But nobody outside their district/state voted for anyone in Congress. For that matter, no one would have necessarily voted for a replacement VP under the 25th Amendment. Gerald Ford, who replaced Spiro Agnew as VP and then Richard Nixon as president, happened to be a member of the House of Representatives but there's no requirement it be an elected official.

Cabinet officers are at least appointed by an elected president and then confirmed by the Senate. That's not so bad in an emergency.

However, if General Cartwright (CINCSTRAT) has not been told this "secret" then the Clerk is violating numerous "Continuity of Government" laws dating back to the 1950s, with significant penalties. I certainly hope this info has been released to STRATCOM.

That was my initial thought, too, but the scenario here is that Hastert resigned or otherwise vacated office before the new Congress convened and elected a successor. At that point, the SPT would be elevated to Speaker. If a catastrophe happened before a new election, he'd be 2nd in line to the presidency.

It's incredibly far-fetched but at least mildly interesting.

A Speaker pro tem is named daily to substitute for the Speaker when needed, and is always a Member of the majority party. For years, the practice in the House has been for the Speaker to only preside over the House in the first few convening moments of each daily session and on ceremonial and politically significant occasions. As the job of Speaker has expanded over the years and his list of duties grown, the role of presiding over House proceedings has been increasingly delegated to others. So, when Members use the terms "Mr. or Madame Speaker" they are most likely addressing the Speaker pro tem, not the Speaker of the House.