within the
constitution and the flaws within the office were staggeringly apparent. Satire and
criticism reached a critical point, as even older works of satire, like “Of Thee I Sing,” still
remained relevant and truthful. After President John F. Kennedy’s assassination in 1963,
lawmakers scrambled to amend the constitution. The devastating event put a temporary
damper on political comic relief, but audiences rebounded, especially after the passing of
the solution, the twenty-fifth amendment. “The somber aftermath of John F. Kennedy’s
assassination still prevails,” one reporter wrote shortly after the assassination, “[and]
audiences [for entertainments] seem to have shriveled [but] ‘the official period of
mourning [will] end… The town’ll liven up plenty then.’”22 Once the dark curtain of the
Kennedy assassination lifted, comedy and satire returned in full force.
Finally addressing the unclear line of presidential succession in the constitution,
the twenty-fifth amendment created a clear and succinct line of succession. In the case of
Woodrow Wilson’s disability, the new amendment finally clarified the rights of the vice
president to assume the presidency. “Whenever the Vice President… transmits…. their
written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his
office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as
21
Relman Morin, "WALLACE'S GAG GIVES NEWSMEN A SHINING HOUR:
Angered by Quiz, He Cries 'Stooge,'" Chicago Daily Tribune, 24 July 1948.
22
"Dallas Feels Somber Aftermath To Assassination in Its Midst," The Hartford Courant,
7 December 1963.
17
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Acting President.” 23 Regarding both assassination and assassination attempts, the
amendment clearly stated the powers of the vice president. “In case of the removal of the
President from office or of his death or resignation, the Vice President shall become
President.”24 While the amendment did correct the lines of succession, it did little to
address the problems with the position itself. The twenty-fifth amendment did nothing to
suggest a higher standard of competency for vice presidential candidates. It also did not
clarify the official responsibilities of the vice president, such as whether vice presidents
should attend cabinet meetings. In defining the line of succession, it had only addressed
one of the numerous problems within the vice presidency.
Invented as a prestigious, yet powerless position, the vice presidency attracted
incompetent candidates. The numerous shortfalls of the evolving system for choosing a
vice president caused scandal, allegations of misconduct, and an outpouring of
resentment that manifested itself as satire. Satirists played a key role in reforming public
opinion of the vice presidency and helped increase pressure to fix the ambiguity of the
constitution. Alexander Throttlebottom’s ridiculous caricature of the vice presidency was
a culmination of years of frustration against administrations that tolerated incompetence.
From the seemingly innocuous errors of George Clinton to the serious mistakes of
Thomas Marshall, the numerous vice presidential missteps of past administrations
warranted the outpouring of satire in the 20th century. Through editorials and comics,
plays and ditties, citizens upheld the Founding Fathers’ beliefs of a government for the
people by the people. As playwrights and audience members, the people objected when
23
24
The Constitution of the United States of America, Amendment XXV.
The Constitution of the United States of America, Amendment XXV.
18
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they saw failed policies, failed politicians, and ultimately, a fundamentally failed vice
presidential position.
19
20
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