Bush issues two more presidential signing statements. (Updated: Sens. Leahy and McCaskill respond)
Bush issues two more presidential signing statements. (Updated: Sens. Leahy and McCaskill respond)
Yesterday, President Bush asserted “that he had the executive power to bypass several parts of two bills: a military authorization act and a measure giving inspectors general greater independence from White House control,” the New York Times’ Charlie Savage reports:
In the authorization bill, Mr. Bush challenged four sections. One forbid the money from being used “to exercise United States control of the oil resources of Iraq”; another required negotiations for an agreement by which Iraq would share some of the costs of the American military operations there. [...]
In the other bill, he raised concerns about two sections that strengthen legal protections against political interference with the internal watchdog officials at each executive agency. One section gives the inspectors general a right to counsels who report directly to them. But Mr. Bush wrote in his signing statement that such lawyers would be bound to follow the legal interpretations of the politically appointed counsels at each agency.
Bush has issued signing statements to bypass more than 1,100 sections of laws. A recent report by the House Armed Services Committee said Bush has used the statements in a “broad and unsubstantiated” manner and that 78 percent of them “have raised constitutional or legal objections.”
The White House is holding on until the end to a strategy set early on by Vice President Cheney. With one pen the President signs a bill into law. With another stroke he chooses which parts of the law he will enforce. In undermining these watchdog reforms for inspectors general, the Bush-Cheney White House again is willing to subvert good-government accountability in order to buttress self-serving claims of unfettered authority.
In an age where people are frustrated with the status quo in their federal government, we needed this legislation because Americans deserve to know we are watching out for their tax dollars. This is a strong, bipartisan bill that will do a lot of good, and I’m disappointed that the president has tried to undermine this effort to strengthen oversight and accountability in the federal government.
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But Mr. Bush wrote in his signing statement that such lawyers would be bound to follow the legal interpretations of the politically appointed counsels at each agency…
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WTF??? So much for impartiality… wonder how the GOOP is going to like it when a DEM POTUS and Congressional super-majority has all this power?
October 15th, 2008 at 10:42 amCan someone please take his crayons away from him for the next 3 months?
October 15th, 2008 at 10:42 amChympSpeak:
It’s MY country! and My Pen, so I can write all the signing statements I want! And you can’t do diddly, cause I’m the unitarian eezekitiv. Courts, shmortz! I’ll sic Cheney on em!
October 15th, 2008 at 10:46 amHey, nothing to be concerned about, it’s only ‘inappropriate’.
October 15th, 2008 at 10:46 amHis signing statements die along with his misbegotten failure of an administration.
October 15th, 2008 at 10:47 amunbelievable Says:
Can someone please take his crayons away from him for the next 3 months?
October 15th, 2008 at 10:47 am““““““““““““““`
LMAO!!!!!!!
It won’t be long until the not-so-supreme court will be revisiting these issues of executive power.
October 15th, 2008 at 10:48 amThe Republic of Stupidity Says:
WTF??? So much for impartiality… wonder how the GOOP is going to like it when a DEM POTUS and Congressional super-majority has all this power?
They are obviously counting on the Democrats to obey the Constitution and surrender the illegal powers that Bush has usurped. Then they won’t have to worry about it.
October 15th, 2008 at 10:49 am>One forbids the money from being used
> “to exercise United States control of
> the oil resources of Iraq”;
ah yes, more increbily sound legal insight from the people who brought you such hits as “the president can sexually torture children” and “the authorization to use military force against al-queda doesnt actually give us any new powers because we coudl always do what we wanted to anyway”
sorry bush, but not even your knuckledragging supreme court picks are going to have the gall to take the power of the purse away from congress..you want to exert your power as commander in chief without any oversight, just “put it on the card” and blame it on the next democratic president..
October 15th, 2008 at 10:51 amQuote from yesterday’s Washington Post:
The Bush administration issued a pair of secret memos to the CIA in 2003 and 2004 that explicitly endorsed the agency’s use of interrogation techniques such as waterboarding against al-Qaeda suspects — documents prompted by worries among intelligence officials about a possible backlash if details of the program became public.
October 15th, 2008 at 10:51 amI would not be the least surprised if the Chimp took us to war with Iran on December 25th…
and the people would look up, and moo like contented cattle, and go back to the football games…
October 15th, 2008 at 10:52 am>wonder how the GOOP is going to like it
> when a DEM POTUS and Congressional
> super-majority has all this power?
Sadly, only the abusers will abuse the power.
October 15th, 2008 at 10:54 ampaleolib Says:
His signing statements die along with his misbegotten failure of an administration.
October 15th, 2008 at 10:47 am
NO president since Washington has EVER returned tot he Legislative or the Judicial powers that they arrogated ‘to meet an exigent emergency.’
