The President’s Power Play

The president is back from Hawaii and on the campaign trail.  What's he campaigning for?  That's a great question.  We've entered the reality of the nonstop campaign. 

President Obama  was recently in Raleigh, North Carolina.  Even though the president is entering lame duck status, you would never know that by the tone of his speech.  North Carolina is an interesting state.  North Carolina Governor Pat McCory has made some tough cuts in dealing with the state's debt to the federal government.  Painful cuts that are actually moving the state towards paying off its debt.  This move has caused liberal activist to hold weekly rallies protesting the governor's economic vision.

Instead of praising Governor McCory's policy of fiscal responsibility, President Obama has either announced a power play or was pandering to a sympathetic crowd.  He told the crowd that he 'where I can, act on my own without congress I'm going to do so.'  For those of you keeping score at home, the president has been acting without respect for congress for quite some time.

Who would've thought that a president would ignore their constitutional duty to defend the laws of the land even if they don't agree with them.  The president didn't like DOMA, defense of marriage act, so he instructed his justice department not to defend it in court.  The president has decided, without congressional oversight, what parts of Obama Care will be implemented.  Although, there is no provision in the law to delay it's implementation.  Congressional oversight?  Congress holds hearings and nothing happens.

Where are the great lions of Congress?  They have a constitutionally duty to keep the executive branch in line.  Where is the Supreme Court?  Too many Clinton/Obama appointees that rule in favor of the administration to make the tough call.

When the president says he's going to do as much as he can without congress then we have issues.  The bigger issue is that who will do the right thing and enforce the balance of powers.  That's not a campaign slogan, it's reality.