One President at a Time: Should the Logan Act Apply to the President-elect? (H.R. 6511)

What is H.R. 6511?

(Updated March 1, 2018)

This bill — known as the One President at a Time Act — would amend the Logan Act to clarify that the president-elect cannot conduct foreign policy matters without the authorization of the U.S. government. The Logan Act forbids unauthorized citizens from negotiating with foreign governments in a way that undermines the U.S. government’s position, and violating it is a felony.

Argument in favor

A sitting president should have the ability to conduct foreign policy as they see fit until they leave office without being undermined by a president-elect who interacts with foreign governments in a way that influences their policy toward the U.S.

Argument opposed

If passed, this clarification of the Logan Act could make it more difficult for there to be a seamless transition of power for an incoming president if it’s interpreted in a way that prevents them from discussing their views or plans with foreign leaders.

Impact

The President-Elect of the United States.

Cost of H.R. 6511

A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Sponsoring Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) introduced this bill to prevent a president-elect from interfering in U.S. foreign policy before they take office:

“Not only is it an unacceptable intrusion for a President-elect to start engaging in foreign policy matters before they are in office — let alone before they are fully briefed on complex and fragile geopolitical situations — it is dangerous and harms America’s standing in the world.”

Of Note: There has been only one person who has ever been indicted for violating the provisions of the Logan Act, but that was in 1803 and no one has ever actually been prosecuted. That being said, there have been numerous occasions where questions have been raised about whether an individual’s actions violated the Logan Act.

During the 1980s, Reverend Jesse Jackson and House Speaker Jim Wright (D-TX) frustrated the Reagan administration through their travels and discussions with the government of Nicaragua, but neither allegation was pursued. Then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) was the subject of legislation that sought to prohibit her from using federal funds to travel to countries considered by the U.S. to be state sponsors of terror after meeting with Syria’s government, but the amendment wasn’t adopted.

More recently, 47 Republican senators wrote a letter to Iran’s government in 2015 warning them of the limitations of his constitutional authority to bind the U.S. to international agreements beyond his presidency while the nuclear agreement was being negotiated, prompting unsuccessful calls for their prosecution under the Logan Act. And in July 2016, many Democrats accused then-presidential candidate Donald Trump of violating the Logan Act by encouraging the Russian government to hack Hillary Clinton’s email.

Media:

• Sponsoring Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) Press Release
  
• KRCR News 7