IS BARACK OBAMA PLOTTING A COUP?

[UncleBeer 244]

Interesting Op-ed. Should he proceed with amnesty by decree as he's threatened, it'd certainly fit the definition...

That seems like an awfully strong word, but it is the term that distinguished law professorGlenn Reynolds, no hysteric, uses to describe the Obama administration’s oft-reported plan to issue executive amnesty to five or six million illegal immigrants in violation of federal law. Glenn’s characterization is a fair one. When a tyrant asserts the right to rule by decree in a state that has formerly been subject to the rule of law, he is commonly described as carrying out a coup d’etat.

That is just what the Obama administration has done, and reportedly will continue to do. When Obama changed the Affordable Care Act by decree–to name just one example, substituting “2014″ for “2013″ in a critical provision of the statute–he acted as a tyrant. In his refusal to enforce the immigration laws, contrary to the Constitution which requires him to “take care that the laws be faithfully executed,” he has acted like a tinpot dictator, asserting the right to change or ignore the law by fiat. If he now directly nullifies Section 274(a) of the Immigration and Nationalities Act by legalizing, and issuing work permits to, five or six million illegal immigrants, thereby repealing federal law by decree, how else can we describe his action but as a coup? The Obama administration openly takes the position that the rule of law no longer applies.

Can you imagine the furor that would have resulted if President Nixon, in the midst of the Watergate crisis, had asserted the right to repeal or amend federal statutes by decree? No, actually, you can’t. Forget impeachment; he would have been escorted out of the Oval Office by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. What, then, makes Barack Obama special? How can he claim the right to rule by decree without suffering the same condemnation? Well, the answer is obvious: he is a Democrat. But is that really enough? No president, Democrat or Republican, has ever dreamed of asserting such unconstitutional authority.

I am one of many who have ridiculed the Democrats’ seemingly weird obsession with impeachment. But perhaps there is method to the Democrats’ apparent madness. If they know that President Obama is about to do something that obviously warrants impeachment–asserting the right to rule by executive decree, and repealing the nation’s immigration laws by fiat–perhaps it is shrewd on their part to preemptively attack the idea of impeachment and commit Republicans to the fact that they have no thought of any such thing. Then, when Obama makes his move, it will be harder for Republicans to switch gears and start talking about removing him from office. That strikes me as the most logical explanation for the Democrats’ well-coordinated, but seemingly pointless, anti-impeachment campaign.

Today, the White House started backing off on plans to issue an executive amnesty. Maybe, as Glenn Reynolds says, this is a sign that someone in the White House is in touch with reality. Perhaps a coup has been averted, on this subject at least. But eternal vigilance is the price of liberty, so let’s not let down our guard.

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

Interesting Op-ed. Should he proceed with amnesty by decree as he's threatened, it'd certainly fit the definition...

Congress, the constition, seperation of powers... Who needs all that

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

A coup. Really.

That's not at all paranoid is it.

[JohnR! 5,495]

A coup. Really.

That's not at all paranoid is it.

There just isn't enough aluminum in the world....

Edited August 4, 2014 by JohnR!

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

A prescription would probably be cheaper.

[JohnR! 5,495]

A prescription would probably be cheaper.

They won't risk that what with the death panels created by Obamacare and all... Too risky...

[UncleBeer 244]

There just isn't enough aluminum in the world....

God forbid you address the thread in any substantial way.

Say,where are those avid "off-topic" mods when you need 'em? (oh that's right: they only delete posts of particular ideological leanings. )

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

There isn't anything to address. There is simply no evidence that the government, much as you don't like it, is plotting a totalitarian takeover of the political system.

That's just hyperbolic rubbish.

[spookyturtle 9,465]

God forbid you address the thread in any substantial way.

Say,where are those avid "off-topic" mods when you need 'em? (oh that's right: they only delete posts of particular ideological leanings. )

God forbid you get a new idea for a topic.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

There isn't anything to address. There is simply no evidence that the government, much as you don't like it, is plotting a totalitarian takeover of the political system.

That's just hyperbolic rubbish.

But you totally fail to address the allegations. Oh, the allegations.

[SMOKE 1,426]

a coup? no. he'd need others support for that.

[Sousuke 1,214]

If your looking at today's events within a context of 4-5 years, it doesn't seem to be a big deal. But I think 10 or 15 years from now, it will become obvious how much executive power increased, starting in 2001.

[spookyturtle 9,465]

a coup? no. he'd need others support for that.

Yep, as in the military.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Yeah and people were called traitors for opposing the Patriot Act back when bush brought it in. Some of those vj posters are still here and are only now concerned because Obama is continuing to use those executive privileges.

This is what happens when you act out of fear and don't think things through, you effing berks. Don't like the abuse of power, don't give it away in the first place.

[SMOKE 1,426]

that wasn't very family friendly