US House of Representatives to sue President Obama.
Discussion
Republicans in the 'lower house' of Congress have voted to sue Obama for bypassing them at times and issuing executive orders (which I assume are a bit like the British royal prerogative).
Can any American PHers expand on this? I mean what is the difference between what has gone on in the last 6 years and:
"Every US president since George Washington has issued executive orders, and Mr Obama has not stood out in the modern era for the number he has signed.
In his six years in office Mr Obama has issued 183 executive orders, compared to 291 across George W Bush's eight years and 381 for Ronald Reagan, according to a study by the American Presidency Project at the University of California-Santa Barbara."
Can any American PHers expand on this? I mean what is the difference between what has gone on in the last 6 years and:
"Every US president since George Washington has issued executive orders, and Mr Obama has not stood out in the modern era for the number he has signed.
In his six years in office Mr Obama has issued 183 executive orders, compared to 291 across George W Bush's eight years and 381 for Ronald Reagan, according to a study by the American Presidency Project at the University of California-Santa Barbara."
BBC said:
The US House of Representatives has passed a resolution to sue President Barack Obama for allegedly exceeding his constitutional powers.
The 225-201 vote along party lines means House lawyers will now draft legal documents to launch a lawsuit.
Its supporters say Mr Obama exceeded his powers when he delayed an insurance deadline in his healthcare law.
The president himself has dismissed it as a waste of time. "Everyone sees this as a political stunt," he said.
"If they're not going to do anything, we'll do what we can on our own," the president added.
"And we've taken more than 40 actions aimed at helping hardworking families like yours. That's when we act - when your Congress won't."
The action is reportedly the first time either the House or Senate has brought legal action against a president over the legality of his powers, although members of Congress have sued the president before.
Republicans in Congress have complained that Mr Obama has exceeded his constitutional authority on numerous occasions, in order to bypass Congress by issuing executive orders.
They object, for instance, to his order unilaterally easing deportations of some young illegal immigrants, and the prison exchange that won the release of a US soldier held captive for five years by the Taliban.
"This isn't about Republicans or Democrats. It's about defending the Constitution we swore an oath to," Speaker John Boehner said during an impassioned debate in the House on Wednesday evening.
"Are you willing to let any president choose what laws to execute and what laws to change?"
At issue was Mr Obama's decision to twice delay requirements in his 2010 healthcare overhaul that businesses over a certain size provide their workers with health insurance.
Mr Obama has been forthright about his intentions to circumvent the gridlocked Congress when possible, noting frequently that the Republican-controlled House of Representatives has declined even to hold votes on Senate-passed bills on topics from immigration reform to gay rights.
line
What are executive orders?
The president regularly issues orders to manage the executive branch of the federal government, weighing in on everything from White House office decorations to foreign policy.
Sometimes "the president decides to put those directions on paper, and that becomes an official document," explains Ilya Shapiro, a senior fellow at the libertarian think-tank Cato Institute.
Read a full explainer
line
As far back as January, White House aides began referring to the president's "pen and phone" strategy - using his telephone to convene meetings at the White House and his pen to sign executive orders and changes to federal regulations.
Every US president since George Washington has issued executive orders, and Mr Obama has not stood out in the modern era for the number he has signed.
In his six years in office Mr Obama has issued 183 executive orders, compared to 291 across George W Bush's eight years and 381 for Ronald Reagan, according to a study by the American Presidency Project at the University of California-Santa Barbara.
But Republicans insist Mr Obama has selectively enforced laws duly passed by Congress, upsetting the balance of powers written into the constitution.
"Such a shift in power should alarm members of both political parties because it threatens the very institution of the Congress," the Republicans wrote in report accompanying the House legislation.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-28565772The 225-201 vote along party lines means House lawyers will now draft legal documents to launch a lawsuit.
Its supporters say Mr Obama exceeded his powers when he delayed an insurance deadline in his healthcare law.
The president himself has dismissed it as a waste of time. "Everyone sees this as a political stunt," he said.
"If they're not going to do anything, we'll do what we can on our own," the president added.
"And we've taken more than 40 actions aimed at helping hardworking families like yours. That's when we act - when your Congress won't."
The action is reportedly the first time either the House or Senate has brought legal action against a president over the legality of his powers, although members of Congress have sued the president before.
Republicans in Congress have complained that Mr Obama has exceeded his constitutional authority on numerous occasions, in order to bypass Congress by issuing executive orders.
They object, for instance, to his order unilaterally easing deportations of some young illegal immigrants, and the prison exchange that won the release of a US soldier held captive for five years by the Taliban.
"This isn't about Republicans or Democrats. It's about defending the Constitution we swore an oath to," Speaker John Boehner said during an impassioned debate in the House on Wednesday evening.
"Are you willing to let any president choose what laws to execute and what laws to change?"
At issue was Mr Obama's decision to twice delay requirements in his 2010 healthcare overhaul that businesses over a certain size provide their workers with health insurance.
