[Home]  [Headlines]  [Latest Articles]  [Latest Comments]  [Post]  [Mail]  [Sign-in]  [Setup]  [Help]  [Register] 

"International court’s attack on Israel a sign of the free world’s moral collapse"

"Pete Hegseth Is Right for the DOD"

"Why Our Constitution Secures Liberty, Not Democracy"

Woodworking and Construction Hacks

"CNN: Reporters Were Crying and Hugging in the Hallways After Learning of Matt Gaetz's AG Nomination"

"NEW: Democrat Officials Move to Steal the Senate Race in Pennsylvania, Admit to Breaking the Law"

"Pete Hegseth Is a Disruptive Choice for Secretary of Defense. That’s a Good Thing"

Katie Britt will vote with the McConnell machine

Battle for Senate leader heats up — Hit pieces coming from Thune and Cornyn.

After Trump’s Victory, There Can Be No Unity Without A Reckoning

Vivek Ramaswamy, Dark-horse Secretary of State Candidate

Megyn Kelly has a message for Democrats. Wait for the ending.

Trump to choose Tom Homan as his “Border Czar”

"Trump Shows Demography Isn’t Destiny"

"Democrats Get a Wake-Up Call about How Unpopular Their Agenda Really Is"

Live Election Map with ticker shows every winner.

Megyn Kelly Joins Trump at His Final PA Rally of 2024 and Explains Why She's Supporting Him

South Carolina Lawmaker at Trump Rally Highlights Story of 3-Year-Old Maddie Hines, Killed by Illegal Alien

GOP Demands Biden, Harris Launch Probe into Twice-Deported Illegal Alien Accused of Killing Grayson Davis

Previously-Deported Illegal Charged With Killing Arkansas Children’s Hospital Nurse in Horror DUI Crash

New Data on Migrant Crime Rates Raises Eyebrows, Alarms

Thousands of 'potentially fraudulent voter registration applications' Uncovered, Stopped in Pennsylvania

Michigan Will Count Ballot of Chinese National Charged with Voting Illegally

"It Did Occur" - Kentucky County Clerk Confirms Voting Booth 'Glitch'' Shifted Trump Votes To Kamala

Legendary Astronaut Buzz Aldrin 'wholeheartedly' Endorses Donald Trump

Liberal Icon Naomi Wolf Endorses Trump: 'He's Being More Inclusive'

(Washed Up Has Been) Singer Joni Mitchell Screams 'F*** Trump' at Hollywood Bowl

"Analysis: The Final State of the Presidential Race"

He’ll, You Pieces of Garbage

The Future of Warfare -- No more martyrdom!

"Kamala’s Inane Talking Points"

"The Harris Campaign Is Testament to the Toxicity of Woke Politics"

Easy Drywall Patch

Israel Preparing NEW Iran Strike? Iran Vows “Unimaginable” Response | Watchman Newscast

In Logansport, Indiana, Kids are Being Pushed Out of Schools After Migrants Swelled County’s Population by 30%: "Everybody else is falling behind"

Exclusive — Bernie Moreno: We Spend $110,000 Per Illegal Migrant Per Year, More than Twice What ‘the Average American Makes’

Florida County: 41 of 45 People Arrested for Looting after Hurricanes Helene and Milton are Noncitizens

Presidential race: Is a Split Ticket the only Answer?

hurricanes and heat waves are Worse

'Backbone of Iran's missile industry' destroyed by IAF strikes on Islamic Republic

Joe Rogan Experience #2219 - Donald Trump

IDF raids Hezbollah Radwan Forces underground bases, discovers massive cache of weapons

Gallant: ‘After we strike in Iran,’ the world will understand all of our training

The Atlantic Hit Piece On Trump Is A Psy-Op To Justify Post-Election Violence If Harris Loses

Six Al Jazeera journalists are Hamas, PIJ terrorists

Judge Aileen Cannon, who tossed Trump's classified docs case, on list of proposed candidates for attorney general

Iran's Assassination Program in Europe: Europe Goes Back to Sleep

Susan Olsen says Brady Bunch revival was cancelled because she’s MAGA.

Foreign Invaders crisis cost $150B in 2023, forcing some areas to cut police and fire services: report

Israel kills head of Hezbollah Intelligence.


