Executive Privilege Kicks Off Regular Season
President Obama’s assertion of executive privilege today is a bit like the kickoff for the NFL regular season. It doesn’t end the Fast and Furious scandal; it just takes it to another level. Everything so far was the pre-season. Now people will start to pay attention.
(Read my review of the book Fast and Furious here for a great primer on the scandal.)
A president doesn’t assert executive privilege lightly. It is a relic from the powers of the king. Some things were not for parliament’s eyes, such as national security statecraft. This new phase of the Fast and Furious scandal begins with Americans who had paid no attention to the scandal hearing the news today and asking, “what are they trying to hide?”
The new phase might possibly include members of the old media asking why the Most Transparent Administration in History, isn’t. Or, it might see them going all out to defend their president.
Pay attention to how often they use the term “botched” gun running operation. This is government-generated language. If you read Pavlich’s book, you know there was nothing “botched” about Fast and Furious except the architecture. The government wants you to think the builders screwed up, not the anti-Second Amendment architects.
One thing executive privilege can’t accomplish for Eric Holder is hiding his Department’s wrongdoing. Richard Nixon got that scolding from the Supreme Court in 1974 in a case deliciously named United States v. Nixon.
In that case, the Supreme Court held,
neither the doctrine of separation of powers nor the need for confidentiality of high-level communications, without more, can sustain an absolute, unqualified Presidential privilege of immunity from judicial process under all circumstances.
Executive privilege cannot be used to cover up criminal wrongdoing, such as lying to Congress.
Note that in the Nixon case, the subpoenas came from a court, not from Congress. Congress arguably has more power than does a court to get to the bottom of matters involving governmental action.
This administration has not respected congressional oversight powers going back to the New Black Panther dismissal.
When a president acts this way, Congress wields an even mightier power than contempt. Congress can wield the power of the purse to counter today’s assertion by the White House. This power works best with a gang so addicted to government largess.
Congress, in particular the House, which was given the express power to originate spending bills, can simply refuse to fund certain offices and functions inside the Justice Department. Last year’s spending is already set, but not this year’s. Without the House approving spending at the DOJ, the DOJ can’t spend money.
The answer to this rebuff today is to defund a wide swath of offices inside DOJ, perhaps starting with the Office of Public Affairs and Office of Legislative Affairs. They started the lying to Congress and the American people about Fast and Furious. Now they should lose funding.
See also Andrew McCarthy: The Plot Thickens: Obama Asserts Executive Privilege to Block Fast & Furious Disclosures
And Bryan Preston: Breaking: White House Asserts Executive Privilege Over DOJ Fast and Furious Documents (Updates)
Image courtesy of shutterstock / Brocreative
Why would the boy king pay any attention to funding limitations? Budgets and appropritations and stuff is just another category of those little constitional thingees he, as our king and beneficent dictator (for now), has a problem with.
Worst case, he will have to redirect some of that military spending the UN doesn’t like over to the Dept of Injustice to make sure those 3 million mexican yuts get to vote enough times in November.
Obama does not have the authority to move money around to where he wishes to place spend it. All funding by Congress is dedicated to specific agendas.
We now have Obama in the vice.
He has now claimed something he does not have, Executive Priviledge with information passed between DOJ and the Executive. To begin with the DOJ and the WH have a very controlled communication process and they certainly do not have a ‘coordinated effort relationship’ that can be used to break International Laws and instigate murders of Mexican Nationals and American Border Agents.
Yes, we now have plenty of reason for the Impeachment of his fool and not even Prince Harry will have the gonads to stand in the way of the Impeachment.
Goodbye Obama, I can’t wait to begin the blogging to help it along….
The best ending of an “Error in Judgement of the America People”.
Amen, Brother.
Now we now how the Germans felt when Hitler just didn’t do what he was supposed to.
Or when Mugabe took over, so he could destroy the only decent country in Africa. “They wouldn’t dare to eat us! The world would condemn them!”
Yet, they were indeed et. Sans outrage.
When duelling was outlawed, it became safe to be a scoundrel. This buttwipe will get his pension, with Secret Service protection, no matter what.
A short rope with a long drop is what he requires most.
“Without the House approving spending at the DOJ, the DOJ can’t spend money.”
The hell they can’t. They will write the check (actually, provide “fiscal data”) and proceed.
Question: Will Bambi’s list of Pardons exceed four figures by noon January 20?
If Richard Nixon had a son, he’d look like Barack Obama.