I do not–no one should– expect Obama to break the precedent…
October 15th, 2008 at 10:55 am“If this were a dictatorship, it’d be a heck of a lot easier, just so long as I’m the dictator.” GWB
October 15th, 2008 at 10:55 amAnd to think he was installed as leader of the free world only to create the endless failure that has us where we are today.
October 15th, 2008 at 10:57 amThere is nothing failed about this jerk’s time as the paper mache president.
This nightmare has unfolded as planned.
They had a very long pre-game.
The kickoff was 9-11.
#Chocolate Jesus Says:
>wonder how the GOOP is going to like it
> when a DEM POTUS and Congressional
> super-majority has all this power?
Sadly, only the abusers will abuse the power.
October 15th, 2008 at 10:54 am
anybody seeking the presidency is, almost by definition, an abuser of power…goes with the job…
October 15th, 2008 at 10:58 amThey had a very long pre-game.
The kickoff was 9-11.
October 15th, 2008 at 10:57 am
Mebbe, but the tail-gating started when the SCROTUS and that feculent bint Sandra Day O’Connor tossed him the election in the first place…
October 15th, 2008 at 10:58 amKeith H. Says:
And to think he was installed as leader of the free world only to create the endless failure that has us where we are today.
There is nothing failed about this jerk’s time as the paper mache president.
This nightmare has unfolded as planned.
They had a very long pre-game.
The kickoff was 9-11.
I agree 100%. This has been in the works since Nixon got caught.
October 15th, 2008 at 11:01 amChristopher Story, editor and publisher of International Currency Review, had been reporting for over a week that Cheney was “critically ill”, but no one is listening. Now we have the following AP report:
Cheney Experiences Abnormal Heart Rhythm
By DEB RIECHMANN
The Associated Press
Wednesday, October 15, 2008; 10:52 AM
WASHINGTON — Vice President Dick Cheney experienced an abnormal heart rhythm and canceled his campaign event in Illinois.
Cheney’s press secretary Megan Mitchell said that during a visit with doctors Wednesday morning, it was discovered that the vice president was having a recurrence of atrial fibrillation _ an abnormal rhythm involving the upper chambers of his heart.
Later Wednesday, Cheney will visit George Washington University Hospital for an outpatient procedure to restore his normal rhythm.
October 15th, 2008 at 11:02 amExit Stage Left Says:
I agree 100%. This has been in the works since Nixon got caught.
Actually, I think it has only been in the works since people like Dick Cheney saw that Nixon got away scot free after getting caught.
October 15th, 2008 at 11:03 amHow much damage can the bumbling Chimp get this Country in with three months to go? And the knuckle draggers at McCain rallys are ascared of an Obama Presidency????? Hey, since the Senate is officially staying in session through the end of the year to avoid any more Bush absentee appointments couldn’t we just hold Chimpy and Satan under inherent contempt and place them under custody for the good of the Nation until the adults can take over next year?
October 15th, 2008 at 11:04 amEven the Repukes are tired of this $hitstain. He should have been held accountable a long time ago….probably about age 16 and we would not be having these problems now.
October 15th, 2008 at 11:11 amI respectfully disagree with you tokin, and I resent your supposition that Obama is not a better man than bush.
October 15th, 2008 at 11:17 am“Off with his head.”
Now lets see if the jack-booted thugs from the SS show up at my door for saying that since they are incapable of doing the same for McSame supporters.
Bring it on.
October 15th, 2008 at 11:26 am“A recent report …” ???
wasn’t that just yesterday?
and he issues more today… and here’s why…
so take THAT, citizens…
October 15th, 2008 at 11:26 amTRANSLATION: BUSH IS A CRIMINAL….BUT THERE’S NOTHING WE CAN DO ABOUT IT BECAUSE IMPEACHMENT IS OFF THE TABLE.
THANKS PELOSI
October 15th, 2008 at 11:29 amDogshit should be picked up in a plastic bag and placed in the landfill.
October 15th, 2008 at 11:40 amLet’s hope that some fool plays ’shock and awe’ with Cheney’s heart today.
October 15th, 2008 at 11:41 amit takes one pen to write it, and another pen to scratch it out…
- obama/biden 08′
October 15th, 2008 at 11:47 amWhatever happened to the conservative mantra “government so small you can drown it in a bathtub”?
Maybe only the die-hards believe it anymore -considering Pres Bush is considering nationalising the US banking system. Only he is calling it a “rescue plan”…
Pres Bush, killing the free market in order to save. Precious.
October 15th, 2008 at 11:52 amHey, with presidents like these, who the hell needs enemies ?