Status: Not Logged In; Sign In

U.S. Constitution
See other U.S. Constitution Articles

Title: REPUBLICANS CAN STOP EXECUTIVE ORDER AMNESTY DEAD
Source: [None]
URL Source: http://northamericanlawcenter.org/r ... der-amnesty-dead/#.VG3FmvnF-Jg
Published: Nov 20, 2014
Author: JB Williams
Post Date: 2014-11-20 05:48:17 by out damned spot
Keywords: Republicans, executive order, amnesty
Views: 7943
Comments: 32

The little dictator-in-chief is set to announce his unconstitutional attempt to circumvent and subvert the constitutional powers of Congress Thursday night, as he attempts to single-handedly grant millions of illegal aliens defacto amnesty and then head off to Las Vegas to party with Harry Reid.

A little past noon Wednesday the 19th, the White House posted a Facebook announcement that reads as follows;

“It’s time to fix our broken immigration system. Tomorrow night (November 20th), President Obama will address the nation on new commonsense steps he’s taking to fix as much of it as he can. Tune in tomorrow at 8pm ET on http://WhiteHouse.gov/Immigration-Action #‎ImmigrationAction‬”

Does Barack Hussein Obama have any constitutional authority to alter U.S. Immigration and Naturalization laws or rules via Executive Order?

The answer is not just NO, it is absolutely not!

Article I – Section 8, under the enumerated powers of Congress, the U.S. Constitution assigns all legal authority to establish rules and regulate United States Immigration and Naturalization solely to the U.S. Congress, which has indeed established a uniform set of rules for immigrating to the United States and becoming a United States citizen.

Article II relative to the Executive powers of the Oval Office makes no mention of any law-making authority whatsoever, any powers to regulate Immigration or Naturalization rules, or any power to circumvent or subvert the Laws of the United States as established by Congress. There is also no mention of Executive Orders or special executive powers in Article II of the U.S. Constitution.

Therefore, Barack Hussein Obama has NO constitutional legal authority whatsoever to alter, circumvent, subvert or otherwise ignore the standing laws of the United States concerning Immigration and Naturalization.

Article I – Section I – “All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives.”

Article I – Section 8 – The Enumerated Powers of CONGRESS – “To establish a uniform rule of naturalization…”

This means that any unilateral executive action by Barack Hussein Obama on Immigration and Naturalization is a blatant act of treason. If Barack Obama is foolish enough to take any such action, he must be held fully accountable for those actions immediately.

WHAT ARE EXECUTIVE ORDERS?

The Executive Branch has one constitutional authority, and that is “to faithfully execute the laws of our land,” the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights and our Immigration and Naturalization laws. Obama and all Democrats have openly and purposefully refused to do so and now, they threaten to run roughshod over congressional authority in broad daylight, expecting both Congress and the American people to lay down and silently take it.

Under Article II – Section I of the U.S. Constitution, “Before he (Obama) enter on the execution of his office, he shall take the following oath or affirmation:–“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

Contrary to popular modern “expert legal” opinions from lawyers never taught constitutional law or American history, the President of the United States is not granted any power of dictatorship. The Oval Office does not have any legal authority to rule the nation in any unilateral method.

As a result, any such effort on the part of any Oval Office occupant is a blatant effort to circumvent, subvert, undermine and destroy the Rule of Constitutional Law and the Constitutional Republic.

The power of Executive Orders are limited to items under the legal purview of the Executive Branch and they are limited to “executing the laws” established by Congress. Executive powers do not extend to law-making authority, nor do they extend to subverting or circumventing the laws of our land.

Further, Executive Orders can only stand with the approval of Congress. Congress has the constitutional authority to override any Executive Order that is beyond the legal purview of the Executive Branch under the U.S. Constitution.

NOT A DICTATORSHIP

The United States Constitution does not form a dictatorship, nor does it form a nine member unelected oligarchy called the Supreme Court, nor does it create a government of, by and for La Raza and millions of illegal aliens.

For Obama to successfully commit treason against the United States by aiding and abetting known criminal invaders of our nation, against the overwhelming will of legal American citizens and taxpayers, Congress will have to stand down and abdicate all constitutional congressional authority to the Executive or Judicial branches, rendering the US Congress complicit in the treason and worthy of total destruction by the American people.

WHAT CAN CONGRESS DO?

First, I state for the record – REPUBLICANS HAVE ALL THE POWER THEY NEED TO STOP EXECUTIVE ORDER AMNESTY DEAD, RIGHT NOW!

This means that for Obama to get away with what he is about to attempt, Congressional Republicans will have to allow him to get away with it. It means that Congressional Republicans want amnesty too, but want to be able to use Obama’s unilateral move as a political hammer later…

Second, although many Congressional Democrats are too ignorant to know or care that what Obama is about to attempt is both unconstitutional and illegal, Obama himself does know, which is why he has not already done it, before being bullied into doing it now.

So, if Republicans care to represent their constituents by upholding the Rule of Constitutional Law and protecting and defending the sovereignty and security of the United States, they will have to STOP OBAMA AMNESTY dead in its tracks. Or, they become complicit in Obama’s treason…

Now, the how…

Obama will attempt Executive Amnesty during this lame duck session of congress, before Republicans take control of both houses in January. He will do this because Republicans can hide behind not yet having control of the Senate, which they will falsely claim they must have in order to stop Obama.

However, because the issue is black and white, the power to regulate and make rules concerning Immigration and Naturalization resting in the sole legal purview of Congress, House Republicans can act right now to block Obama amnesty.

House Republicans can immediately move to pass a House Resolution declaring that Barack Hussein Obama has no constitutional authority to regulate Immigration and Naturalization rules, delegated as a sole authority of the U.S. Congress in Article I – Section 8 enumerated powers of Congress, nor any power to circumvent or subvert the Rule of Constitutional Law via Executive Order.

This resolution will render any Executive Order on amnesty “null and void” on arrival, making it an illegal act for Immigration and Naturalization officials to act on that illegal order.

House Republicans can immediately file Article of Impeachment in the House Judiciary Committee, naming all Democrat co-conspirators to include Vice President Joe Biden, Senate Leader Harry Reid and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, making it impossible for any of them to succeed Barack Hussein Obama in the constitutional line of succession to the Oval Office.

A Senate impeachment trial can begin after the 114th Congress is sworn in in January.

There are more steps that can and should be taken by Congress after the first three steps identified above, but there is no point in discussing those steps until House Republicans have taken action on the above items.

In short, the American people do not have to sit back and tolerate the abuses of the executive office that have defined the Obama Administration for the past six years.

The people do not have to quietly accept illegal amnesty via executive fiat and neither does Congress.

I hope that Obama does take this suicidal step tomorrow, as it will bring about the end of his tyrannical despotic and fraudulent reign over America and begin the process of holding all of his co-conspirators fully and criminally accountable for their many acts of treason against the United States and the American people.

My only concern is what lies ahead for Congressional Republicans if they fail to faithfully execute the oaths of their offices and allow Barack Obama to render Congress, the Constitution and our Republic extinct.

Post Comment   Private Reply   Ignore Thread  


TopPage UpFull ThreadPage DownBottom/Latest

Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 28.

#3. To: out damned spot (#0)

REPUBLICANS CAN STOP EXECUTIVE ORDER AMNESTY

It is indeed likely that the congress will NOT stop this executive order.

As a matter of fact, by the time spring rolls around, this EO will not even be a topic of conversation on right-wing radio. (MHO)

Why? because it will not affect the day-to-day lives of 98% of Americans.

This EO is mostly a political move.....

Jameson  posted on  2014-11-20   9:57:44 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


#7. To: Jameson (#3)

As a matter of fact, by the time spring rolls around, this EO will not even be a topic of conversation on right-wing radio. (MHO)

Why? because it will not affect the day-to-day lives of 98% of Americans.

Are you this naive, in denial, or merely not quite dealing with a full deck? IF this EO is actually implemented, all hell breaks loose.

It must be nice to live in the HuffPo/MSNBC Land of Make-Believe.

This EO is mostly a political move.....

So is an illegally elected President who routinely shreds the US Constitution to purposely create anarchy and chaos.

Liberator  posted on  2014-11-20   13:18:22 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


#9. To: Liberator (#7)

IF this EO is actually implemented, all hell breaks loose.

