They just keep rollin' in...
Frowning takes 68 muscles.
Smiling takes 6.
Pulling this trigger takes 2.
I'm lazy.
Posted on 11/18/2010 10:10:08 AM PST by My Favorite Headache
The liberal Center for American Progress doesn’t believe significant GOP gains in the House and Senate should stop the President from implementing more of his polices. The group released a report Tuesday suggesting ways Obama can bypass Congress to accomplish a progressive agenda, and it cites the president’s power as commander-in-chief to make its point.
“I think most of the conversation since the election has been about how President Obama adjusts to the new situation on Capitol Hill,” Center for American Progress head and former Bill Clinton Chief of Staff John Podesta told the Daily Caller. “While that’s an important conversation, it simply ignores the president’s ability to use all levels of his power and authority to move the country forward.”
How does one “move the country forward”? In the center’s report, Podesta explains that Obama can use executive orders, rulemaking, and even the armed forces “to accomplish important change” and that such means “should not be underestimated.”
What exactly does Podesta think the president should use such powers to “accomplish”? Among others, the report suggests “job creation,“ ”quality affordable health care,“ ”sustainable security,“ and ”a clean energy future.”
The report cites specific goals such as mitigating the effects of the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, supporting a Palestinian state, and reducing greenhouse gasses by 17 percent by 2020.
“The U.S. Constitution and the laws of our nation grant the president significant authority to make and implement policy,” Podesta writes. ”Congressional gridlock does not mean the federal government stands still.”
Statement from John D. Podesta November 15, 2010
In the aftermath of this month’s midterm congressional elections, pundits and politicians across the ideological spectrum are focusing on how difficult it will be for President Barack Obama to advance his policy priorities through Congress. Predictions of stalemate abound. And some debate whether the administration should tack to the left or to the center and compromise with or confront the new House leadership.
As a former White House chief of staff, I believe those to be the wrong preoccupations. President Obama’s ability to govern the country as chief executive presents an opportunity to demonstrate strength, resolve, and a capacity to get things done on a host of pressing challenges of importance to the public and our economy. Progress, not positioning, is what the public wants and deserves.
The U.S. Constitution and the laws of our nation grant the president significant authority to make and implement policy. These authorities can be used to ensure positive progress on many of the key issues facing the country through:
* Executive orders * Rulemaking * Agency management * Convening and creating public-private partnerships * Commanding the armed forces * Diplomacy
The ability of President Obama to accomplish important change through these powers should not be underestimated. President Bush, for example, faced a divided Congress throughout most of his term in office, yet few can doubt his ability to craft a unique and deeply conservative agenda using every aspect of the policymaking apparatus at his disposal. And, after his party lost control of Congress in 1994, President Clinton used executive authority and convening power to make significant progressive change. For instance, he protected more great spaces in the lower 48 states than any president since Theodore Roosevelt, established for the first time significant protections for Americans’ medical privacy, and urged the creation of the Welfare-to-Work Partnership that enlisted the help of 20,000 businesses in moving more than 1 million welfare recipients into the workforce.
The upshot: Congressional gridlock does not mean the federal government stands still. This administration has a similar opportunity to use available executive authorities while also working with Congress where possible. At the Center for American Progress, we look forward to our nation continuing to make progress.
Read the full report (pdf)
Download the executive summary (pdf)
Download the report to e-readers and mobile devices from Scribd
To speak with our experts on this topic, please contact:
Print: Megan Smith (health care, education, economic policy) 202.741.6346 or msmith@americanprogress.org
Print: Anna Soellner (foreign policy and security, energy) asoellner@americanprogress.org
Print: Raúl Arce-Contreras (ethnic media, immigration) 202.478.5318 or rarcecontreras@americanprogress.org
Radio: Laura Pereyra 202.741.6258 or lpereyra@americanprogress.org
TV: Andrea Purse 202.741.6250 or apurse@americanprogress.org
Web: Erin Lindsay 202.741.6397 or elindsay@americanprogress.org http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2010/11/executive_orders.html/#statement
Beck was right about this one thing: The communists have taken the masques off and are showing their faces. Never forget the video from the guy who infiltrated the Weather Underground. These well-educated people calmly discussed the extermination of 1/4 of the US population.
Most of them who took that oath will not defy orders they pretty much know are given by the leader of a coup who took over the office of POTUS without ever even having been lawfully declared the winner of the electoral vote, much less “qualifying” by Jan 20, 2009 as required by the Constitution in order for a President elect to be given the presidential powers including that of CINC.
We have 3 military officers who were willing to balk on taking those orders, and all 3 either have been or are in the process of being snuffed out.
I believe we have the finest men and women in the world in our military, but their consciences have been seared so that they no longer believe it is RIGHT to do what it actually takes to defend the Constitution as they swore to do in their officer’s oath. If the military leadership can castrate our officers’ CONSCIENCES, so our officers truly believe it is WRONG to demand that the Article 92 elements be obeyed, then a usurper never has to worry that our officers will do en masse what Lakin has done.
I’ve asked military people all over the place exactly HOW the military officers would keep their oaths to protect and defend the Constitution if somebody like Fidel Castro illegally took over the presidency. What route would be available, that couldn’t be snuffed out by Castro’s chosen leadership? To this date I have not received an answer for HOW it could be done. The only way it could be done is if the officer rose en masse and defied orders, which would still make them vulnerable to court-martial.
How many officers do you think are willing to violate both their conscience and military law in order to uphold their oaths?
They just keep rollin' in...
That's a great synopsis of my third novel.
Posse Commitatus
The Posse Commitatus Act, while advisory and customary, is not equivalent to the Constitutional guarantee of border security to the several States. Further, the protections offered by Posse Commitatus, supposedly precluding the use of military force within the US are at best, illusory. I point you to USC Title X, Section 333:
The President, by using the militia or the armed forces, or both, or by any other means, shall take such measures as he considers necessary to suppress, in a State, any insurrection, domestic violence, unlawful combination, or conspiracy, if it—
(1) so hinders the execution of the laws of that State, and of the United States within the State, that any part or class of its people is deprived of a right, privilege, immunity, or protection named in the Constitution and secured by law, and the constituted authorities of that State are unable, fail, or refuse to protect that right, privilege, or immunity, or to give that protection; or
(2) opposes or obstructs the execution of the laws of the United States or impedes the course of justice under those laws.
To employ the military requires that Congress (House and Senate) set asside temporaily for a specified limited period of time the restrictions impossed on the government by the Posse Commitatus Act.
No tin foil hat necessary.
There is no question that the military, and former military are viewed as a threat. There have been a number of stories of anti-military gun control efforts. Even for active military on bases there is much greater limits on personal security than before. This, by the way, is not lost on the military brass, or the rank and file. There is great resentment and they well know it.
As if the military would go along with that crap. A slim minority would, the rest would not. Podesta and Soros can dream on. CWII would happen.
“Remember, you are the 1st Marines! Not all the Communists in Hell can overrun you!”~Lt. Gen. “Chesty” Puller
He had a key role in introducing Executive Order 12958 which led to an unprecedented effort to declassify millions of pages from the U.S. diplomatic and national security history and also oversaw Clinton's pardons in the last days of his administration including the fugitive financiar, Marc Rich, who in 1983, was indicted for evading more than $48 million in taxes, and charged with 51 counts of tax fraud, as well as running illegal oil deals with Iran during the 1979-1980 hostage crisis.
******
John Podesta started a think tank, and his brother, Tony, helped found the lobbying and public relations firm PodestaMattoon.
The working name for Podesta's new shop is 1001 Strategies , designed to reflect its innovative thinking, as well as its address -- 1001 G St. NW.
Among those probably remaining with Podesta (lobbying firm)include Amgen Inc., Genentech Inc., Lockheed Martin Corp. and The Washington Post Co.
The firm says the first six months of the year brought in $5.92 million for lobbying
******
Tony Podesta's wife, Heather, is a lobbyist and John Podesta's wife, Mary, is a Washington lawyer.
IMHO, the whole TSA naked scanner/molest (including kids) thing is a trial balloon to see if Americans are sheep or have any spine. After all, if people merely compalain about their children being sexually molested by fedgov agents, their is little the fedgov can’t do with impunity.
It is looking more and more like we really are a nation of sheep...
I think I will buy Podesta a burial plot for Christmas and be happy to see him use quickly!
I agree and IMHO, here is why:
Remember the movie: "Miracle On 34th Street"??
Santa needed to prove he was "real". The letters sent to him by the USPS were used as the arguement that a branch of the gov't recognizes Santa, therefore Santa is "legitimate" and recognized as such in the eyes of the US gov't.
Once the US military accepts and "recognizes" gays as "legitimate", it becomes game, set, match, NATIONALLY with all the rights afforded "straight" folks and the courts will HAVE TO AGREE.
You can pick up one of these for about $300, it's the same as Benelli:
You can also buy an extension for the magazine tube.
New tag line.
At my alma mater we were instructed on what and what does not constitute a legal order, etc. I have no doubt in my mind that the vast majority of our officer corps would not follow orders that pitted "progress" against American citizens.
Sorry not going to believe it, and why are you? Do you really think OUR soldiers would willingly shoot us? No, rebellion would surely be the only outcome. Would you shoot your aunt or neighbor because the GOVERNMENT told you to? Court Martial or not, Nobody will do this.
Just damn.
Exactly.
The military is conservative by a huge majority. They know something like this is possible...they've already made their decisions privately in their hearts.
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