At the convention which opened on October 14, the 77-year-old Tobin was paid well to vacate the presidency. His pay was increased to $50,000 (about $393,000 in 2007 dollars) from $30,000, and the executive board was authorized to pay him this salary for life. Beck submitted a resolution asking Tobin to stay on as president, but forced Tobin to refuse. As further humiliation, Tobin nominated Beck for president. He was elected by acclamation. Beck pushed through a number of changes intended to make it harder for a challenger to build the necessary majority to unseat a president or reject his policies.