Seven Days in May

[Middle-aged Europe]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Days_in_May

I watched this classic movie yesterday on TV. In a scene with President Lyman und General Scott towards the end, Lyman said that Scott should have ran against him in the next election instead of staging a military coup against his administration.

So, what if Scott had really gained the Republican nomination (assuming Jordan was a Adlai Stevenson-type Democrat)... despite the fact that he was forced to resign as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs a under dubious circumstances a few years earlier?

A description of both characters are also given in the Wikipedia article.

[Lincoln Republican]

Clearly, anyone plotting a coup against the duly elected Pesident would not be fit to hold office, and should be prosecuted accordingly.

If a President was in violation of his Presidential oath, or was entering into treaties to the detriment of the nation, the route to remove him from office would be through impeachment. 

If General Scott was in fact the duly nominated Republican nominee, and had resigned as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs with an honorable record, I would vote for Scott, and he may very well win, as many would see Lyman's treaty with the Soviets as a sell out.  In addition, I would doubt the sincerity of the Soviets nuclear disarmament intentions.  I believe they would not fully comply with the agreement, at that point in history.

There are some military commanders who would make good Presidents.  Sometimes better than career politicians.       

[Middle-aged Europe]

Clearly, anyone plotting a coup against the duly elected Pesident would not be fit to hold office, and should be prosecuted accordingly.

At the end of the movie, the Joint Chiefs were forced to resign by the president... the official reason given to the public was their ongoing opposition to the treaty (I think at least General Scott was seen publicly criticizing the president's decision to sign the treaty earlier in the movie).

No charges were pressed for the attempted coup, because Pres. Lyman thought that it would hurt the country.