Mr Obama has been forthright about his intentions to circumvent the gridlocked Congress when possible, noting frequently that the Republican-controlled House of Representatives has declined even to hold votes on Senate-passed bills on topics from immigration reform to gay rights.
line
What are executive orders?
The president regularly issues orders to manage the executive branch of the federal government, weighing in on everything from White House office decorations to foreign policy.
Sometimes "the president decides to put those directions on paper, and that becomes an official document," explains Ilya Shapiro, a senior fellow at the libertarian think-tank Cato Institute.
Read a full explainer
line
As far back as January, White House aides began referring to the president's "pen and phone" strategy - using his telephone to convene meetings at the White House and his pen to sign executive orders and changes to federal regulations.
Every US president since George Washington has issued executive orders, and Mr Obama has not stood out in the modern era for the number he has signed.
In his six years in office Mr Obama has issued 183 executive orders, compared to 291 across George W Bush's eight years and 381 for Ronald Reagan, according to a study by the American Presidency Project at the University of California-Santa Barbara.
But Republicans insist Mr Obama has selectively enforced laws duly passed by Congress, upsetting the balance of powers written into the constitution.
"Such a shift in power should alarm members of both political parties because it threatens the very institution of the Congress," the Republicans wrote in report accompanying the House legislation.
The problem isn't the number of executive orders that he has signed, it is the nature of these orders that has caused so much disruption and distrust among the American public.
The suit has been brought about as there is an increasing feeling that Obama has little to no regard to the constitution (of which the US is very proud of) and with the recent spying allegations and Obama care fiasco things have got out of hand.
The whole US political system is designed so that 1 member cannot have too much power, but in this case, Obama is doing what he likes, when he likes with no long term view for the United States.
The recent handling of foreign matters has been a disaster in the US too, with the Benghazi disaster and MH17 he has not made too many friends. His approach to illegal immigrants into the US was not well received and there is an on going joke now that the US is becoming a welfare state and instead of following correct procedures, you may as well ignore all of the legal routes and claim welfare... with a country that is very, very aware of their tax dollars, this is not going too well.
The fact that he laughs this very serious issue off as a political move shows a very dark and manipulative side to the president.
The suit has been brought about as there is an increasing feeling that Obama has little to no regard to the constitution (of which the US is very proud of) and with the recent spying allegations and Obama care fiasco things have got out of hand.
The whole US political system is designed so that 1 member cannot have too much power, but in this case, Obama is doing what he likes, when he likes with no long term view for the United States.
The recent handling of foreign matters has been a disaster in the US too, with the Benghazi disaster and MH17 he has not made too many friends. His approach to illegal immigrants into the US was not well received and there is an on going joke now that the US is becoming a welfare state and instead of following correct procedures, you may as well ignore all of the legal routes and claim welfare... with a country that is very, very aware of their tax dollars, this is not going too well.
The fact that he laughs this very serious issue off as a political move shows a very dark and manipulative side to the president.
toohuge said:
The problem isn't the number of executive orders that he has signed, it is the nature of these orders that has caused so much disruption and distrust among the American public.
The suit has been brought about as there is an increasing feeling that Obama has little to no regard to the constitution (of which the US is very proud of) and with the recent spying allegations and Obama care fiasco things have got out of hand.
The whole US political system is designed so that 1 member cannot have too much power, but in this case, Obama is doing what he likes, when he likes with no long term view for the United States.
The recent handling of foreign matters has been a disaster in the US too, with the Benghazi disaster and MH17 he has not made too many friends. His approach to illegal immigrants into the US was not well received and there is an on going joke now that the US is becoming a welfare state and instead of following correct procedures, you may as well ignore all of the legal routes and claim welfare... with a country that is very, very aware of their tax dollars, this is not going too well.
The fact that he laughs this very serious issue off as a political move shows a very dark and manipulative side to the president.
It's politics, pure and simple. Were Bush's foreign affairs better handled...? Bush also 'did what he liked'. The suit has been brought about as there is an increasing feeling that Obama has little to no regard to the constitution (of which the US is very proud of) and with the recent spying allegations and Obama care fiasco things have got out of hand.
The whole US political system is designed so that 1 member cannot have too much power, but in this case, Obama is doing what he likes, when he likes with no long term view for the United States.
The recent handling of foreign matters has been a disaster in the US too, with the Benghazi disaster and MH17 he has not made too many friends. His approach to illegal immigrants into the US was not well received and there is an on going joke now that the US is becoming a welfare state and instead of following correct procedures, you may as well ignore all of the legal routes and claim welfare... with a country that is very, very aware of their tax dollars, this is not going too well.
The fact that he laughs this very serious issue off as a political move shows a very dark and manipulative side to the president.
Are you sure you know how politics works...?
Beati Dogu said:
They'll need to drag him of whichever golf course he's on this week. He's long since retired.
It's irrelevant though, when it comes to foreign policy and homeland security, Obama has simply continued or expanded on the same Neocon policies (with enough of the social security stuff to make sure neither the right wingers or his own supporters will never admit it).Gassing Station | News, Politics & Economics | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff