Wikipedia:Today's featured article/March 6, 2009



The Saxbe fix is a mechanism by which the President of the United States, in appointing to a civil office a Member of the Congress whose elected term has not yet expired, seeks to avoid the restriction of the Constitution's Ineligibility Clause. That clause prohibits the president from appointing a current or former member of Congress to a position that was created, or to a position for which the pay and/or benefits (collectively "emoluments") were increased, during the term for which that member was elected until the term has expired. The rollback, implemented by an Act of Congress in 1909, reverts the emoluments of the office to the amount they were when that member began his or her elected term. Historically, the restriction has been met with various responses: choosing another nominee, allowing the desired nominee's elected term of office to expire, ignoring the clause entirely, or using a "Saxbe fix" to reduce the offending emoluments. Although the latter mechanism was passed by Congress in 1909, it is named for William Saxbe, who was confirmed as Attorney General in 1973 after Congress reduced the office's salary to the level it had been before his term in the Senate commenced. Since the late 1970s, the use of the "Saxbe fix" has been common. The Saxbe fix has subsequently become relevant as a successful—though not universally accepted—solution for appointments of sitting members of the Congress to the Cabinet. (more...)

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