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Obama Shreds The Constitution
Wizbang —
President Obama promised during the campaign that he would not use presidential signing statements to alter the will of Congress, a procedure President Bush's critics likened to shredding the constitution. In what has become the identifying characteristic of his young administration, Obama walked away from another campaign promise ...
Obama “Signing Statements” Promise: I thought Only White Man Speaks With Forked Tongue - With Video
Pat Dollard | Young Americans —
WSJ:
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama signed a $410 billion spending bill Wednesday that includes thousands of pet projects inserted by lawmakers, even as he unveiled new rules to restrict such so-called earmarks.
At the same time, after Democrats criticized former President George W. Bush’s signing statements, Mr. Obama issued one of his own, declaring five provisions in the spending bill to be unconstitutional and nonbinding, including one aimed at preventing punishment of whistleblowers.
Presidents have employed signing statements to reject provisions of a bill without vetoing the entire legislation. ...
Change: Part 3 - Signing Statements
The Next Right —
President Obama has issued a signing statement, contradicting some things he said during the campaign. But signing statements are just a procedural shortcut past a very serious problem of legislative collusion. There is a better solution.
President Obama's signing statement...
[A]fter Democrats criticized former President George W. Bush's signing statements, Mr. Obama issued one of his own, declaring five provisions in the spending bill to be unconstitutional and nonbinding...
...would seem to contradict his previous arguments.
In a 2007 letter to a constituent, Senator Obama ...
Another Democrat Hypocrisy Chapter…Obama Uses Signing Statements
Flopping Aces —
Another day, another Obama broken promise. Here he is last year saying he will NOT use signing statements:
We are not going to use signing statements as a way to do a end run around Congress
Bush this and Bush that. Bush used the signing statements to accumulate power. Yeeeeah…..Lights please: (h/t Conservative Punk)
President Barack Obama signed a $410 billion spending bill Wednesday that includes thousands of pet projects inserted by lawmakers, even as he unveiled new rules to restrict such so-called earmarks.
At ...
Obama breaks another campaign promise, uses signing statement
Conservative Punk —
Obama breaks another campaign promise, uses signing statement By Rizzuto Thu Mar 12, 2009 - Has this guy kept a single promise yet? Here's Obama during the campaign, pledging not to use signing statements as a way of doing an "end run around congress": How very odd then that President Obama should decide to use a signing statement in this recent spending bill. This from The Walll Street Journal ...
Just Remember Signing Statements Are Good Now That Obama Uses Them
Rhymes With Right —
Just one more bit of hypocrisy out of the Obamabots, who a year ago labeled Bushs use of signing statements to be a threat to our entire system of government. President Barack Obama signed a $410 billion spending bill Wednesday that includes thousands of pet projects inserted by lawmakers, even as he unveiled new rules to restrict such so-called earmarks. At the same time, after Democrats criticized former President George W. Bush's signing statements, Mr. Obama issued one of his own, declaring five provisions in the spending bill to be unconstitutional and nonbinding, including one aimed at preventing punishment of whistleblowers. Now three points here ...
Video: Obama's Empty Pledge to End Signing Statements
Weekly Standard Blog —
John Henke posts this video of Obama saying on the campaign trail that as president he would end George W. Bush's practice of attaching "signing statements" to bills he was signing into law.
Obama, God love him, used his impressive rhetorical ability on the stump to make a rather dull and dry topic like signing statements seem particularly nefarious. He said at the campaign rally:
What George Bush has been trying to do as part of his effort to accumulate more power in the presidency is he's been saying 'well I can basically change what Congress passed by attaching a ...
Video: Signing statements, then and now
Hot Air » Top Picks —
Video: Signing statements, then and now posted at 8:03 am on March 13, 2009 by Ed Morrissey Send to a Friend | Share on Facebook | printer-friendly On the campaign trail, candidate Barack Obama railed against the use of signing statements as an abuse of presidential authority. Obama appears here in May 2008 in Grand Junction, Colorado, answering a question from the crowd about Bush’s signing statements. He goes into Constitutional professor mode, lecturing the crowd on the role of the president regarding legislation, and noting that presidents can either sign legislation or veto bills, but says that attempting to change bills through signing ...
Obama’s Power Grab on signing statements.
RedState: Conservative News and Community —
President Obama’s decision to use signing statements to modify Congressional legislation directly attacks the ‘checks and balances’ to our government set up by the Founders. He is attempting to ‘accumulate more power in the Presidency’, using the claim that he ‘can basically change what Congress passed’ when it comes to legislation; Obama thinks that he has the right to indicate that he can ‘choose to interpret it this way, or that way’, depending on whether he agrees ‘with this part or that part’. In short, he wants to ‘make laws as he’s going along’, and ‘that’s ...
Fact Check: President Obama Did NOT Break Signing Statement Promise
Politics Daily —
Filed under: Democrats, Barack Obama, Obama Administration There are legitimate grounds on which to criticize President Obama's administration, such as the vetting of nominees, or their performance, or Obama's position on gay marriage. I don't understand, then, why some feel the need to make up reasons to slam the President. Several reports have tried to falsely depict President Obama as having gone back on a campaign promise about signing statements, or gone back on his newly-published guidelines for them. Such depictions depend on an ignorance of the new guidelines, ...