Just what do you expect will happen? What does "all hell breaks loose" mean? (serious question)

Jameson  posted on  2014-11-20   13:22:19 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


#12. To: Jameson (#9)

Do you disagree with the characterization that we have had a President who has routinely shredded the US Constitution to purposely create anarchy and chaos? A President who hates his own country? A President who is a racist? A Divider?

Liberator  posted on  2014-11-20   13:29:38 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


#14. To: Liberator (#12)

Do you disagree with the characterization that we have had a President who has routinely shredded the US Constitution to purposely create anarchy and chaos?

I disagree completely. There has been no anarchy or chaos, and if there is sufficient proof that he has acted unconstitutionally he should be tried. - that hasn't happened in 6 years...

I'm fairly sure that the POTUS has a strong legal team that advise him on matters of the constitutional limits of his actions.

I don't believe that this man is racist, and regarding being a "divider"...I'd say those who most benefit from a divided public are the dividers.....

Jameson  posted on  2014-11-20   13:40:28 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


#17. To: Jameson (#14)

If there is sufficient proof that he has acted unconstitutionally he should be tried. - that hasn't happened in 6 years...

You're not paying attention.

Fast and Furious.
IRS.
Benghazi.
0bumaCare Fraud.
Perjury (everytime he opens his mouth.)
Obstruction of Justice.
Abuse of Power.
The active aiding and abetting illegal invasion and unauthorized promise of FREE citizenship and benefits
Circumventing Congress

The list goes on and on....

There has been no anarchy or chaos...

HUH?? We have judicial anarchy and chaos; Health Care anarchy and chaos; Economic anarchy and chaos; Regulatory anarchy and chaos; Monetary anarchy and chaos; Military anarchy and chaos; State Dept anarchy and chaos; Racial anarchy and chaos...

In EVERY sector of life in this America (of which 0buma promised to "transform"), order has been subverted while US Constitutional law and equal power between the Presidency, Congress and Court have been eliminated or ignored. ignored.

Liberator  posted on  2014-11-20   15:13:52 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


#20. To: Liberator (#17)

The list goes on and on....

And yet, there have been no charges filed, no grand jury seated, no indictments, nothing except a bunch of tv & radio entertainers and internet "experts" making accusations.

The bar for impeachment was set pretty low (lying about getting hoovers) why haven't articles of impeachment been filed?

- and - It is clear that your understanding of "anarchy and chaos" are different than most...

Jameson  posted on  2014-11-20   15:26:39 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


#21. To: Jameson (#20) (Edited)

And yet, there have been no charges filed, no grand jury seated, no indictments, nothing except a bunch of tv & radio entertainers and internet "experts" making accusations.

Don't you find the media blackout of..say...GruberGate suspicious in the least? Or the media blackouts (except for FNC) of all the other obvious scandals?

Up thread you stated, "If there is sufficient proof that he has acted unconstitutionally he should be tried."

Have you been paying ANY attention to the stonewalling, lying, firings, and obstruction of justice regarding the assembled list below? The evidence is overwhelming -- these charages aren't mere "accusations":

Fast and Furious.
IRS.
Benghazi.
0bumaCare Fraud.
Perjury (everytime he opens his mouth.)
Obstruction of Justice.
Abuse of Power.
The active aiding and abetting illegal invasion and unauthorized promise of FREE citizenship and benefits
Circumventing Congress

Liberator  posted on  2014-11-20   15:36:05 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


#22. To: Liberator (#21)

The evidence is overwhelming -- these charges aren't mere "accusations":

Actually accusations are exactly what they are, unfounded accusations.

F & F was identical to operation wide receiver under the bush administration, both a bad idea, neither were criminal.

The Republican led House Intelligence Committee fully investigated the tragedy that occurred in Benghazi - and found "no wrongdoing"

The FBI investigated the IRS "scandal" and returned no criminal charges against anyone, and specifically the president.

Obamacare fraud - So Gruber was a good salesman....not fraud

Perjury (everytime he opens his mouth.)
Obstruction of Justice.
Abuse of Power.
- all very serious criminal actions - not a single criminal charge???

Promise of FREE citizenship and benefits? - please cite your source - never happened.