Fast & Furious was a criminal conspiracy by high level political and civil servants in Federal Law Enforcement to transfer guns to Mexican Drug cartels for the express purpose of building political support for more gun control laws in a Republican Congress.
The key question during Watergate was the President knowingly shielding malfeasance. It’s the thing Obama can be reasonably suspected of.
Pres. Obama’s actions on executive privledge today are confirming there’s enough in the documents Chairman Issa is asking for to put all of the top guys at Justice in prison, and to impeach Obama.
Nixon’s actions showing he was shielding malfeasance was what flipped the House Judiciary Committee in 1974 and decided them on impeachment rather than further investigation.
It also resulted in one of the great political speeches of the last fifty years by the late Rep Barbara Jordan, which if Chairman Issa and House Republicans are half smart they’ll be dragging out excerpts from:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_K9Wi-g3Rk
(That’s an excerpt from Great American Speeches, which may be the best single video documentary of the history of American rhetoric ever. Sound quality is better than on any other YouTube of the speech; there’s about 2 min of background about Watergate, and a 3 min bio of Jordan, before the actual speech begins at about 5 min into it).
The Democrats, and the Main Stream Media wing of their party, now has a true Nixonian Democratic President to deal with.
May they have good luck with that, because bad luck would be bad for the American Republic.
I would argue that this is far more agregious than what Nixon was accused of. As far as I know, no one was murdered during the Watergate break ins. What really rankles is that while trying, and probably succeeding, to buy votes with his latest announcement on illegal immigration, no one on the left seems too concerned that Mexicans were killed, kidnapped andraped with the very guns provided by our Justice Dep’t. Totally disgusting and horrific Mr.s Holder, Obama, etal.
I well remember Barbara Jordan and her magnificent speaking ability. She was truly a remarkable woman. She represented the Texas 18th Congressional District and was an incredible voice for Texas. Even the Republicans in Texas respected Congresswoman Jordan. I am truly glad that she is not alive today to see what has become of the 18th Congressional District. It is now held by Sheila Jackson Lee, who is NOT a Texan, and is one of the biggest embarrassments of the democratic party.
It’s my understanding that Executive Privilege applies only to communications between the President and Senior Staff. Either this action betrays ignorance on the part of the Obama administration not knowing the application, or it implies someone communicated with Obama about Fast and Furious. Whole new level doesn’t even begin to describe what Pandora’s box may just have been opened.
Very astute of you to see through to the ugly detail. Could the Preezy also be covering for Valerie Jarret? Axelfraud? Who else,in the White House, could be complicit in the Murders of U.S. Agents Brian Terry and Jaime Zapata?
The comment with the reference to Denis McDonough is found at:
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2012/06/19/uva-board-meeting-ends-in-heckling/#more-65911
I believe the only way to effectively cut-off a section of DOJ would be to defund the entire Department. Otherwise, the AG could simply direct the rest of the Department to cut their authorizations by a certain percentage inorder to fund the rest of the organization.
That is not correct. Congress can impose budgetary provisos, as well as specific line item funding, which it already does.
And this will stop the funding for these sub-entities within DOJ because…the Administration will respect these edicts from the House? Won’t that require time and several rounds in federal courts before that can be made real? And how much time is left until November?
Congress can pass laws, and the Supreme Court can issue rulings, but whether the Executive Branch chooses to pay attention is an entirely different matter. President Obama has always played by Chicago rules. In the past, he’s been perfectly willing to stage confrontations, and has had trouble knowing when he’s overplayed his hand.
The key point in this whole affair is that the Administration was intentionally trafficking hundreds of weapons to Mexican drug cartels, and no one has been able to explain why.
“That is not correct. Congress can impose budgetary provisos, as well as specific line item funding, which it already does.”
Fine, so the House says to the President, we defund your DOJ divisions X and Y. Until the Rs capture the senate, the present senate can just stall on anything passed by the House, as they’ve done with everything the House has proposed since the 2010 landslide. But if Obama’s re-elected, even with control of the entire legislature, he can just do a Clinton – veto the budget and other other authorizing legislation and blame the Republicans for geezers not getting their Social Security checks. The press will back him to the hilt. Eventually the Rs fold, pass a continuing resolution and Obama does whatever he wants anyway.
If he is re-elected, the only way to stop him would be with a two-thirds majority in the Senate willing to convict on impeachment by the House, which no one is predicting at this stage. We will be so screwed.
