Option 3, resign, that would have been the honorable thing to do. It should never have been (cheney’s puppet) president to begin with. The scotus appointed those scoundrels
And put Cheney in the Oval Office?
I think you miss the subtlety of the Bush-Cheney charade. Yes, Cheney was the de facto C-in-C anyway but the set-up was in the Bush family tradition of presidential term insurance: "if I go then this far less desirable person takes over.’ Just like when Bush41 picked Dan Quayle for the veep spot.
As I recall from history, it wasn’t easy convincing Texans to join the Union anyway.
Despite their “Lone Star” pretensions, they stumped and lobbied for it for some years until 1845; then it was an matter of drawing the actual border.