Circumventing Congress - Executive orders and recess appointments are not unusual and perfectly legal.

Please.....the "evidence" is underwhelming - at best.

I understand that many people, perhaps even you, actually hate our president and wish nothing but bad things for him. However the clutching at conspiracy theories and wailing about every imagined misstep, we hear from some people is just sad.

Jameson  posted on  2014-11-20   16:32:38 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


#26. To: Jameson, Liberator (#22)

Circumventing Congress - Executive orders and recess appointments are not unusual and perfectly legal.

Not all executive orders or purported recess appointments are constitutional. Earlier this year, in NLRB v Canning, a unanimous SCOTUS slam dunked the Obama administration over purported "recess" appointments. In Youngstown Steel, President Truman was slam dunked by the Supreme Court for an unconstitutional executive order.

https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/573/12-1281/

SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES

Syllabus

NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD v. NOEL CANNING et al.

certiorari to the united states court of appeals for the district of columbia circuit

No. 12–1281. Argued January 13, 2014—Decided June 26, 2014

Respondent Noel Canning, a Pepsi-Cola distributor, asked the D. C. Circuit to set aside an order of the National Labor Relations Board, claiming that the Board lacked a quorum because three of the five Board members had been invalidly appointed. The nominations of the three members in question were pending in the Senate when it passed a December 17, 2011, resolution providing for a series of “pro forma session[s],” with “no business . . . transacted,” every Tuesday and Friday through January 20, 2012. S. J., 112th Cong., 1st Sess., 923. Invoking the Recess Appointments Clause—which gives the President the power “to fill up all Vacancies that may happen during the Recess of the Senate,” Art. II, §2, cl. 3—the President appointed the three members in question between the January 3 and January 6 pro forma sessions. Noel Canning argued primarily that the appointments were invalid because the 3-day adjournment between those two sessions was not long enough to trigger the Recess Appointments Clause. The D. C. Circuit agreed that the appointments fell outside the scope of the Clause, but on different grounds. It held that the phrase “the recess,” as used in the Clause, does not include intra-session recesses, and that the phrase “vacancies that may happen during the recess” applies only to vacancies that first come into existence during a recess.

Held:

1. The Recess Appointments Clause empowers the President to fill any existing vacancy during any recess—intra-session or inter-session—of sufficient length. Pp. 5–33.

(a) Two background considerations are relevant to the questions here. First, the Recess Appointments Clause is a subsidiary method for appointing officers of the United States. The Founders intended the norm to be the method of appointment in Article II, §2, cl. 2, which requires Senate approval of Presidential nominations, at least for principal officers. The Recess Appointments Clause reflects the tension between the President’s continuous need for “the assistance of subordinates,” Myers v. United States, 272 U. S. 52 , and the Senate’s early practice of meeting for a single brief session each year. The Clause should be interpreted as granting the President the power to make appointments during a recess but not offering the President the authority routinely to avoid the need for Senate confirmation.

Second, in interpreting the Clause, the Court puts significant weight upon historical practice. The longstanding “practice of the government,” McCulloch v. Maryland, 4 Wheat. 316, 401, can inform this Court’s determination of “what the law is” in a separation-of-powers case, Marbury v. Madison, 1 Cranch 137, 176. See also, e.g., Mistretta v. United States, 488 U. S. 361 ; The Pocket Veto Case, 279 U. S. 655 –690. There is a great deal of history to consider here, for Presidents have made recess appointments since the beginning of the Republic. Their frequency suggests that the Senate and President have recognized that such appointments can be both necessary and appropriate in certain circumstances. The Court, in interpreting the Clause for the first time, must hesitate to upset the compromises and working arrangements that the elected branches of Government themselves have reached. Pp. 5–9.

