Obama in 'Unprecedented' Power Grab - Defies Administration's Supreme Court Three-Day Recess Argument

Didn't say that I did... but at least the office now has a head. Kind of like the presidency... SInce the '60s now it has been just a puppet office.

@brianfromPA, you might be right, there is a head. But there is no independent bureau until the Senate actually confirms a Director of the bureau. Section 1066 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act says this:

The Secretary is authorized to perform the functions of the Bureau under this subtitle until the Director of the Bureau is confirmed by the Senate in accordance with section 1011.

So, this "independent bureau" is actually part of the Treasury department, and answerable to the Treasury Secretary, and subject to Congressional oversight, until the Senate actually confirms a Director. A Director appointed by a recess appointment doesn't fit the requirements of the law.

Also, the "recess appointments" made today will very likely be challenged in the courts, and I think they could be struck down.

If these "recess appointments" stand, then the Constitution needs to be amended to do away with the Recess appointment provision at the end of Article 2, Section 2. This is dangerous. I would expect numerous states to object to this and propose changes to that section. I've already started letters to my State Rep and State Senator outlining the need to reign in this "recess appointment" power if the courts allow these appointments to stand.

--
¢ommon ¢ents
AKA @CommonCentsUSA

OK... I don't disagree with any of your points... But what do we do when Congress just sits on appointments to prevent offices from being created since it would hinder their campaign contributors, which is PRECISELY what is going on in this case?

Do we just not have any agencies to protect the people? Allow the Oligarchy to run us over?

@brianfromPA, what we did in the past, when Republicans (dare I say "adults") were in charge back in 2006 and Democrats were filibustering appointees to the point where some Republican leaders were threatening the so called "nuclear option" was we had some Senators from each party negotiate a solution.

The problem here is that no Democrats seem interested in negotiating, and there is nothing being offered to resolve the impasse. The Democrats currently are happy to allow the "obstruction" to fester because they think they can blame it entirely on the Republicans and score political points and win more elections by not solving the problem than they can by negotiating a solution.

The other problem is that Senator Reid's leadership is so weak that Obama feels a need to just make an end run around the Senate.

The solution is to vote out every incumbent Senator in 2012, and I'd even go so far as to vote out every incumbent member of the House.

If we keep rewarding "Party over principle" and "party over country" politicians who have their first loyalty to their Party and the leadership of their Party, we'll keep having impasses like this.

I don't think allowing the President to ignore precedent and ignore the Constitution is ever justified. This is a very dangerous action, and if it stands, the next Republican President (there will be one) will stretch this even further, "push the envelope" and make more "recess appointments" while the Senate is in session, possibly even on weekends, if necessary, and basically render the entire "advice and consent" requirement moot.

This action yesterday was a big step toward a dictatorship in this country. Obama may not have the support to become the dictator, but we are closer now than we were last week.

--
¢ommon ¢ents
AKA @CommonCentsUSA

Problem with voting out incumbents is that we tend to get the last guy we voted out. Americans have too small an attention span to realize that our masters (corporate America) have 2 or 3 guys on retainer collecting a fat paycheck from a company to do meet and greets at the mall waiting for the next round of elections to go back in to office and write laws to benefit the minority.

My only issue with everything you say is these two. The word dictatorship... It lends to making you look like you have ZERO clue of anything that is really going on in this country, and Two... Republicans being adults. Both parties lack any adults, as they are just children who do what they are told and collect the money that comes from it.