You don’t understand how the Constitution works with the power of the purse then. The Senate can’t stall anything. The House must affirmatively fund every penny of government under the Constitution. If the House does not AFFIRMATIVELY fund something, it cannot be funded regardless of what the Senate thinks, does, says, screams, or yells. The Senate is irrelevant when the House decides to NOT fund something. You are describing the opposite paradigm – whent he House decides TO FUND something.
But isn’t everything already funded through the end of the term on a continuing resolution that has already been passed?
Wouldn’t the House have to start a bill rescinding funding, get that passed by the Senate (which wouldn’t), and signed by the President (who wouldn’t) and when that failed override the veto (which they don’t have the votes for?)
Right or wrong?
Now, we’re theoretically going to run out of money because of the debt ceiling again before the end of the term, so that would be a time to do this when the next attempt at a continuing resolution comes around.
Wrong. Oct 1 it all starts again.
OK, so you’re right as a technical, legal matter. That said, the poster is right that before they’ll take the heat for pushing granny over the cliff or whatver scare tactic the Ds choose, they’ll pass a CR to keep the government running.
While I know the anti-deficiency laws and other statutes make it illegal to expend funds appropriated for one purpose on another purpose and make it illegal to expend funds for which there is no specific appropriation, adultery is illegal in some places too, and that must be why nobody does it there. The communist SOB has shown no reluctance to act far beyond his authority, at least his authority as we mere mortals who never were Constitutional Law perfessers understand Presidential authority. He’ll just spend the money, turn on his propaganda machine and if the Courts ultimately decide against him, he’ll dismiss the ruling as just another example of the right wing, corporatist majority of the Court playing politics.
These guys make Mitchell, Haldeman, Nixon look saintly – these murderers need to be impeached and put in prison – all of them. Nice work D. Issa – stand on those jerks until one rats out and slams this criminal enterprise masquerading as an presidential administration into a bad jail.
Bubba is waiting…
Only perverts take joy in the prospect of prison rape.
And a de facto sentence of rape violates the Constitutional prohibition against “cruel and unusual punishment.”
Repent. Then try again.
An interesting take on this scandal, Mr. Adams. Got any inside info or expert perspective on the likelihood?
I have no fear of seeing this get ugly and messy. The bigger and louder the fight, the more obvious it becomes that Obama is hiding something huge.
I’m not sure Obama’s trying to hide anything F&F related that traces back to him. I think he’s just expanding executive privilege to save Holder’s a** because he needs Holder as AG in order to get away with enough voter fraud to get re-elected.
Obama is now asserting that Bush is responsible for F&F. If he’s right, the documents in their possession should bear him out. Release the documents.
Didn’t Holder already admit that his testimony implicating the previous administration was “mistaken”?
“Note that in the Nixon case, the subpoenas came from a court, not from Congress. Congress arguably has more power than does a court to get to the bottom of matters involving governmental action.”
If anyone has time to explain to me, why would an enforceable subpoena from one branch of the federal government carry more weight than one from another? I thought the three were co-equal, and so would have assumed that a validly issued subpoena from one would carry the same ‘heft’ as from another…is that wrong?
Congress has a constitutional oversight authority that a court does not have. A Congressional inquiry is not subject to the same sort of restraints a subpoena in a court case is. For example, Congress need not establish relevance, or need not establish that an inquiry MIGHT lead to relevant infornation. In a court case, you would. Pretty simple.
In other words – Congress can go ‘fishing’ – courts cannot.
Doesn’t that beg the question? If Congress “goes fishing” by issuing a subpoena for irrelevant information, and the respondent doesn’t deliver, isn’t it then a matter of enforcement? Wouldn’t all of the enforcement mechanisms receive judicial oversight to the same degree as a court-issued subpoena’s would?
Congress can politely ask Holder to resign, or they can vote a request that he resign. Either way, the plot gets hotter, and the soup gets thicker. Will Obama throw him under the bus, even if they are coattailed together?
Getting Holder to resign misses the whole point. It is about getting to the truth.
A better question than “What are they hiding?” would be: “What AREN’T they hiding?” When have these miserable SOB’s ever “truthed” about anything? BO and Holder know this, so the invocation of Exec Priv is merely a stopgap, something causing the courts to decide, which will take time, and which is exactly what they plan so as not to disturb too much their plea for reelection. What a miserable bunch of creeps. Feasibility in the Senate or not, really now the time has come for the House to start talking about the possibilities for impeachment! Turn the tables on them. It will not amount to much more than talk, before the election, but will give the Repub campaign a publicity boost which even the LSSM (Lame Stream Subterfuge Ministry) cannot afford to ignore or spin without being laughed out of town! Time to ring in the end of this usurper “dynasty”-in-spe!
