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Susan Linehan's avatar

As to ElongatedTusk's plans for executive orders: there IS this thing called the Administrative Procedures Act. I don't think executive orders can dismantle it. Actually, it would raise an interesting immunity question: is it within the President's core powers to overturn statutes absent a national emergency declaration (or possibly even WITH one). What "emergency" will trump use to issue such an order? The same would apply to any overuse of emergency powers to get things done. At some point the Extremes are going to have to have a closer definition of what "emergencies" qualify for special presidential powers. The sooner we can get that issue before them, the better. I'm not sure that a majority would go quite so far as to say the president is the sole decider of when something is enough of an emergency. To give him blanket power would be to let him, for example, declare an emergency and boot justices he doesn't like from the court.

I've wondered whether Biden could simply blanket pardon undocumented folks for any "crime" in overstaying a visa? In fact, if one enters the country legally, you are not a "criminal" under our statutes; such people have committed a civil offence. And, of course, for trump to argue that a pardon doesn't apply to civil offenses (if it doesn't) he'd have to admit that absent a criminal act while here, these immigrants are in fact not criminals.

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Joan Brausch's avatar

You guys are awesome. Love your attitude and all the info you share. Keep it up!

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