(b) The phrase “the recess of the Senate” applies to both inter-session recess (i.e., breaks between formal sessions of the Senate) and intra-session recesses (i.e., breaks in the midst of a formal session) of substantial length. The constitutional text is ambiguous. Founding-era dictionaries and usages show that the phrase “the recess” can encompass intra-session breaks. And this broader interpretation is demanded by the purpose of the Clause, which is to allow the President to make appointments so as to ensure the continued functioning of the Government while the Senate is away. The Senate is equally away and unavailable to participate in the appointments process during both an inter-session and an intra-session recess. History offers further support for this interpretation. From the founding until the Great Depression, every time the Senate took a substantial, non-holiday intra-session recess, the President made recess appointments. President Andrew Johnson made the first documented intra-session recess appointments in 1867 and 1868, and Presidents made similar appointments in 1921 and 1929. Since 1929, and particularly since the end of World War II, Congress has shortened its inter-session breaks and taken longer and more frequent intra-session breaks; Presidents accordingly have made more intra-session recess appointments. Meanwhile, the Senate has never taken any formal action to deny the validity of intra-session recess appointments. In 1905, the Senate Judiciary Committee defined “the recess” as “the period of time when the Senate” is absent and cannot “participate as a body in making appointments,” S. Rep. No. 4389, 58th Cong., 3d Sess., p. 2, and that functional definition encompasses both intra-session and inter-session recesses. A 1940 law regulating the payment of recess appointees has also been interpreted functionally by the Comptroller General (an officer of the Legislative Branch). In sum, Presidents have made intra-session recess appointments for a century and a half, and the Senate has never taken formal action to oppose them. That practice is long enough to entitle it to “great weight in a proper interpretation” of the constitutional provision. The Pocket Veto Case, supra, at 689.

The Clause does not say how long a recess must be in order to fall within the Clause, but even the Solicitor General concedes that a 3-day recess would be too short. The Adjournments Clause, Art. I, §5, cl. 4, reflects the fact that a 3-day break is not a significant interruption of legislative business. A Senate recess that is so short that it does not require the consent of the House under that Clause is not long enough to trigger the President’s recess-appointment power. Moreover, the Court has not found a single example of a recess appointment made during an intra-session recess that was shorter than 10 days. There are a few examples of inter-session recess appointments made during recesses of less than 10 days, but these are anomalies. In light of historical practice, a recess of more than 3 days but less than 10 days is presumptively too short to fall within the Clause. The word “presumptively” leaves open the possibility that a very unusual circumstance could demand the exercise of the recess-appointment power during a shorter break. Pp. 9–21.

(c) The phrase “vacancies that may happen during the recess of the Senate,” Art. II, §2, cl. 3, applies both to vacancies that first come into existence during a recess and to vacancies that initially occur before a recess but continue to exist during the recess. Again, the text is ambiguous. As Thomas Jefferson observed, the Clause is “certainly susceptible of [two] constructions.” Letter to Wilson Cary Nicholas (Jan. 26, 1802), in 36 Papers of Thomas Jefferson 433. It “may mean ‘vacancies that may happen to be’ or ‘may happen to fall’ ” during a recess. Ibid. And, as Attorney General Wirt wrote in 1821, the broader reading is more consonant with the “reason and spirit” of the Clause. 1 Op. Atty. Gen. 632. The purpose of the Clause is to permit the President, who is always acting to execute the law, to obtain the assistance of subordinate officers while the Senate, which acts only in intervals, is unavailable to confirm them. If a vacancy arises too late in the session for the President and Senate to have an opportunity to select a replacement, the narrower reading could paralyze important functions of the Federal Government, particularly at the time of the founding. The broader interpretation ensures that offices needing to be filled can be filled. It does raise a danger that the President may attempt to use the recess-appointment power to circumvent the Senate’s advice and consent role. But the narrower interpretation risks undermining constitutionally conferred powers more seriously and more often. It would prevent a President from making any recess appointment to fill a vacancy that arose before a recess, no matter who the official, how dire the need, how uncontroversial the appointment, and how late in the session the office fell vacant.

Historical practice also strongly favors the broader interpretation. The tradition of applying the Clause to pre-recess vacancies dates at least to President Madison. Nearly every Attorney General to consider the question has approved the practice, and every President since James Buchanan has made recess appointments to pre-existing vacancies. It is a fair inference from the historical data that a large proportion of recess appointments over our Nation’s history have filled pre-recess vacancies. The Senate Judiciary Committee in 1863 did issue a report disagreeing with the broader interpretation, and Congress passed a law known as the Pay Act prohibiting payment of recess appointments to pre-recess vacancies soon after. However, the Senate subsequently abandoned its hostility. In 1940, the Senate amended the Pay Act to permit payment of recess appointees in circumstances that would be unconstitutional under the narrower interpretation. In short, Presidents have made recess appointments to preexisting vacancies for two centuries, and the Senate as a body has not countered this practice for nearly three-quarters of a century, perhaps longer. The Court is reluctant to upset this traditional practice where doing so would seriously shrink the authority that Presidents have believed existed and have exercised for so long. Pp. 21–33.

