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2003: Presidential Succession

2018-06-06T13:06:10Z

172.68.51.40: /* Order of succession */

{{comic
| number = 2003
| date = June 6, 2018
| title = Presidential Succession
| image = presidential_succession.png
| titletext = Ties are broken by whoever was closest to the surface of Europa when they were born.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a DESIGNATED SURVIVOR - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

The {{w|United States presidential line of succession}} is the order of people who serve as president if the current incumbent President is incapacitated, dies, resigns, or is removed from office.

The {{w|Presidential_Succession_Act#Presidential_Succession_Act_of_1947|Presidential Succession Act of 1947}} was an act by the U.S. Congress that revised the presidential order of succession to its current order. This act, though never challenged in the courts, may not be constitutional for two reasons. First, it is unclear whether members of Congress can be designated in the line of succession. Secondly, the act allows for a cabinet officer to be "replaced" as acting President by a new Speaker of the House or a new President Pro Tempore of the Senate.

The full text of the Second Report of the Continuity of Government Commission can be found here: https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/06_continuity_of_government.pdf

The first 6 members of Randall's list are included in the current line of succession. After the top 6, his list ranges from politicians, to actors who have played Presidents, to athletes.

Randall's list omits the Speaker of the House and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, as well as many other cabinet positions. Perhaps he does not find those people qualified to become President of the United States, or is concerned about the constitutionality of lawmakers becoming President.

This is another comic in the continuing line of comics about American politics, especially after the election of Donald Trump as President in 2016.

==Order of succession==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!#
!Randall's order
!Current order by the 1947 Act
!Notes
|-
|1
|President
|President
|Not generally considered part of the line of succession, as incumbents cannot "succeed" to their own post.
|-
|2
| Vice president
| Vice president
|
|-
|3
|Secretary of State
|Speaker of the House of Representatives
|
|-
|4
|Secretary of Defense
|President pro tempore of the Senate
|
|-
|5
|Secretary of Homeland Security
|Secretary of State
|
|-
|6
|Attorney General
|Secretary of the Treasury
|
|-
|7
|Five people who do not live in Washington DC, nominated at the start of the President's term and confirmed by the Senate
|Secretary of Defense
|{{w|Washington, D.C.}} is the capital of the United States, and is where the {{w|White House}}, the President's residence, is located. Presumably this provision covers the case where much of the government, including positions 1–6 here, are killed by a natural disaster or attack in Washington, D.C.

It is unclear if these 5 people have to have any qualifications whatsoever. It is also unclear if an order is determined among these 5 or if they take up joint presidency.
|-
|8
|{{w|Tom Hanks}}
|Attorney General
|Academy Award-winning American actor
|-
|9
|State Governors, in descending order of state population at last census
|Secretary of the Interior
|At the time of publishing, the last {{w|United States Census}} was the 2010 Census. {{w|2010_United_States_Census#State_rankings|Link}} to state populations.
|-
|10
|Anyone who won an Oscar for playing a governor
|Secretary of Agriculture
|Oscars, or {{w|Academy Awards}}, are annual film awards awarded by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
|-
|11
|Anyone who won a Governor's award for playing someone named Oscar
|Secretary of Commerce
|The {{w|Governors Awards}} are an annual award ceremony hosted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to present lifetime achievement awards within the film industry. As this award is a lifetime achievement award, it does not seem possible that an actor could win this award for simply playing someone named Oscar.
|-
|12
|{{w|Kate McKinnon}}, if available
|Secretary of Labor
|Comedic actress famous for being a cast member on {{w|Saturday Night Live}}. She is known for her character work and celebrity impressions. She has recently done impersonations of members of the Trump administration including Spokeswoman Kellyanne Conway and Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
|-
|13
|Billboard Year-End Hot 100 Singles artists #1 through #10 (for groups, whoever is credited first in name, liner notes, etc)
|Secretary of Health and Human Services
|The {{w|Billboard Hot 100}} is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for singles, published weekly by Billboard magazine.
|-
|14
|The top 5 US astronauts in descending order of total spaceflight time
|Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
|The top 5 US astronauts with the most space time are: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Kelly_(astronaut) Scott Kelly] (879 total days), [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peggy_Whitson Peggy Whitson] (665), [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_L%C3%B3pez-Alegr%C3%ADa Michael López-Alegría] (215)
|-
|15
|{{w|Serena Williams}} (or, if she lost her most recent match, whoever beat her)
|Secretary of Transportation
|As of the time of publishing, Serena Williams was the top female tennis player (though not the world #1 ranking, because she took time off for pregnancy). She is arguably the greatest female tennis player of all-time, winning 39 {{w|Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam}} titles, including 23 women's singles titles. At the time of publication Serena Williams did win her most recent match (third round French Open 2018 on June 2nd), although she withdrew from her next match against Maria Sharapova.

