Cigar
01-17-2013, 12:04 PM
Contrary to what you may have heard today — from Bloomberg News (https://twitter.com/BloombergNews/status/291594861130440705), Huffington Post (https://twitter.com/HuffPostPol/status/291594937429000192), Salon (http://www.salon.com/2013/01/16/obama_signs_23_executive_orders_on_gun_control/), and a million other places — President Obama did not sign 23 executive orders at his gun-control event this afternoon. What he did was initiate 23 "executive actions." An executive action is a vague term that can refer to anything done by the executive (the president). Some of the items on the White House's list of 23 "executive actions" (http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2013/01/16/list-obamas-23-executive-actions-on-gun-violence/) — such as "Launch a national dialogue led by Secretaries Sebelius and Duncan on mental health" and "Nominate an ATF director" — are more like personal priorities.
President Obama, in fact, didn't actually sign any executive orders today. He did issue three "presidential memoranda," which, respectively:
direct federal law enforcement (http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/01/16/presidential-memorandum-tracing-firearms-connection-criminal-investigati?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+whitehouse%2Fandroid_newsroom +(Android+Newsroom)) to trace all guns taken in federal custody in the course of a criminal investigation
direct the Department of Justice (http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/01/16/presidential-memorandum-improving-availability-relevant-executive-branch) to ensure that all applicable information from federal agencies is made available for background checks
and direct the Department of Health (http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/01/16/presidential-memorandum-engaging-public-health-research-causes-and-preve?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+whitehouse%2Fandroid_newsroom +(Android+Newsroom)) to "conduct or sponsor research into the causes of gun violence and the ways to prevent it."
So what's the difference between a "presidential memorandum" and an executive order? Not much! According to a 1999 Congressional Research Service report (http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2013/01/95-772.pdf+&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESiOoeS0MQtgiXVTRum-_GMOhHodpS1O9yIDn3Y-A98wgwP9jWes_sLysYzQL9_fVhgeH--SfLdXkb0dm1GKu0lulSFxO9iLJRZnzK7ATTrcJJzdiiKI8geur bPUyEzPfHpEgR_y&sig=AHIEtbQjfJ7TzdjonjUK_wzjAdJ7G7qeng), they're executive orders in all but name:
Basically, for all intents and purposes, a memorandum is an executive order. However, since executive orders are a particularly controversial and politically charged lever of presidential power (the mere mention of them has inspired talk of impeachment (http://www.politico.com/story/2013/01/obama-impeachment-considered-by-trey-radel-86279.html) among some of Congress's more firebrand Republicans), it's important to note that they (or something exactly like them) comprised only three of the items on Obama's list of 23 "executive actions."
Ultimately, though, what matters is the nature of the proposal itself, not whether it will be carried out via an "executive action" or an executive order or a presidential memo. And despite the collective conservative freak-out, one could hardly argue that Obama's slate of executive actions — most of which nobody would even have noticed if they weren't announced — infringe on the ability of law-abiding gun owners to continue exercising their Second Amendment rights.
BTW ...
http://upload.democraticunderground.com/imgs/2013/130117-gop-obamas-executive-orders-are-an-unprecedented-power-grab.jpg
The GOP Motto ... Just Say No to Obama, then blame Obama for not doing anything
Republicans Call Him a Dictator, But Obama Has Issued Fewest Executive Orders in 100 YearsRepublicans immediately and predictably went off the rails as soon as the president mentioned executive action and guns. Rep. Paul Broun said, “There is a tremendous potential for a horrendous public backlash against the president if he continues the policies that he has been doing of trying to go around Congress, create law and be a dictator like he’s been doing.”
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) accused the president of abusing his power, “Making matters worse is that President Obama is again abusing his power by imposing his policies via executive fiat instead of allowing them to be debated in Congress. President Obama’s frustration with our republic and the way it works doesn’t give him license to ignore the Constitution.”
Rep. Darrell Issa said, “The president’s imperial behavior and his abuse of power didn’t begin with the Second Amendment. He did it with immigration. He’s certainly done it with the Obamacare. So, once again, it’s a president exceeding his intended authority.”
A funny thing happened on the way to Obama is dictator who is taking away all of guns Republican Memeville. New York Magazine crunched the numbers of presidential executive orders and concluded that this president has issued the fewest executive orders of any president over the last 100 years. Every Republican president signed more executive orders than Barack Obama has. On an order per day basis, Obama has issued fewer EOs than every single Republican president over the past century.
