Commentary: Obama’s Speech Raises Question: Where Does He Get the Authority

CNSNews ^ | June 15, 2010 | Terence P. Jeffrey

[opentalk]

In his first-ever address from the Oval Office on Tuesday night, President Barack Obama said he was going to “inform” the chairman of BP that he must surrender the company’s money to an independent party that will distribute it to people and businesses determined to have been harmed by the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

The president’s declaration raises a serious constitutional question about his authority: Where does the president get the lawful power to order any private-sector company—BP or any other—that it must surrender its money? Should not courts and normal legal proceedings determine who is responsible, who has been harmed, and who owes what to whom in regards to the Gulf oil spill?

...What rights do the stockholders in BP have to due process of law to protect their property? The Fifth Amendment to the Constitution says: "No person shall be … deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.”

Does Obama think he can “inform” persons and corporations to surrender or exchange their property without due process of law?

...Tomorrow,” Obama said, “I will meet with the chairman of BP and inform him that he is to set aside whatever resources are required to compensate the workers and business owners who have been harmed as a result of his company’s recklessness. And this fund will not be controlled by BP. In order to ensure that all legitimate claims are paid out in a fair and timely manner, the account must and will be administered by an independent third party.”

[cripplecreek]

Honestly I can’t see that he’s done a damn thing other than attempt to sieze control of BP and even that isn’t about fixing the problem, its about grabbing the cash.

[dennisw]

Hmmmm... I’m having a hard time figuring this one out. Should BP pays billions for this major disaster they caused or should the American taxpayers?

Obama has ways of getting BP to kick in billions into a damages fund, into escrow. I like that idea of BP paying rather than me and other taxpayers. Call me silly.

This still has to pan out out and we’ll know more in a few days. Maybe BP will agree to nothing as far as putting billions into an escrow fund

[opentalk]

Good reason why Brits are upset with him.

[Captain Peter Blood]

This is what you get from a Marxist President who has no conception or idea of the principle of private property and private capital.
When you have Zero experience as a leader of anything or as a manager this is the result.
Obama is at heart a Chavez wannabe or at his worst the American version of Joe Stalin in the making.
Dangerous no matter what.

[listenhillary]

[MinuteGal]

On a similar thread last night I commented that while Obama rips the Constitution to shreds over and over again no one calls him on it legally....just with words and questions.

Therefore, he keeps on getting away with getting away with it, right?

Leni

[opentalk]

It is the same pattern as GM, Chrysler bankruptcies. An authoritarian government response.

[Pollster1]

He taught “Constitutional Law III” which with him as the teacher only dealt with the 14th Amendment. Obama has proven, both in the final exam test questions he chose as a law instructor and in his decrees as community-organizer-in-chief that he knows nothing about anything else in our Constitution.

[Captain Peter Blood]

The cost of this disaster is at this time incalculable. My feeling is that no company including BP has enough cash to pay for this.
Now in the course of normal legal proceedings judgments can be handed to BP, assets attached, etc. for payment of damages.
Worst case for BP is to lose control of it's U.S. assets which can and would be sold for probably fire sale prices to pay out what that will cover.
Everything else in going to be on the Taxpayer.

[GreenHornet]

BP is obviously going to have to put up some big bucks to reimburse the people of the gulf impacted by this disaster. However, I suspect they will tell Obama that they will not hand the money over to a third party, and will disburse it themselves. Once that position is made public, what does Obama do about it? If they do hand the money over to “an independent third party” and the people who should receive the funds are stiffed (a very likely possibility), what does Obama do then? He can't blame BP at that point (although he'll try), since he was the one who insisted on doing it this way in the first place.

[K-oneTexas]

True. Other Presidents have used Executive Orders in questionable ways and were never challenged by Congress. I remember that Clinton implemented portions of the Kyoto Treaty in executive Orders when Congress didn’t ratify it.

Of course the others haven’t done it to such an extent as the current President. This, to me, is over reaching and an egregious misuse of the Executive Order.

Makes one wonder if he needs Congress to raise taxes. An Executive Order would impel the IRS to collect what ever rate he stipulates. Using this move against BP as a basis.

What’s next?

[MissTed]

He’s not just the U.S. President, he’s Supreme Ruler of the World. Just ask him, he’ll tell you.

[muawiyah]

This is a trivial question ~ the well is on leased land. The devices associated with the well, e.g. the drill pipes and so forth are fixtures that become the property of the landlord. The oil company receives the right to pump oil provided it pays its leasing feas and royalties on the oil.

There's nothing at all remarkable about this arrangement.

So, where does Obama get authority over the leaseholder? Well, I'd look no further than the leasing agreement ~ there's gotta' be some incredible boilerplate in there Fur Shur.

[thethirddegree]

BP should tell Obama to produce his long form birth certificate and then we will talk about an escrow account.

[mrmeyer]

Divine right of kings...? /sarc.

[listenhillary]

What company would dare to ever drill for oil off of our coasts?

Near death of the nuclear industry, now the domestic oil industry. Who will benefit? Who will pay?

[Menehune56]

Obama’s a thug. If the BP execs don’t fork over the money, he’ll kick their asses, Chicago style.

[WellyP]

Hugo Chavez and his court jesters don’t need to follow legal proceedure. Sorry, I should have written Obama!

[muawiyah]

A great deal of the cost can be assigned to the taxpayers through simple application of the Fifth Amendment.

It's pretty much the case that Obama has personally mismanaged the situation and allowed entirely too much oil to leak.

[gunnyg]

And,,,he might add,,,don;t you ever forget it!