If her most recent defeat was to a non-US player, it is unclear whether that person would still qualify for President.
|-
|16
|The most recent season NBA, NFL, MLB, and NHL MVPs
|Secretary of Energy
|MVP stands for {{w|Most Valuable Player}}. The 4 listed leagues are the major sports leagues in the United States, the {{w|National Basketball Association}} (NBA), the {{w|National Football League}} (NFL), {{w|Major League Baseball}} (MLB), and the {{w|National Hockey League}} (NHL).

As of the time of publishing, the most recent MVPs for the listed sports are {{w|Russell Westbrook}} (NBA), {{w|Tom Brady}} (NFL), {{w|José Altuve}} and {{w|Giancarlo Stanton}} (MLB has two, one for the American League and one for the National League), and {{w|Connor McDavid}} (NHL).
|-
|17
|{{w|Bill Pullman}} and his descendants by absolute primogeniture
|Secretary of Education
|American actor, known for playing President Thomas J. Whitmore in the 1996 film ''{{w|Independence Day (1996 film)|Independence Day}}''.

Absolute primogeniture is a form of succession where the oldest direct descendant receives the title. This is contrasted to {{w|Male-preference primogeniture}}, in which males come before females in the order of the throne, whether the males were born first or not. This may be a reference to the British law {{w|Succession to the Crown Act 2013}}, which changed the order of the throne from male-preference primogeniture to absolute primogeniture. This act allows {{w|Princess Charlotte of Cambridge|Princess Charlotte}} to retain her place in line before {{w|Prince Louis of Cambridge|Prince Louis}}.
|-
|18
|The entire line of succession to the British throne
|Secretary of Veterans Affairs
|Unsure if this is constitutional, or what the Founding Fathers would have wanted (a Brit sitting as U.S. President!). The first 57 names on the list are {{w|Succession_to_the_British_throne#Current_line_of_succession|here}}, as of the time of publishing. [https://lineofsuccession.co.uk/?date=2018-06-06 British Line of Succession on 6 June 2018] shows the list as it was at the comic's publication. In theory this entry includes several thousand people.
|-
|19
|The current champion of the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating contest
|Secretary of Homeland Security
|The {{w|Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest}} is an annual American hot dog competitive eating competition sponsored by {{w|Nathan's Famous}} held on July 4th. As of the time of publishing, the most recent men's winner is {{w|Joey Chestnut}} and the women's winner is {{w|Miki Sudo}}.
|-
|20
|All other US citizens, chosen by a 29-round single-elimination Jousting tournament
|''None''
|Effective for a population up to 536,870,912 individuals (2^29), although additional rounds can be added should the population grow further.
|}

The title text mentions whoever was closest to the surface of {{w|Europa}} when they were born. Europa is a moon of Jupiter, so most people would be very far from its surface when they were born. However, the depending on the relative positions of Earth and Jupiter when you were born, you could easily have been tens of millions of kilometers closer. Alternatively, Randall could be playing on how Europa sounds like Europe.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
: A proposal for a new presidential line of succession
: Current politics aside, most experts agree the existing process is flawed. The presidential succession act of 1947 is probably unconstitutional on several counts, and there are many practical issues with the system as well.
: (for more, see the surprisingly gripping [https://www.brookings.edu/research/the-continuity-of-the-presidency-the-second-report-of-the-continuity-of-government-commission/ ''Second Report of the Continuity of Government Commission'', June 2009]).
: Proposed line of succession:
:# President
:# Vice president
:# Secretary of State
:# Secretary of Defense
:# Secretary of Homeland Security
:# Attorney General
:# Five people who do not live in Washington DC, Nominated at the start of the president's term and confirmed by the Senate
:# Tom Hanks
:# State Governors, in descending order of state population at last census
:# Anyone who won an Oscar for playing a governor
:# Anyone who won a Governor's award for playing someone named Oscar
:# Kate McKinnon, if available
:# Billboard year-end hot 100 singles artists #1 through #10 (for groups, whoever is credited first in name, liner notes, etc)
:# The top 5 US astronauts in descending order of total spaceflight time
:# Serena Williams (or, if she lost her most recent match, whoever beat her)
:# The most recent season NBA, NFL, MLB, and NHL MVPs
:# Bull Pullman and his descendants by absolute primogeniture
:# The entire line of succession to the British throne
:# The current champion of the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating contest
:# All other US citizens, chosen by a 29-round single-elimination Jousting tournament.