This fact will not stop Republicans from claiming that President Obama is stealing their rights, but it does demonstrate how far apart perception and reality are for the right. With their comments today, Republicans demonstrated that they are more interested in name calling and scoring political points with their base than seriously discussing the root causes of gun violence.
http://www.politicususa.com/republicans-call-dictator-obama-issued-fewest-executive-orders-100-years.html
Bla Bla Bla ... Bla Bla Bla ... :laugh:
President Obama, in fact, didn't actually sign any executive orders today. He did issue three "presidential memoranda," which, respectively:
direct federal law enforcement (http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/01/16/presidential-memorandum-tracing-firearms-connection-criminal-investigati?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+whitehouse%2Fandroid_newsroom +(Android+Newsroom)) to trace all guns taken in federal custody in the course of a criminal investigation
direct the Department of Justice (http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/01/16/presidential-memorandum-improving-availability-relevant-executive-branch) to ensure that all applicable information from federal agencies is made available for background checks
and direct the Department of Health (http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/01/16/presidential-memorandum-engaging-public-health-research-causes-and-preve?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+whitehouse%2Fandroid_newsroom +(Android+Newsroom)) to "conduct or sponsor research into the causes of gun violence and the ways to prevent it."
So what's the difference between a "presidential memorandum" and an executive order? Not much! According to a 1999 Congressional Research Service report (http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2013/01/95-772.pdf+&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESiOoeS0MQtgiXVTRum-_GMOhHodpS1O9yIDn3Y-A98wgwP9jWes_sLysYzQL9_fVhgeH--SfLdXkb0dm1GKu0lulSFxO9iLJRZnzK7ATTrcJJzdiiKI8geur bPUyEzPfHpEgR_y&sig=AHIEtbQjfJ7TzdjonjUK_wzjAdJ7G7qeng), they're executive orders in all but name:
Basically, for all intents and purposes, a memorandum is an executive order. However, since executive orders are a particularly controversial and politically charged lever of presidential power (the mere mention of them has inspired talk of impeachment (http://www.politico.com/story/2013/01/obama-impeachment-considered-by-trey-radel-86279.html) among some of Congress's more firebrand Republicans), it's important to note that they (or something exactly like them) comprised only three of the items on Obama's list of 23 "executive actions."
Ultimately, though, what matters is the nature of the proposal itself, not whether it will be carried out via an "executive action" or an executive order or a presidential memo. And despite the collective conservative freak-out, one could hardly argue that Obama's slate of executive actions — most of which nobody would even have noticed if they weren't announced — infringe on the ability of law-abiding gun owners to continue exercising their Second Amendment rights.
BTW ...
http://upload.democraticunderground.com/imgs/2013/130117-gop-obamas-executive-orders-are-an-unprecedented-power-grab.jpg
The GOP Motto ... Just Say No to Obama, then blame Obama for not doing anything
Republicans Call Him a Dictator, But Obama Has Issued Fewest Executive Orders in 100 YearsRepublicans immediately and predictably went off the rails as soon as the president mentioned executive action and guns. Rep. Paul Broun said, “There is a tremendous potential for a horrendous public backlash against the president if he continues the policies that he has been doing of trying to go around Congress, create law and be a dictator like he’s been doing.”
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) accused the president of abusing his power, “Making matters worse is that President Obama is again abusing his power by imposing his policies via executive fiat instead of allowing them to be debated in Congress. President Obama’s frustration with our republic and the way it works doesn’t give him license to ignore the Constitution.”
Rep. Darrell Issa said, “The president’s imperial behavior and his abuse of power didn’t begin with the Second Amendment. He did it with immigration. He’s certainly done it with the Obamacare. So, once again, it’s a president exceeding his intended authority.”
A funny thing happened on the way to Obama is dictator who is taking away all of guns Republican Memeville. New York Magazine crunched the numbers of presidential executive orders and concluded that this president has issued the fewest executive orders of any president over the last 100 years. Every Republican president signed more executive orders than Barack Obama has. On an order per day basis, Obama has issued fewer EOs than every single Republican president over the past century.
This fact will not stop Republicans from claiming that President Obama is stealing their rights, but it does demonstrate how far apart perception and reality are for the right. With their comments today, Republicans demonstrated that they are more interested in name calling and scoring political points with their base than seriously discussing the root causes of gun violence.
http://www.politicususa.com/republicans-call-dictator-obama-issued-fewest-executive-orders-100-years.html
Bla Bla Bla ... Bla Bla Bla ... :laugh: