We Already Passed a Constitutional Crisis into Presidential Autocracy
I don’t think we have entered a constitutional crisis. I think for all intents and purposes we are already past it, because of the ineffectual response to Trump’s autocratic behavior.
On February 15, he brazenly abrogated Congress’s appropriations power with this diversion of funds for his “border wall.” Presidential Proclamation on Declaring a National Emergency Concerning the Southern Border.
On March 15, he vetoed Congress’s downvote of that emergency. Trump Issues First Veto After Congress Rejects Border Emergency.
On March 26, the House failed to override Trump’s veto: House fails to override Trump veto on Southern Border Emergency.
The House did not file suit until April 5. It requested an injunction to stop the President from acting unilaterally. SCOTUS did not “fast-track” the request for injunction. Trump responded to the House’s request last week asking the court to reject the House Lawsuit. Trump Administration Urges Judge to Reject House Lawsuit on Border Wall.
We are now three months past the emergency declaration and action to stop Trump is on the proverbial slow boat to China. By the time the Supreme Court rules, the 2020 election will probably have already passed.
So, tell me, exactly why should any President whose party controls at least 1/3 of either House of Congress simply bypass any Congressional opposition to anything by declaring states of emergency?
Future democratic Presidents might still refrain from doing so, but it is crystal clear to me that, the precedent having been set, future GOP Presidents will pursue this route at will. Such actions are what makes up an autocracy.
We also have the specter of GOP Senators openly telling a witness to ignore a subpoena issued BY ONE OF THEIR OWN PARTY’S SENATORS. Graham Tells Don Jr. To Ignore Senate Intel Subpoena: “You Don’t Need To Go.”
And, of course, Trump is simply refusing to honor any subpoena issued by the House.
Again a future democratic President might play nice; but once again the precedent having been set, future GOP Presidents will simply employ this strategy across the board.
Bottom line we are not “approaching” a crisis, we are in crisis. The precedents for future GOP Presidential autocracy have already been set and they will be followed. We are passing out of the Constitutional rule of law right now.
The burden may rest with John Roberts who cares about his legacy as Chief Justice and has shown such in previous decisions. He will have to decide whether he wants to go down in history as the Chief Justice who cast the deciding vote to de facto end the American Republic.
NDD:
SCOTUS must clear its docket by July 1st. I am assuming this will be cleared by then which is as you say, “still is a slow boat to China.” Mostly, I do not see the people up in arms on the issue of Trump defying Congress on the appropriations for building a wall outside of its jurisdiction. It was not ok for the Obama administration to appropriate funds for the ACA Risk Corridor Program programs. Only Congress can appropriate funds.
The GAO ruled on this issue after than Senator Jeffrey Beauregard Sessions wrote a letter to it. The Risk Corridor program is similar to the ongoing one in Part D for insurance companies. The ACA version was meant to last 3 years giving insurance companies time to adjust to their new customer base who might have pre-existing conditions. Republicans Fred Upton (MI) and Jack Kingston (CO) took it a step further out of spite by inserting Section 227 in the 2015 Cromninbus Appropriations Bill signed December 16, 2014 (start of the first year of paybacks) and blocked any fund transfers from any other healthcare programs. Effectively, Republicans put Coops out of business, caused premiums to increase, policies to be canceled, and for profit insurance companies to withdraw from the market. I digressed . . .
And that was ok? Trump is pulling funds from various programs of the Defense department to fund a non Defense Program in the name of a pseudo – National Emergency. This is a blatant lie by Trump supported by Republicans. Hopefully, SCOTUS and Roberts agrees with us.
And the morality of the Trump and Republican sycophants argument? Funding for a concrete and steel wall and kill healthcare for people. How does one justify such reasoning?
And the public? Much of the population is beyond ignorant. The noise heard is the same corruption as one hears in arguments on bullet – spewing – weapons and the constitutional arguments being made by them are generally wrong. I see the same BS over at ACASIGNUP healthcare site by two insurance guys. One who does not believe pregnant women should be included and should pay more.
The arguments I hear on this topic as well as others lack merit and are ridiculous. We are slipping into an abyss.