Other Views: Electing the dead in Missouri

The election of a dead man in Missouri has some people hushed for fear of offending sensibilities after a tragic event, but the people who have done the most disrespect to the late Mel Carnahan are those cynically using his demise as a means of wielding political power.

The state's Democratic governor, Roger Wilson, is the chief culprit here. He thought it permissible to say that, if the deceased Carnahan received the most votes Tuesday, he would name Jean Carnahan, the widow, to serve in the U.S. Senate. Among other outrages, this is a clear abridgment of the U.S. Constitution.

It's true, of course, that the Constitution does not explicitly say, ''Thou shalt not elect the dead to the U.S. Senate.'' No founder could have thought it necessary to underline the obvious. But the Constitution does say that Senate candidates must be inhabitants of their states. A dead body is not an inhabitant and the election of a dead man does not give a governor carte blanche to diddle with a Senate seat as he pleases.

The defenders of this outrage have another sly argument up their sleeves, though.. They say that, well, Missouri law makes no provision for this sort of thing happening. These defenders are not thereby off the hook, for they must then say whether they think it OK for states to evade the Constitution through neglecting at some point to enact laws necessary for compliance. If that is their view, and if that position should prevail, the Constitution would become a nullity.

Despite the cautions of some who probably think it just Jim-dandy to have another Democratic vote in the Senate, no matter how illicitly obtained, Republicans should bring this case to court, and the courts should then uphold the Constitution by invalidating the election. The state could then find a way to have a special election.

If not, the Republicans should then do the next best thing. They should run Abraham Lincoln for the Senate in the next election, choosing a state where a Republican governor can appoint a Republican to the Senate if good old Abe carries the day with a name that resonates and inspires. Absurd? No more so than this farce in Missouri. Unfair to the opponent? No more so than what was done to Republican Sen. John Ashcroft, who actually quit campaigning for eight days after the accident that killed Carnahan. Ashcroft must have thought he was dealing with people of commensurate honor. He must now be guessing again.