So, you think the President Obama has the power to make laws about health-care, tax carbon-dioxide in the air and decree minimum wages of $15.00/hr. along with a myriad of other “executive” actions? Well, think again.
Here’s a complete list of all the President’s Constitutional powers and responsibilities. It’s all in: ARTICLE II, Sections 1, 2, and 3 of the U.S. CONSTITUTION
- The President of the United States (POTUS) shall have executive power.
- POTUS shall be Commander and chief of U.S. Army and Navy and of the States Militia when called up to serve the U.S.
- POTUS may require that congress provide written opinion of the principal officer of each executive department upon any subject relating to their duties.
- POTUS shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the U.S. except in cases of impeachment.
- POTUS shall have power to make treaties, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, if two-thirds of senators present concur.
- POTUS shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to appoint ambassadors, public ministers, consuls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the U.S. whose appointments are established by law and not otherwise provided for.
- Congress may, by legislation, give POTUS the power to appoint other such inferior officers as they think proper in the courts of law or various department heads.
- POTUS Has power to fill vacancies in these offices that may happen during the Senate recess, but such appointments will expire at the end of the next session of the Senate.
- POTUS shall from time to time present information on the state of the union, to Congress, and recommend their consideration of matters he deems important.
- POTUS may convene both houses of Congress to consider extraordinary events or circumstances and may keep them in session for as long as he deems necessary.
- POTUS shall receive ambassadors and other pubic ministers, see that the laws are properly executed and shall commission all officers of the U.S.
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That’s it! That’s all! Anything else is unconstitutional. Do you see medical insurance, earth-atmosphere chemistry or worker pay-scales anywhere among them? Nah. Nothing even close.
So, if not POTUS, then where’s the power? (Drum roll). The Golden Hammer of Constitutional Federal Government Power award goes to . . . CONGRESS!!
But wait. Everyone knows the POTUS is an all powerful, benevolent king, ruling by decree, caring for and taking care of all his subjects, and Congress is just an overblown social club for professional politicians, right . . . Congress? How can Congress be more powerful than the almighty POTUS??
BECAUSE IT’S IN THE U.S. CONSTITUTION silly. That’s how. Take a look at the Constitutional powers of Congress in Article I, Sections 8 through 10 in The Plain English Constitution. Compare that list to the list of POTUS’s power. No comparison.
So suck it up. The big hammer in DC is not POTUS, it’s your elected Senators and Representatives, those popular, entertaining guys and gals you mindlessly reelect for term after term, see the graph, even after giving them lousy 10% to 15% “job approval ratings year after year. What’s up with that, anyway? Why do you do that?
In the world of how-it’s-‘sposed-to-work, the President reports to Congress, and Congress reports to the people. We the people elect both of them. So, whose responsible when we get lousy government?
Yeah, like always, it rolls downhill, and in this case right into the laps of the voters, your lap. So deal with it. Stop playing kissy, kissy with the run-away power of this POTUS and start holding Congress’s feet to the fire for a change.
Congress has the power to stop him. Convince Congress to do it, or this man, this government, will in truth bring about his “fundamental transformation of America” and we will not be able to reverse it. That’s his threat, and he means it. You had better be pay attention to what he is doing, and don’t mistake take anything he says for the truth.