Mr. Adams,
You propose that Congress play hardball with the DOJ by selective defunding.
Are you of the opinion that Mr. Boehner is capable of playing at that level?
I see him reigning at the top of the T-ball league myself.
What a remarkable turn of events, not to mention the gift given to Romney by POTUS! Asserting executive privilege implicates the White House and which by extension, plainly suggests the administration cares not one whit for the fate of innocent Mexicans caught in the DOJ-fueled narco-gang crossfire.
As for Holder, he’s toast. Either he approved of the operation and continues to cover-up the fact, or he has perjured himself. I, for one, hope and trust the Mexican government will pursue criminal charges against him for this atrocious and sordid operation.
So…the leading edge of the sh*tstorm has finally reached the fan blade. Good. Now comes the slow agonizing realization by the masses of what these con artists have been up to. No longer can the MSM ignore this story. Not when the AG of the USA is in contempt of Congress. Maybe Boehner has finally grown a pair. I’ve long predicted he might lose the leadership if he didn’t stand up to these con artists in this administration. Maybe he’s finally been told by people behind him to sh*t or get off the pot.
As for the executive privilege – Obama would only hang his butt out on the line if he has something to lose – like a valued aide – or his own butt. I’m guessing both since these con artists hatch up these schemes in their break out sessions and share all the ‘really good ideas’. No doubt they all thought running guns and blaming it on ‘them’ was a good idea – and a great way to put another crimp in the second amendment. They just couldn’t imagine it blowing up in their faces. But it did. And not one peep of remorse from any of them for the lives lost – which proves just what bleeding hearts they really are.
Executive Privilege? The Department of Justice allowed guns to be sold and delivered to Mexican drug cartels.
The barbaric drug cartels work very closely with the A team of Muslim terrorists: Hezbollah.
MURDER is against the Law. Hundreds of Mexican innocents and U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry were MURDERED by the guns supplied by the Obama-Clinton-Holder George Soros administration.
Where is justice? Why are the guilty not being prosecuted for the murders of HUNDREDS of INNOCENTS?
Bible, Genesis 4:10 And God said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground”.
YAHOOO!!!
It’s United States v. Obama now.
I grew up in third world countries. Here in the US I feel right at home. Waiting for the Castle Doctrine to run up against another SWAT invasion of the wrong home…
It is has already happened here in the Third World state in which I live:
http://www.salem-news.com/articles/may252011/arizona-marine-tk.php
Mr Obama arrogantly ignores history. If there is justice in this world, that will be his downfall. The lesson of Watergate was “It’s not the crime; it’s the cover-up.”
g.w.’s admin. did try to tag guns and trace some to the bad guys, the way one might expect the gov. good guys to do to find the bad guys. the gov. gg’s quickly determined it wasn’t working and dicscontinued the op.
obi’s admin. never had any intention of tracking anything anywhere. they ordered gun shops along the border to sell to some guys that were going to be told to show up and buy them. when the honest gun dealers complained that these scum bag buyers were known drug cartel members, they were told by our gov. guys to comply anyway. tracking was not included in the op., just distribution. that is what tripped my uh-oh meter.
the way i see it, these bad guys surely had to be coaxed into taking our type of guns. they are deadly, but from what i see on the news, drug dealers (mafia types) like the kind that shoots trillions of bullets a minute, like the kind they pick up the phone and order by the ship load w/drug $$. the type guns that were mostly sold were ar-15′s and 50 cal’s. 50 cal’s might be good hunting baer, of for long range sniping, like in iraq. i’ve heard semi-auto ar-15′s are pretty easy to convert to full- auto, if you have a gun shop and the knowledge. seems easier to me to just pick up the phone and call the local gun runner to send in a ship full. if i remember right the soviets invented the ar-15. very handy weapon, and fairly reliable. i hear they got plento bullets, and other bad stuff for sale too. soviets (among others) probably too honest to be tempted w/ a pot full of ole dirty drug $$$.
F&F was a USA operation to assist a favored drug cartel (favored by Mexican PRI Party) to create civil unrest and chaos in Mexico so PRI can regain power in the upcoming National elections. The current in-power rightist party began the unpopular war on drugs and destroyed the previous cozy and non-violent partnerships between the PRI, smugglers (people and drugs), and organized crime in the US.
