26 Miles

Executive Power & Signing Statements

// June 27th, 2006 // Business & Politics

ABC News has a story describing Congress’ frustration at the Presidents use of “signing statements” to allow exceptions to the enforcement of laws in the name of national security.

From the article:

Rather than give Congress the opportunity to override a veto with a two-thirds majority in each house, he has issued hundreds of signing statements invoking his right to interpret the law on everything from whistleblower protections to how Congress oversees the USA Patriot Act.

“It means that the administration does not feel bound to enforce many new laws which Congress has passed,” said David Golove, a law professor at New York University who specializes in executive power issues. “This raises profound rule of law concerns. Do we have a functioning code of federal laws?”

John Dean wrote an article on Findlaw back in January about this very issue.

“… George W. Bush issued 23 signing statements in 2001; 34 statements in 2002, raising 168 constitutional objections; 27 statements in 2003, raising 142 constitutional challenges, and 23 statements in 2004, raising 175 constitutional criticisms. In total, during his first term Bush raised a remarkable 505 constitutional challenges to various provisions of legislation that became law.”

and…

“Given the incredible number of constitutional challenges Bush is issuing to new laws, without vetoing them, his use of signing statements is going to sooner or later put him in an untenable position. And there is a strong argument that it has already put him in a position contrary to Supreme Court precedent, and the Constitution, vis-�-vis the veto power.”

and…

“As Phillip Cooper observes, the President’s signing statements are, in some instances, effectively rewriting the laws by reinterpreting how the law will be implemented.”

It’s a fascinating exercise of executive power and arguably well beyond the spirit of the authority entrusted to him in that regard — so much so in fact that those leading the effort to review the use of signing statements by the President are by and large Republican.

There has to be checks and balances folks, otherwise it isn’t a democracy.