: Title text: Ties are broken by whoever was closest to the surface of Europa when they were born.

{{comic discussion}}

Talk:1798: Box Plot

2017-02-19T00:41:04Z

172.68.51.40:

No Valentine's comic this year? (Or could it be later this week?) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.154.163|162.158.154.163]] 16:27, 13 February 2017 (UTC)
:Trump killed Valentine's Day for Randall. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.219|162.158.74.219]] 17:54, 13 February 2017 (UTC)
::I would agree with that, but it could just as well be next comic. However, Randall doesn't usually make Valentines comics, so... --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:59, 13 February 2017 (UTC)
:::Just checked and the last he did was [[1016: Valentine Dilemma]]. He has made six [[:Category:Valentines|Valentines comics]] and now it is five years ago he made one last. He seems to not like Valentine by the way! --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 19:48, 18 February 2017 (UTC)

I thought this may also be similar to a bycicle pump because it doesn't explode it just enlarges. Wasn't there a comic similar to this where someone blows into a laptop power cord and it blows up like a balloon.[[User:XFez|XFez]] ([[User talk:XFez|talk]]) 18:54, 13 February 2017 (UTC)
:Yes: https://xkcd.com/1395/ {{unsigned ip|108.162.216.100}}
::Good call [[1395: Power Cord]] should be mentioned. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 21:01, 13 February 2017 (UTC)

I’m surprised this was Cueball, not Beret Guy. {{unsigned ip|108.162.216.100}}
:It could be that inflating/manipulating data is not supernatural. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.154.163|162.158.154.163]] 19:37, 13 February 2017 (UTC)
::Yes many people do this all the time, sadly. Often referenced in xkcd... --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 21:01, 13 February 2017 (UTC)

There's also a blasting machine in Floor, /735
[[Special:Contributions/141.101.88.148|141.101.88.148]] 22:11, 13 February 2017 (UTC)

Could whoever writes the transcripts, please keep them more concise? I am visually impaired and rely on transcripts to "get" the comics, but I find that detailed descriptions of how things are drawn make the joke harder, not easier, to understand. Most transcripts are great, with just the information needed to get it, but some are way too detailed—and this one is pushing it to the extreme. Does anyone really want to know the exact size of each box, or how many lines are drawn around Cueball's shoulders to indicate movement? I'd be much happier with something like "Cueball climbs on top of the second box and pushes the whisker as if it were a pump. The box inflates as if air had been pumped into it." I don't want to know precisely how this information is conveyed, I just want to laugh like you guys with a good joke without getting lost in details. That said, many many thanks to those who write the transcripts! Zetfr 23:11, 13 February 2017 (UTC)

:That is one very detailed transcript. [[User:Cardboardmech|Cardboardmech]] ([[User talk:Cardboardmech|talk]]) 14:00, 14 February 2017 (UTC)

::I have taken matters into my own hands and rewrote the transscript. This is my first contribution to this wiki, so feel free to revert this commit it if it does not fit explainxkcd's style. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.91.215|162.158.91.215]] 19:57, 14 February 2017 (UTC)

:::Maybe this wiki could benefit from having both "basic transcripts" and "super-detailed transcripts" as separate sections. [[User:Asdf|Asdf]] ([[User talk:Asdf|talk]]) 00:15, 15 February 2017 (UTC)