Parsing the President's Pledges
Politics Daily —
Filed under: Barack Obama, 2008 President, Obama AdministrationLiberal supporters of President Barack Obama have busied themselves trying to explain how the presidential signing statement he issued last week did not violate his policy against using signing statements on legislation. Critics of the president's critics rest their arguments on a semantic parsing of candidate Obama's answer to a question posed to him on the campaign trail, and his Administration's recently issued guidelines on signing statements. But an examination of the president's actual words, rather than an analysis of one's feelings about what was ...
Obama signs war bill — with caveats
News —
Obama signs war bill — with caveats President Obama signed the $106 billion war-spending bill into law Friday, but not without taking a page from his predecessor and ignoring a few elements in legislation. Obama included a five-paragraph signing statement with the bill, including a final paragraph that outlined his objections to at least four areas of the bill. The Obama administration announced in the statement it would disregard provisions of the legislation that, among other things, would compel the Obama administration to pressure the World Bank to strengthen labor and environmental standards and require the Treasury department to report to Congress on the ...
Another Day, Another Broken Obama Campaign Promise
Weekly Standard Blog —
The Hill's Michael O'Brien reports that Obama attached a signing statement to the war-funding bill--breaking, once again, his campaign pledge to end a practice that was oh-so-nefarious when President Bush did it:
What George Bush has been trying to do as part of his effort to accumulate more power in the presidency is he's been saying 'well I can basically change what Congress passed by attaching a letter saying I don't agree with this part or I don't agree with that part. I'm gonna choose to interpret it this way or that way.' That's not part of his ...
Obama Signing Statement Claims Authority To Disregard Statute He Just Signed
Rhymes With Right —
Once again, Barack Obama acts just like George W. Bush -- and adopts a policy he and his surrogates criticized during the 2008 campaign . President Obama signed the $106 billion war-spending bill into law Friday, but not without taking a page from his predecessor and ignoring a few elements in legislation. Obama included a five-paragraph signing statement with the bill, including a final paragraph that outlined his objections to at least four areas of the bill. The Obama administration announced in the statement it would disregard provisions of the legislation that, among other things, would compel the Obama administration to pressure the World Bank to strengthen ...
signing statements are not good
skippy the bush kangaroo —
congress finally remembers that fact. too bad obama can't. the house rebuked president obama for trying to ignore restrictions to international aid payments, voting overwhelmingly for an amendment forcing the administration to abide by its constraints. house members approved an amendment by a 429-2 vote to have the obama administration pressure the world bank to strengthen labor and environmental standards and require a treasury department report on world bank and international monetary fund (imf) activities. - the hill ...
Video: Obama on signing statements, then and now
Hot Air » Top Picks —
Video: Obama on signing statements, then and now posted at 7:45 pm on July 10, 2009 by Ed Morrissey Share on Facebook | printer-friendly Barack Obama during the campaign : “What George Bush has been trying to do as part of his effort to accumulate more power in the presidency is he’s been saying ‘well I can basically change what Congress passed by attaching a letter saying I don’t agree with this part or I don’t agree with that part,” Obama said last year during a campaign stop. “I’m gonna’ choose to interpret it this way or that way.’ That’s not part of his power. But this is part of the whole theory of George Bush that he can make laws as he’s ...
Obama Breaks His Promise on Presidential Signing Statements
Stop The ACLU —
Obama Breaks His Promise on Presidential Signing Statements Posted on July 10, 2009 .that was then..and… : “What George Bush has been trying to do as part of his effort to accumulate more power in the presidency is he’s been saying ‘well I can basically change what Congress passed by attaching a letter saying I don’t agree with this part or I don’t agree with that part,” Obama said last year during a campaign stop. “I’m gonna’ choose to interpret it this way or that way.’ That’s not part of his power. But this is part of the whole theory of George Bush that he can make laws as he’s going along. I disagree with that. I taught the constitution for 10 years. I ...
Candidate Obama - No Signing Statements From Me….That Way Then, This Is Now
Flopping Aces —
As if creating Czars to control vast sectors of our country, firing Inspector Generals when they don’t give a pass to his policies, and transferring the controls of the Census from where it should be to his Administration wasn’t enough evidence that the man doesn’t care what kind of promises he made yesterday, because it was all to get elected. Now that he is in power he just utters “nevermind.”
Via Hot Air comes this reminder of what candidate Obama said about the use of Presidential Signing Statements:
Questioner: When Congress offers you a bill, do you promise not to use Presidential signage to get your ...
House Chairs Push Back Against Obama Signing Statements
Politics on HuffingtonPost.com —
House Democrats issued a warning to President Obama on Tuesday: Cool it with the signing statements.
Rep. Barney Frank, chairman of the Financial Services Committee, joined Rep. David Obey, chair of the Appropriations Committee, and two of their respective subcommittee chairs, to send a statement to Obama warning him that undercutting legislation they pass, makes it more difficult to corral support on close votes.
Their complaint refers to a statement Obama appended to the war supplemental, a bill that prompted stiff opposition from House Republicans, antiwar Democrats and civil-liberties advocates last month. Ultimately House leadership pushed ...
It May Surprise You to Learn This, but Barack Obama Does not Always* Keep His Promises
RedState: Conservative News and Community —
Let me be clear** at the outset of this post that there is no objectively valid reason whatsoever to object to the use of Presidential Signing Statements, whether it is done by Republicans or Democrats. It is axiomatic that in the course of executing the laws that Congress has passed, the Executive Branch, as a co-equal branch, must necessarily interpret the law before deciding what the law requires them to do. The Executive Branch then has two choices: either disclose their interpretations in a signing statement, or not disclose them in a signing statement. The implementation of the law will be exactly the same in either case, it’s just that in one case, the ...