October 15th, 2008 at 11:55 am“The Constitution is just a God damned piece of paper”-George W. Bushitler
“There you stand with your law, here I stand with my bayonets. We shall see which prevails”- Adolf Hitler
October 15th, 2008 at 11:57 amIt’s worth remembering that signing statements have about the same force of law as Bush’s grocery list. You might as well write them on toilet paper for all they matter. Until one is challenged in a court of law, they continue to exist in a vague “grey area” where people act as if they were laws, but aren’t. The key here, is that they aren’t.
This status is the reason that the Bush administration always backs down from legal challenges at the last second. As long as no judge rules on the validity of signing statements, they get to have this set of “shadow laws” that give the illusion of being real.
And that’s the whole point here – the Bush administration hasn’t really increased executive power through these kinds of methods. They’ve only created the illusion of increased executive power. Which is why it won’t be able to protect them from the legal firestorm that’s going to come their way very soon.
October 15th, 2008 at 12:02 pmThey need to reword this to say “He spells out which parts of the law he will ignore and violate.”
October 15th, 2008 at 12:04 pmBush’s grocery list.
BANANAS!!
ICE CREAM!
MORE BANANAS!
PEANUTS, ROASTED & SALTED!
MORE BANANAS!!!
October 15th, 2008 at 12:08 pmWhat the heck, this is the power Congress gave Him when Pelosi took Impeachment off the table.
October 15th, 2008 at 12:09 pmCB_Brooklyn Says:
Cheney’s press secretary Megan Mitchell said that during a visit with doctors Wednesday morning, it was discovered that the vice president was having a recurrence of atrial fibrillation _ an abnormal rhythm involving the upper chambers of his heart.
_____________
Wouldn’t the real discovery here be that Cheney HAS a heart?
October 15th, 2008 at 12:10 pmAlejandro Says:
With another stroke he chooses which parts of the law he will enforce.
___________
Well, it’s nice to know that Botch will leave office the way he came in… stroking it.
October 15th, 2008 at 12:12 pmElBruce Says:
Excuse me, but they operate in just the opposite manner. They are considered legal until they are challenged in court.
This man has been writing law and it has been 100% upheld during his administration.
Not one statement has been challenged in court and he has done exactly what the signing statements said he would do.
semantics but similar to arresting protesters to keep them from getting the truth out until it is too late. they then just pay up and they have won for the cost of the litigation. Basically they win.
October 15th, 2008 at 12:13 pmTROS; The Tin Man has more heart than Cheney could ever aspire to. Cheney makes Scrooge(before his repentence) look like the milk of human kindness.
October 15th, 2008 at 12:18 pmOnce Obama is in the Supreme Court will shut down signing statements. The republicans control the Supreme Court and they know it and are NOT worried about Obama doing the same BS.
October 15th, 2008 at 12:19 pmUncle Ho Says:
TROS; The Tin Man has more heart than Cheney could ever aspire to.
__________
I didn’t say it was a HUMAN heart, Uncle Ho… or even an organic one.
For all we know, he simply goes in and swaps out the old unit for a new one…
October 15th, 2008 at 12:23 pmThe evening of November 4 be the only cause of celebration; after that, and until January 21st, I expect to be shivering at what this administration does on the way out. I don’t expect it to be pretty.
I still hold out hope, however, that an Obama administration will unearth details that rile the public against the soon-to-be private citizens George Bush and Richard Cheney. Think of when U.S. troops descended upon the concentration camps in 1945. This time around, in 2008, the Iraqi people — malnourished, afflicted with diseases, birth defects thanks to the use of white phospherous, their rations and electricity cut, and their employment rate substandard will look to a competent democratic administration for liberation.
October 15th, 2008 at 12:34 pmThe Republic of Stupidity Says:
Wouldn’t the real discovery here be that Cheney HAS a heart?
Nah, everyone knows that Cheney lacks a heart, Bush a brain and Colin Powell, courage. So I think Condoleeza must be Dorothy, then…
And now we’re facing another fantasy tale Beauty (runner-up) and the (Old) Beast.
October 15th, 2008 at 12:35 pmWASHINGTON — Vice President Dick Cheney experienced an abnormal heart rhythm and canceled his campaign event in Illinois.
I would understand if all those dead and exiled Iraqis didn’t send their well wishes.
October 15th, 2008 at 12:38 pmAnd Palin’s the Wicked Witch of the West, or a flying monkey, take your pick.
October 15th, 2008 at 12:40 pmAnd what is Leahy and the rest of the Democratic controlled Congress doing about it?
Oh, that’s right. Nothing! Which is all Democrats are useful for.
October 15th, 2008 at 12:44 pmHello!!!!b Reid & Pelosi just impeach this focker and his bette noir Cheney now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
October 15th, 2008 at 12:48 pmyeah, like minim wage and social security. You can’t blame the destruction and the subsequent cleanup that will be necessary by dems on the dems……nice try though. When they have a true majority things will change and you will have to take it all back, again.
