Obama to announce executive order on immigration

[Chunk Yogurt for President!]

If Obama can executive order this I guess I could ban abortion through executive order if I become President.

[Chunk Yogurt for President!]

@ King, Presidents are expected to follow a constitutional process to pass their agenda.

If Obama can executive order this I guess I could ban abortion through executive order if I become President.

I'm curious how someone might do that. Obama's mechanism would be to direct the employees of the executive branch agency responsible for immigration law enforcement to change their priorities. I'm not denying it's an end run around the law, but that's the mechanism he's using. How would a hypothetical Republican President who wanted to ban abortion do so through executive agencies? An interesting thought experiment. I don't know how.

I see what you're saying, but this is a very serious change in policy that shouldn't be decided by one person.

[Chunk Yogurt for President!]

I see what you're saying, but this is a very serious change in policy that shouldn't be decided by one person.

I don't disagree. In general the use of executive orders to effect major policy changes isn't a good development. It wasn't with George W. Bush and it isn't now.

Yeah, I'm not one of those people who pretends that it all started with Obama.  I'm just really concerned with the growing power of the executive branch.

[Chunk Yogurt for President!]

It should frighten all of us that one man can pass laws by executive order.  The President is not supposed to be dictator and every new law must be passed by Congress.

[Chunk Yogurt for President!]

It should frighten all of us that one man can pass laws by executive order.  The President is not supposed to be dictator and every new law must be passed by Congress.

It should not frighten us that one man elected by the people who is term limited can pass laws by executive order. A dictatorship does not include free and open elections.

Frankly, it frightens me more that people like Louie Gohmert or Charlie Rangel have power to pass laws.  The amount of power Congress has given the kind of person elected to Congress is truly scary.

When you coincide it that the President is not elected by drawn districts but by a total vote of the people and that turn out is nearly double in elections for President than they are in elections for Congress and that the President faces a legitimate opponent while most members of Congress run unopposed, the President is clearly more a Representative of the People than the Congress of the United States.

Not to mention with the President we are actually having this debate on his actions. The President had to give a nationally televised address to announce this action. Presidential actions are vocal and visible. Congressional actions are done in secret, in committee, and in bribery where a person can amend a bill to his liking and then vote against it for show, completely lying to his/her constituency. The bills are 100x longer than executive orders. Congressional action is impossible to check.  Then, we have the concept of the House and Senate: gerrymandered districts and disproportionately awarded Senate seats.

Any person who is truly afraid of oligarchy, dictatorship, and destruction of citizens rights should support the open Executive Action of the President as a check against the corrupt and nondemocratic institution of the United States Congress as it exists in the 21st Century.

So, just throw away the Constitution and a Republican form of government?  If a President can do this what is the point of even having a congress?

[Chunk Yogurt for President!]

It should frighten all of us that one man can pass laws by executive order.  The President is not supposed to be dictator and every new law must be passed by Congress.

It should not frighten us that one man elected by the people who is term limited can pass laws by executive order. A dictatorship does not include free and open elections.

Frankly, it frightens me more that people like Louie Gohmert or Charlie Rangel have power to pass laws.  The amount of power Congress has given the kind of person elected to Congress is truly scary.

When you coincide it that the President is not elected by drawn districts but by a total vote of the people and that turn out is nearly double in elections for President than they are in elections for Congress and that the President faces a legitimate opponent while most members of Congress run unopposed, the President is clearly more a Representative of the People than the Congress of the United States.

Not to mention with the President we are actually having this debate on his actions. The President had to give a nationally televised address to announce this action. Presidential actions are vocal and visible. Congressional actions are done in secret, in committee, and in bribery where a person can amend a bill to his liking and then vote against it for show, completely lying to his/her constituency. The bills are 100x longer than executive orders. Congressional action is impossible to check.  Then, we have the concept of the House and Senate: gerrymandered districts and disproportionately awarded Senate seats.

Any person who is truly afraid of oligarchy, dictatorship, and destruction of citizens rights should support the open Executive Action of the President as a check against the corrupt and nondemocratic institution of the United States Congress as it exists in the 21st Century.

So, just throw away the Constitution and a Republican form of government?  If a President can do this what is the point of even having a congress?

You do know that Reagan and HW Bush both did exactly what Obama did tonight, right?

I don't care what Party does it, the Constitution must be followed.  If a bill can't be passed by Congress, then deal with it.

[Chunk Yogurt for President!]

I don't care what Party does it, the Constitution must be followed.  If a bill can't be passed by Congress, then deal with it.

He is dealing with it.

Let me explain it this way.

Congress passes laws.  The President can sign them or veto them.  If Congress decides not to pass the law that does not give the President authority to break the rules. 

[Chunk Yogurt for President!]

I don't care what Party does it, the Constitution must be followed.  If a bill can't be passed by Congress, then deal with it.

He is dealing with it.

Let me explain it this way.

Congress passes laws.  The President can sign them or veto them.  If Congress decides not to pass the law that does not give the President authority to break the rules. 

Nobody has told me what law the President violated with his actions.

He has violated the Constitution.  This is not in the President's power.

[Chunk Yogurt for President!]

I don't care what Party does it, the Constitution must be followed.  If a bill can't be passed by Congress, then deal with it.

He is dealing with it.

Let me explain it this way.

Congress passes laws.  The President can sign them or veto them.  If Congress decides not to pass the law that does not give the President authority to break the rules. 

Nobody has told me what law the President violated with his actions.

He has violated the Constitution.  This is not in the President's power.

What's not in the Constitution?

Black Democrats aren't allowed to do what Reagan did.

Reagan wasn't allowed to do it either.  If the executive order was to make the immigration laws more strict I'd oppose it to, because one man should not have this kind of power.