2. For purposes of the Recess Appointments Clause, the Senate is in session when it says that it is, provided that, under its own rules, it retains the capacity to transact Senate business.

This standard is consistent with the Constitution’s broad delegation of authority to the Senate to determine how and when to conduct its business, as recognized by this Court’s precedents. See Art. I, §5, cl. 2; Marshall Field & Co. v. Clark, 143 U. S. 649 ; United States v. Ballin, 144 U. S. 1 . Although the Senate’s own determination of when it is and is not in session should be given great weight, the Court’s deference cannot be absolute. When the Senate is without the capacity to act, under its own rules, it is not in session even if it so declares.

Under the standard set forth here, the Senate was in session during the pro forma sessions at issue. It said it was in session, and Senate rules make clear that the Senate retained the power to conduct business. The Senate could have conducted business simply by passing a unanimous consent agreement. In fact, it did so; it passed a bill by unanimous consent during its pro forma session on December 23, 2011. See 2011 S. J. 924; Pub. L. 112–78. The Court will not, as the Solicitor General urges, engage in an in-depth factual appraisal of what the Senate actually did during its pro forma sessions in order to determine whether it was in recess or in session for purposes of the Recess Appointments Clause.

Because the Senate was in session during its pro forma sessions, the President made the recess appointments at issue during a 3-day recess. Three days is too short a time to bring a recess within the scope of the Clause, so the President lacked the authority to make those appointments. Pp. 33–41.

705 F. 3d 490, affirmed.

Breyer, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Kennedy, Ginsburg, Sotomayor, and Kagan, JJ., joined. Scalia, J., filed an opinion concurring in the judgment, in which Roberts, C. J., and Thomas and Alito, JJ., joined.

https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/343/579/

U.S. Supreme Court

Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer, 343 U.S. 579 (1952)

Argued May 12-13, 1952

Decided June 2, 1952*

343 U.S. 579

Syllabus

To avert a nationwide strike of steel workers in April 1952, which he believed would jeopardize national defense, the President issued an Executive Order directing the Secretary of Commerce to seize and operate most of the steel mills. The Order was not based upon any specific statutory authority, but was based generally upon all powers vested in the President by the Constitution and laws of the United States and as President of the United States and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces. The Secretary issued an order seizing the steel mills and directing their presidents to operate them as operating managers for the United States in accordance with his regulations and directions. The President promptly reported these events to Congress; but Congress took no action. It had provided other methods of dealing with such situations, and had refused to authorize governmental seizures of property to settle labor disputes. The steel companies sued the Secretary in a Federal District Court, praying for a declaratory judgment and injunctive relief. The District Court issued a preliminary injunction, which the Court of Appeals stayed.

Held:

1. Although this case has proceeded no further than the preliminary injunction stage, it is ripe for determination of the constitutional validity of the Executive Order on the record presented. Pp. 343 U. S. 584-585.

(a) Under prior decisions of this Court, there is doubt as to the right to recover in the Court of Claims on account of properties unlawfully taken by government officials for public use. P. 343 U. S. 585.

(b) Seizure and governmental operation of these going businesses were bound to result in many present and future damages of such nature as to be difficult, if not incapable, of measurement. P. 343 U. S. 585.

Page 343 U. S. 580

2. The Executive Order was not authorized by the Constitution or laws of the United States, and it cannot stand. Pp. 343 U. S. 585-589.

(a) There is no statute which expressly or impliedly authorizes the President to take possession of this property as he did here. Pp. 343 U. S. 585-586.

(b) In its consideration of the Taft-Hartley Act in 1947, Congress refused to authorize governmental seizures of property as a method of preventing work stoppages and settling labor disputes. P. 343 U. S. 586.

(c) Authority of the President to issue such an order in the circumstances of this case cannot be implied from the aggregate of his powers under Article II of the Constitution. Pp. 343 U. S. 587-589.