October 15th, 2008 at 1:03 pmExit Stage Left Said:
It won’t be long until the not-so-supreme court will be revisiting these issues of executive power.
October 15th, 2008 at 1:05 pmOctober 15th, 2008 at 10:48 am
———————————
Ought to ask ‘em. “Will you still support the President after January 20th?”
McWars; There is always the possibility of this scenario:
Bushitler invokes directive 51, invoking martial law and canceling elections, naming McPutz as his successor.
October 15th, 2008 at 1:06 pmor…
The elections are held, but due to an Obama blowout, Bushitler invokes directive 51, imposing martial law, declares the election null and void, naming McPutz as the new POTUS.
or…
Bushitler invokes directive 51, names himself as dictator for life(his wet-dream come true)
I forgot to mention prosperity and paying the national debt and forward thinking projects like the space program and Jimmy Carters warning that we needed to move forward on renewable energy.
You can blame the dems if that makes you feel fuzzy. I would rather blame the criminals who committed the crimes.
October 15th, 2008 at 1:11 pmBush/Cheney—>to the Hague. The Brand of the Bushwhacker, i.e., McCain, Graham, Gramm, LIEberman and others of the creed should not see another term in the 21st century.
America must take the lead again!!!!!!!!!!
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) would have been obsolete before it was built no thanks to Bush 41 leaving no Choice for Clinton (Super Conducting Super Colider, the SSC project). We won WWII thanks to the Dough boys getting hard and Elementary Particle Physics (A-Bomb).
President Carter started the Aquatic Species Project in 1978-Third generation Biofuels!!!!!!
Don’t let the Bushwhackers make excuses on why Democrats are not worthy to lead.
___________________________________________________________
Republicans Block Federal Aid to Wind and Solar
Tom Friedman of the New York Times reports:
Few Americans know it, but for almost a year now, Congress has been bickering over whether and how to renew the investment tax credit to stimulate investment in solar energy and the production tax credit to encourage investment in wind energy. The bickering has been so poisonous that when Congress passed the 2007 energy bill last December, it failed to extend any stimulus for wind and solar energy production. Oil and gas kept all their credits, but those for wind and solar have been left to expire this December. I am not making this up. At a time when we should be throwing everything into clean power innovation, we are squabbling over pennies.
These credits are critical because they ensure that if oil prices slip back down again — which often happens — investments in wind and solar would still be profitable. That’s how you launch a new energy technology and help it achieve scale, so it can compete without subsidies.
The Democrats wanted the wind and solar credits to be paid for by taking away tax credits from the oil industry. President Bush said he would veto that. Neither side would back down, and Mr. Bush — showing not one iota of leadership — refused to get all the adults together in a room and work out a compromise. Stalemate. Meanwhile, Germany has a 20-year solar incentive program; Japan 12 years. Ours, at best, run two years.
“It’s a disaster,” says Michael Polsky, founder of Invenergy, one of the biggest wind-power developers in America. “Wind is a very capital-intensive industry, and financial institutions are not ready to take ‘Congressional risk.’ They say if you don’t get the [production tax credit] we will not lend you the money to buy more turbines and build projects.”
If the wind and solar credits expire, said Rhone Resch, the president of the Solar Energy Industries Association, the impact in just 2009 would be more than 100,000 jobs either lost or not created in these industries, and $20 billion worth of investments that won’t be made.
While all the presidential candidates were railing about lost manufacturing jobs in Ohio, no one noticed that America’s premier solar company, First Solar, from Toledo, Ohio, was opening its newest factory in the former East Germany — 540 high-paying engineering jobs — because Germany has created a booming solar market and America has not.
October 15th, 2008 at 1:52 pmCB BROOK @ 19
October 15th, 2008 at 2:44 pmOT but
what if Darth Cheney were to conveniently pass away or be unable to continue in office in the next three weeks, would or could chimpy install McPanderer or Jane Winebag as Veep.
Could this be the October surprise?
I can. When Republicans are in the minority, they rule through the filibuster. Dems, on the other hand, caved every time. I think about the only major legislation Bush did not get his way on was the privatization of Social Security – he couldn’t get enough Republicans to buy into the idea.
October 15th, 2008 at 3:00 pmEight years, and whatchagonnadoaboutitnow?
October 15th, 2008 at 4:26 pmProbably too late to chime in on this thread,but if Cheney died or resigned prior to the end of this term, Bush could nominate a replacement, but that person has to be confirmed by both houses of the Congress.
October 15th, 2008 at 4:43 pmBedava Porno izle,
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March 31st, 2009 at 10:21 am