The US House today considered a proposed Constitutional Amendment permitting the appointment of Representatives to replace any who may have perished in an attack killing at least 100 elected Representatives. The proposed Amendment would establish a process whereby House Members themselves would specify an appointment to serve temporarily in their stead, in the eventuality that they perish in an attack killing at least 100 Members.

Opponents say the new law may strip Congress of its authority under Art. 1, §4 of the Constitution to call for special early elections to guarantee full representation in just such a situation. The Resolution's sponsor, Rep. Brian Baird of Washington (D), says it would in fact permit all Constitutional authority of the Congress to persist during a national crisis, and therefore to call for "writs of election" as put forth by the Constitution. Supporters charge that the Republican proposal would grant the President 45-75 days of authoritarian rule, with no Congressional check on Executive power, essentially ending representative democracy if terrorists successfully strike Congress.

Constitutional concerns are similar on both sides, illustrating the complexity of the issue, though the implications of the Baird versus the Sensenbrenner proposals are not so alike. The central concern is the integrity of the House of Representatives as "the People's House", with direct local electoral processes providing for all Members of the House.

The fears of Sensenbrenner and his supporters are that an appointed Congress would not be trusted by the People, and might set a precedent for moving away from direct electoral representation. Mr. Baird's argument, however, is that his measure provides only temporary appointees, named by directly elected officials as their own replacements, in order that Congress be able to establish a quorum and conduct business, and to serve as a vital Constitutional check on the power of the President, who in the absence of Congress might be empowered to alter the Constitution, prevent elections, and conduct unilateral or dangerous policies with impunity.