From The Weekly Standard.
Congressman Tom Rice of South Carolina, a Republican, is sponsoring a resolution in the House of Representatives that would, if adopted, direct the legislative body “to bring a civil action for declaratory or injunctive relief to challenge certain policies and actions taken by the executive branch.” In other words, Rep. Rice wants to take President Obama to court for not faithfully executing the laws.
“President Obama has adopted a practice of picking and choosing which laws he wants to enforce. In most cases, his laws of choice conveniently coincide with his Administration’s political agenda. Our Founding Fathers created the Executive Branch to implement and enforce the laws written by Congress and vested this power in the President. However, President Obama has chosen to ignore some of the laws written by Congress and implemented by preceding Presidents,” Rice wrote in a letter to fellow House members to ask them to co-sponsor this resolution.
“This resolution allows the House of Representatives to bring legal action against the Executive Branch and challenge recent actions, inactions, and policies.”
The “legal action against the President” would be, according to an aide for Rep. Rice, “for ignoring Article II, Section 3 of the Constitution.” Article II, Section 3 of the Constitution states,
“He shall from time to time give to the Congress information of the state of the union, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on extraordinary occasions, convene both Houses, or either of them, and in case of disagreement between them, with respect to the time of adjournment, he may adjourn them to such time as he shall think proper; he shall receive ambassadors and other public ministers; he shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed, and shall commission all the officers of the United States.”
Among the complaints in the resolution:
1. President Obama recently announced an “administrative fix” in regard to cancelled healthcare plans due to Obamacare. Of course he plans to provide a “fix” which will substantially alter his signature legislation without involving Congress.
2. Over the summer, President Obama’s Administration announced a one-year delay in Obamacare’s employer mandate without involving Congress.
3. Last year, President Obama’s Administration granted temporary status to illegal immigrants who entered the United States as children without involving Congress.
4. In June 2012, President Obama’s Administrative provided a waiver initiative for the welfare work requirement under TANF without involving Congress.
So far, 29 members of Congress are co-sponsoring Rice’s Resolution: Bachmann (MN-06), Bridenstine (OK-01), Chaffetz (UT-03), J. Duncan (SC-03), DeSantis (FL-06), Franks (AZ-08), Gowdy (SC-04), Harris (MD-01), Lamborn (CO-05), LaMalfa (CA-01), Marino (PA-10), McClintock (CA-04), Meadows (NC-11), Nunnelee (MS-01), Pittenger (NC-09), Posey (FL-08), Tom Price (GA-06), Ribble (WI-08), Salmon (AZ-05), Sanford (SC-01), Schweikert (AZ-06), Stewart (UT-02), Stockman (TX-36), Walberg (MI-07), Weber (TX-14), Wenstrup (OH-02), Williams (TX-25), Joe Wilson (SC-02), and Yoho FL-03.
……The resolution alleges that President Obama and his administration have abused executive power and failed to execute the laws of the United States faithfully.
Dear Congressman Rice: Ya fuckin’ think?? Bypassing Congress is the least of it. He’s committed High Crimes and Misdemeanors for the last five years. The IRS targeting of Tea Party groups, blanket NSA surveillance of the United States, Fast and Furious gunrunning, DOJ hacking into reporters’ emails and phone records, ramming an unconstitutional healthcare takeover through Congress, abuse of executive orders, and leaking classified information about the SEAL’s Bin Laden mission, should have resulted in impeachment and prosecution a while back. Holder, Lerner, Clapper, Hillary, and the rest of his tyrannical Politburo, should be indicted right along with him.
The truth is, you and the rest of the GOP in Congress don’t have the guts to bring this petty out-of-control dictator to justice. Your gesture is cute, but it’s worthless unless you back it up with real action.