::::To me, this new transcript is perfect. Those "basic transcripts" are really useful. I hope all future transcripts will be made in the same spirit! If others want "super-detailed transcripts" in addition, fine, but for what purpose?
::::Zetfr 09:06, 15 February 2017 (UTC)

:::::I have started a discussion on this topic here: [[User_talk:Kynde#Transcript_TLDR.3B]]. Maybe we can define a Transcript-Guide. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 11:48, 15 February 2017 (UTC)

::::::@Zetfr. Thanks for the input and sorry about the inconvenience. I was really trying to do my best, and also thanks for using our transcripts. But great to have a debate. As Dgbrt wrote above there is now a discussion on my page. Cool if more than him and me (and one more so far) joined in. I think my observations in the transcript is valid information, but yes maybe they should go into a trivia below the transcript. And great with the already changed transcript by the user who took it into his own hand. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 14:16, 15 February 2017 (UTC)
:::::::However, the deleted "data" shows how much the points change, and that could be interesting. So I have added it again in a collapsed section, only shown for those with interest. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 19:36, 18 February 2017 (UTC)
:::::::You've edited the transscript again to add irrelevant details? For the joke it is completely irrelevant if the box bulges at the bottom or the top; it is equally irrelevant that Randall has drawn the motion of pumping with shaded versions of Cueball in the 4th tile (That's what the transscript is for: describing _what_ happens, not _how_ it is displayed). (This goes for all these additions, but I won't bother with listing them all). [[Special:Contributions/172.68.51.40|172.68.51.40]] 00:41, 19 February 2017 (UTC)

Its not mentioned in the explanation (and i dont feel confident enough to add it), but these plots are occasionally referred to by statistical types as "dynamite plots" (as some statistical folk dont like them), which is what i believe the title text may be a reference to. --[[User:Takigama|Takigama]] ([[User talk:Takigama|talk]]) 02:08, 14 February 2017 (UTC)

Box plots also resemble candle stick plots that are widely used in stock trading charts. It could be a reference to inflated stock prices[[Special:Contributions/172.68.62.22|172.68.62.22]] 05:57, 14 February 2017 (UTC)
: If so Cueball did a pretty bad job. The open, close, and low are all at the same value and the high is ''lower''. I think you’re reaching a bit too far with that. --
:: probably but i can't help seeing something like this CandleVolume [ChartSchool] - StockCharts.com . Once you see it, you can't help seeing it every time. Until your body finishes metabolizing the mushrooms. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.62.22|172.68.62.22]] 00:27, 18 February 2017 (UTC)
[[Special:Contributions/162.158.78.154|162.158.78.154]] 06:14, 14 February 2017 (UTC)

I just had an funny thought: What if this comic is Randall's response to the recent "trend" of trying to see a connection to Trumps's election to his comics? (@Kynde: That comment is not meant to be that serious ;) ) [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 14:13, 14 February 2017 (UTC)
:Yes for sure it is about Trump... :-) I don't see anything Trump like here though, and it has "only" been [[1756:_I'm_With_Her#Sad_comics|five comics]] (out of about 40) I think is related to these issues since the election. But Im sure it is statistically valid, and I will make a box plot for you soooooooon, which you can blow up :p --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 14:22, 15 February 2017 (UTC)

Pretty sure there is an Indiana Jones comic about data and artifacts we should maybe include that.[[User:XFez|XFez]] ([[User talk:XFez|talk]]) 14:59, 14 February 2017 (UTC)

This feels like one of the most detailed explanations on explainxkcd I've seen for a normal-size comic. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.208|141.101.98.208]] 15:33, 14 February 2017 (UTC)

Anyone else notice the new What-If article that went up a few days ago? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.122.144|162.158.122.144]] 03:47, 15 February 2017 (UTC)
:No I did not thanks for alerting us: The [[what if?]] {{what if|154|Coast-to-Coast Coasting}} came out February 8th, at the same time as [[1796]]. This time there seems to be no connection with it and the comics released. Only 10 days after the previous instead of 15 weeks. Maybe Randall will begin writing them more regularly again, one could hope. It has been a week today, but no new article is up yet. So maybe not down to weekly releases yet... --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 14:22, 15 February 2017 (UTC)