(d) The Order cannot properly be sustained as an exercise of the President's military power as Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces. P. 343 U. S. 587.

(e) Nor can the Order be sustained because of the several provisions of Article II which grant executive power to the President. Pp. 343 U. S. 587-589.

(f) The power here sought to be exercised is the lawmaking power, which the Constitution vests in the Congress alone, in both good and bad times. Pp. 343 U. S. 587-589.

(g) Even if it be true that other Presidents have taken possession of private business enterprises without congressional authority in order to settle labor disputes, Congress has not thereby lost its exclusive constitutional authority to make the laws necessary and proper to carry out all powers vested by the Constitution "in the Government of the United States, or any Department or Officer thereof." Pp. 343 U. S. 588-589.

103 F.Supp. 569, affirmed.

For concurring opinion of MR. JUSTICE FRANKFURTER, see post, p. 343 U. S. 593.

For concurring opinion of MR. JUSTICE DOUGLAS, see post, p. 343 U. S. 629.

For concurring opinion of MR. JUSTICE JACKSON, see post, p. 343 U. S. 634.

For concurring opinion of MR. JUSTICE BURTON, see post, p. 343 U. S. 655.

For opinion of MR. JUSTICE CLARK, concurring in the judgment of the Court, see post, p. 343 U. S. 660.

For dissenting opinion of MR. CHIEF JUSTICE VINSON, joined by MR. JUSTICE REED and MR. JUSTICE MINTON, see post, p. 343 U. S. 667.

The District Court issued a preliminary injunction restraining the Secretary of Commerce from carrying out the terms of Executive Order No. 10340, 16 Fed.Reg.

Page 343 U. S. 581

3503. 103 F.Supp. 569. The Court of Appeals issued a stay. 90 U.S.App.D.C. ___, 197 F.2d 582. This Court granted certiorari. 343 U. S. 937. The judgment of the District Court is affirmed, p. 343 U. S. 589.

Page 343 U. S. 582

nolu chan  posted on  2014-11-20   17:37:22 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


#27. To: nolu chan (#26)

Not all executive orders or purported recess appointments are constitutional. Earlier this year, in NLRB v Canning, a unanimous SCOTUS slam dunked the Obama administration over purported "recess" appointments

Woo Hoo!!! The law has spoken!!! The system works! SCOTUS Slam dunked the Obama administration!!!!

Thank you Jesus!!!

and............President Obama is.........still president.

Well shit! Now what are you going to do????

Jameson  posted on  2014-11-20   19:15:32 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


#28. To: Jameson (#27)

Woo Hoo!!! The law has spoken!!! The system works! SCOTUS Slam dunked the Obama administration!!!!

Thank you Jesus!!!

and....

... all of his non-recess appointments were declared null and void. All the appointees' actions were declared null and void.

Should his executive order be found unconstitutional, it would likewise be found null and void, ab initio, as if they never existed.

The Court would have condemned him to eating Michelle school lunches for the remainder of his administration but that would be cruel and unusual punishment.

nolu chan  posted on  2014-11-20   19:36:14 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


Replies to Comment # 28.

#32. To: nolu chan (#28)

... all of his non-recess appointments were declared null and void. All the appointees' actions were declared null and void.

Should his executive order be found unconstitutional, it would likewise be found null and void, ab initio, as if they never existed.

But...but...THAT would embarrass the Office of the fake Presidency, the fraud that is Congress, the joke that is the SCOTUS, and the charade that is the Media...

...thus we should assume any admissions that for 6+ years unconstitutional, illegal appointments, legislation, and EOs were enacted and conceded until the nation has been fully cratered after two full Twilight Zone terms. UNLESS the GOPe Big Boys decide to shed their pampers, exposed their slowly descend testicles.

Liberator  posted on  2014-11-20 21:02:40 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  


End Trace Mode for Comment # 28.

TopPage UpFull ThreadPage DownBottom/Latest

[Home]  [Headlines]  [Latest Articles]  [Latest Comments]  [Post]  [Mail]  [Sign-in]  [Setup]  [Help]  [Register] 

Please report web page problems, questions and comments to webmaster@libertysflame.com