palin explains VP job

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Sarah Palin tells kids: vice president 'runs' Senate
Associated Press
Originally published 09:54 a.m., October 22, 2008
Updated 09:54 a.m., October 22, 2008


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WASHINGTON -- Asked by a third-grader what a vice president does,
Republican candidate Sarah Palin responded that the vice president is
the president's "team mate" but also "runs the Senate" and "can really
get in there with the senators and make a lot of good policy changes."

While aimed at a typical 8-year-old, Palin's explanations oversimplify
the Constitution's definition of the duties of the vice president and
don't match the office's traditional role in Senate activities.

The vice president's main duty is to replace the president if the
president dies, resigns, is removed from office or can no longer carry
out his or her duties for other reasons. The Constitution names the
vice president as the president of the Senate but allows the vice
president to cast a vote only to break a tie.

The vice president, as a member of the executive branch of the
government, has no official role in developing legislation or
determining how it is presented to or debated by the Senate, which is
part of the legislative branch. In all meaningful ways, the leader of
the majority party runs the Senate.

Traditionally, the vice president appears in the Senate for ceremonial
events and in case of a tie vote. Although the vice president can
preside over the Senate, vice presidents have left that day-to-day
chore to senators themselves. In the past, each president has
determined the role of the vice president in an administration.

The subject of the vice president's duties came up as Palin sat for an
interview with KUSA-TV in Denver, which has a feature called "Question
from the Third Grade." The interviewer asked, "Brandon Garcia wants to
know, 'What does the vice president do?'"

"That's a great question, Brandon, and a vice president has a really
great job because not only are they there to support the president's
agenda, they're like the team member, the team mate to that
president," Palin said.

"But also, they're in charge of the United States Senate, so if they
want to they can really get in there with the senators and make a lot
of good policy changes that will make life better for Brandon and his
family and his classroom. And it's a great job, and I look forward to
having that job," she said.