Chief Justice of the United States

NBC reported today that the Chief Justice of the United States, William Rehnquist, would be on hand to swear in President Bush in January. However, the reporter went on to say that this should quell speculation that he will be resigning as a result of his thyroid cancer. I am assuming the reporter meant that it will quell speculation to the extent that Rehnquist will not resign at least up until Bush is sworn in... but I think (just maybe) this raises an interesting misconception about the Chief Justice's role in the inaugural process. Specifically, the Chief Justice has no constitutional responsibility to administer the Presidential Oath. So have other judges administered the oath? The most recent example I could think of, would be District Court Judge Sarah Hughes, who administered the oath to Lyndon Johnson aboard Air Force One, following the assassination of John F. Kennedy. In fact, the person only needs to be an officer of the notary public. Clearly, this opens the door to many individuals who could give the oath in an "honorary" capacity. Therefore, Rehnquist could resign, but also swear in the President. Some have suggested that Bush had toyed with the notion of having his father administer the oath in a special "father to son" moment. However, in the end it will be Chief Justice William Rehnquist and I am not suggesting, nor could anybody argue - there could be a better choice... I think the most important thing is that it seems Rehnquist will likely be up and feeling better in January!

One other thing I wanted to mention... The Chief Justice is correctly referred to as "The Chief Justice of the United States," and not as "The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court," just for future reference to all...