PRESIDENT HAS BEEN SHOT CL

Using the attempt on Ronald Reagan's life as an example, Dr Herbert Abrams examines the efficacy of the 25th Amendment, the American constitutional law which provides for the transfer of power to the Vice-President in the event of the illness or disability of the President. After the shooting of Ronald Reagan in 1981, confusion reigned in the White House. Contrary to official announcements, the President's injuries were far more severe than his aides let on. Meanwhile, in the Situation Room, Alexander Haig and Caspar Weinberger squabbled over just who was "in control" of the government, and a young presidential assistant took the papers relating to the 25th Amendment from the hands of senior officials and locked them away in a White House safe.