"There may be worse executive power abuses than President Donald Trump’s declaration of a national emergency to build a wall on the Mexican border that Congress has steadfastly refused to fund. But if there are, they don’t readily come to mind.
Trump’s national emergency declaration is worse than the 59 others declared by presidents since 1976 because it was employed to usurp the express power of the purse—the most important congressional check on executive abuses."
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I guess these guys don't realize they're "the left".
The president’s decision to declare a national emergency at the southern border was an act of weakness, not strength.
I understand that’s not the party line, but it’s an obvious political fact. When Barack Obama used his pen to give “Dreamers” a reprieve from prosecution, it was an act of weakness, too.
Powerful presidents enact their agendas through Congress, not executive orders. It’s why they usually manage to get their big-ticket items passed shortly after an election, when they can declare a mandate. Executive orders aren’t as lasting because they can be overruled by Congress and future presidents.
President Trump declared an emergency in part to conceal his weakness. The bipartisan deal to provide even less funding for border security than what was offered to the White House before the shutdown was an unadulterated defeat for the president. If Trump hadn’t declared a national emergency the same day he signed the legislation, all of the headlines would reflect that. It was an effective way of changing the subject.
"There may be worse executive power abuses than President Donald Trump’s declaration of a national emergency to build a wall on the Mexican border that Congress has steadfastly refused to fund. But if there are, they don’t readily come to mind.
Trump’s national emergency declaration is worse than the 59 others declared by presidents since 1976 because it was employed to usurp the express power of the purse—the most important congressional check on executive abuses."
............................
I guess these guys don't realize they're "the left".
Maksukov, I enjoyed the article. It gave me a flicker of hope that actual thought and understanding was flickering back to life on the conservative end of our polotics. (I actually think we are more healthy when both left and right engage in real thought)
The comments below the article dealt a grim blow to my moment of hope.