The Mexican people do not see participation in the drug trade or people smuggling as criminal, they see it as a US problem of demand that they are happily fulfilling (very profitably).
F&F was ordered by Obama to help the leftists in Mexico regain power and overthrow the right. Stricter gun control in the USA was to be a mere side benefit and it also helped freeze the illegal population in the US so the move to “help those poor people fleeing chaos” could be advanced more rapidly – read about the leftist-favorite Cloward-Piven strategy.
Have any of you investigating this mess ever talked to any Mexicans? I have.
good point
The MSM is going to go ‘all in’ defending these criminals….they will lie loudly and indignantly straight to the People’s faces 24/7 to protect their Dear Leader. Hopefully, FOX NEWS will grow a pair, recognize the golden opportunity they finally have, and realize NOW is the time to establish unprecedented dominance over the old media by simply telling the TRUTH, being aggressive and relentless, and letting the chips fall where they may. Maybe, just maybe this whole sordid affair may result in the cleansing that Washington has needed for generations and lead to a resurgence of American strength and integrity. We could actually witness the downfall of the whole rotten crowd (in both parties) of crooked, selfish, perverted, un-American “progressives” (or leftists, democrats, rino’s, marxists, socialists, take your pick). Nahhhh, I’m just dreaming; we couldn’t get THAT lucky….O’Reilly and Geraldo will team-up with Juan to convince Fox News to not be ‘offensive’ or, hey, remember this one – ‘mean spirited’? Boehner will remind the republicans that this fight will bring out all the dirt in their own affairs and fold like a shot dove… well, we can hope for truth and justice anyway, can’t we?
I think(wrt fox) the onl hope we have is mount hope.
When our long national nightmare begins to end next January 20, I hope one of Pres. Romney’s first acts is to re-name the DOJ HQ in DC after Brian Terry—publicly!
1/20 is a long way off. Even though the intentions of this crew seem obvious to most of us, its not that way with the general (incredulous) populace
What is Barack Isuzu Obama hiding? I don’t think it’s a 2,000 pound cheeseburger.
Mr. Adams: While I would like to agree with you that people will now take notice, I don’t think it will happen. The LSM will do everything it can to justify O’s actions, to excuse it and then to bury it. The LSM desparately wants this man re-elected irrespective of how lawless he and his Administration are. The blogosphere will keep this alive, but regretfully too many people still get their news from the LSM, and so they will be unaware of just how criminal this Administration is.
BTW – You notice how this is sucking the air out of the Romney campaign. The LSM will be awash with all this news, effectively silencing anything Romney says.
Which is it Jack? Is the issue sucking the air out of the Romney campaign? Or, will the people not “take notice?”
Mr. Adams – Oddly enough, I think’s it both. Right now it’s sucking the air out of the campaign. Give the LSM a little time, and they’ll come up with excuses, and eventually they’ll bury it, and people will forget, and in that sense, they will not take notice. O will then come up with some other distraction, and so it will go. Anything to keep the people’s minds off the economy.
Just a quick note about religion, God is not a fascist or a bigot, please stop blacking his name. I am sure he doesn’t go around saying stuff about you!
“Younder sits a Fourth Estate
more important than they all”
(attr. Edmond Burke)
the so called “mainstream” media guides the demand of the American People
“No angel born in Hell
Could break that satan’s spell”
(Don McLean)
because you see:
If a nation expects to be ignorant and free it expects what never was and never will be … The people cannot be safe without information. Where the press is free, and every man is able (and willing) to read, all is safe.
– Thomas Jefferson
the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world. we have a lot of mischief to un-do
Obamas claim of executive privalege suffers from a fatal contradiction.
1. The executive privaledge doctrine only applies to conversations between the president and his cabinet and high advisors. It would not apply to any deliberations or controversey enterely within a cabinet department.
2. Obama and Holder claim they knew nothing about F&F until the story went public, and Holders public denials to congress were honest mistakes. Thus according to Obamas and Holders own public statements, executive privaledge would not apply, since any conversations would have been below their level.
This leads to only 2 logical possibilities:
1. According to Obamas own words, his ececutive privaledge claim is completely bogus, since all conversations were below his and Holders level, and the executive privaledge claim should be rejected.
2. There are documents that are covered by executive privaledge, in which case Obamas and Holders statements that they knew nothing until the public did are lies, Holder perjured himself before congress, and they were engaging in a coverup. In this case, executive privaledge still does not apply, since according to Nixon precedent it cannot cover criminal conduct, like lying to congress.