Power seeks more power.  And in our system of government, it is the executive branch that seems to be unbridled in this endeavor.

There are different types of power, and it is imperative to understand not only the power, but the direction of that power and the direction in which the newly confiscated energy is exercised.

The federal government as a whole has accrued more power over the people and the states.  Despite the cautions of the founders and the clarity of the Tenth Amendment, unfunded mandates, SCOTUS interstate commerce decisions, and the federal income tax have eroded the designed counterbalance between state power and federal power.  Those events led to new powers stolen and implemented in a vertical fashion, from Washington down upon the states and the people.

The other power struggle, that which we witness today, is a lateral one across the branches of the government and specifically between the executive branch and the legislative branch, Congress. 

The basis for the “creep” of executive powers seems to rest upon the precedent of previous presidents and their shenanigans.  But working past the game of “he did this” so “I can do this too” game, let us revert back to the discovery of the concept of executive orders and its derivation.  We can measure how far adrift the entire concept has traveled.

The supporters of executive orders, a concept never mentioned in the Constitution, point to one clause.  Article II, Section 3, Clause 5 reads thusly: “he shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed[.]”

No matter who interprets this phrase, no matter how many degrees such a person may possess, regardless of what law department he headed, he cannot interpret this to mean that the executive can even approach the scheme of writing law or disregard passed law.

It is tortured logic to stretch this clause to bend around in full circle from its intent – to assist in the “execution” of passed law – to arrive at an interpretation that enables the executive to actually override, circumvent, and disregard passed law.  It is diametrically opposed to the intent and any verbatim construal.

Executive power-grabs and inverted constitutional interpretations are in full flight with this lame duck president.  Be fully aware that memoranda, the executive orders, and all the other misdirection plays must be identified and rejected as nonsense.  This president will rely on media presentation, procedural delay, and the shelter of deflection as he rams through all he can in his final two years.

The president will also lean on the unpopularity and bad imagery of impeachment.  The “they’ll never do it to me” attitude emboldens this man.  Yet he forces the country to the constitutional moment, the watershed, where unpopular actions may be required.  Let us see how far he will push the issue.  And let us hope that doing the proper thing – saving our form of government – doesn’t lose out to considerations of political imagery.