A different vice presidency

[1940LaSalle]

John Garner said that the vice presidency "wasn't worth a pitcher of warm piss". Richard Nixon authored an article for the World Book yearbook in the '60s titled "The Second Office", with reflections and ruminations on how the job might be better defined/improved.

So: how might the framers of the Constitution done so initially? That is, what could have been the defined/preconceived role of the vice president above and beyond the presidency of the Senate, wherein the duties are almost nonexistent? For example, could the vice president be given oversight over domestic affairs?

 

[GreatScottMarty]

John Garner said that the vice presidency "wasn't worth a pitcher of warm piss". Richard Nixon authored an article for the World Book yearbook in the '60s titled "The Second Office", with reflections and ruminations on how the job might be better defined/improved.

So: how might the framers of the Constitution done so initially? That is, what could have been the defined/preconceived role of the vice president above and beyond the presidency of the Senate, wherein the duties are almost nonexistent? For example, could the vice president be given oversight over domestic affairs?

See sig, I imagine it as the equivalent of a prime minister in my TL. It is certainly vague in the Constitution, the primary reason being no one knew what to do with it and like the Supreme Court was filled out later. It only takes someone with the vision of Marshall to assert that authority in the VP as Marshall did in the SC. I would imagine anyone not as full of hot air as Adams would may be do the job, chose John Jay.

Although I suspect ignoring my TL that a more powerful VP would be a gradual evolution into a domestic presidency by the 20th and would be centered on a very literal reading of the Constitution consistently throughout the 19th century. Jackson hugely expanded the role of POTUS and was the first to assert the bully pulpit, perhaps we butterfly him and leave the POTUS foreign affairs centered and the POTUS begins to delegate domestics to the VP as the 20th century comes and the world begins to shrink and speed up. I think it is a gradual expansion and never explicit and solely at the whim of the president.

Do you have a link to the article you could post?

 

[BlondieBC]

The VP was supposed to be the Senate leader, but rarely shows up now days except to cast a tie breaking vote. If the VP say had 3 votes at all times (3 of the 103 votes) and the American public voted for VP separately from the President, it would be a better position. He would be the nationally elected super Senator. Another way would to be to give the VP some of the powers of the President as a check and balance such as allowing the VP to nominate Supreme Court Justices, the VP has to sign off on any firing of Cabinet officials, etc.

 

[Don_Giorgio]

The VP was supposed to be the Senate leader, but rarely shows up now days except to cast a tie breaking vote. If the VP say had 3 votes at all times (3 of the 103 votes) and the American public voted for VP separately from the President, it would be a better position. He would be the nationally elected super Senator. Another way would to be to give the VP some of the powers of the President as a check and balance such as allowing the VP to nominate Supreme Court Justices, the VP has to sign off on any firing of Cabinet officials, etc.

Wouldnt that make him an "unofficial" Prime Minister?