Posted on 03/30/2017 12:38:47 PM PDT by PROCON
The fact that a bottom-rung judge can wrest constitutional power away from the president of the United States is beyond disturbing.
A third-tier judge, without any constitutional or legal warrant, has taken total control of America’s immigration policy from President Trump. And the president is letting him do it.
U.S. District Judge Derrick Watson of Hawaii yesterday extended the ban he imposed on President Trump’s travel ban indefinitely. And he imposed it universally, even outside his own jurisdiction, which I doubt he has any authority whatsoever to do. Vowing that the ban would remain in place even if the president appeals to a higher court, Watson said flatly, "Enforcement of these provisions in all places, including the United States, at all United States borders and ports of entry, and in the issuance of visas is prohibited, pending further orders from this court.”
In other words, I’m in charge here, Mr. President, and you’re not.
This is an appalling, alarming, and Constitution-destroying act of judicial hubris and overreach. Simply begin with the fact that neither the Constitution nor the law gives any authority to the judiciary to set immigration policy in any manner at all. The Constitution vests it all in Congress, and Congress under that authority can pass laws which the president as the head of the executive branch then implements.
The law gives the president unquestioned, unilateral, and unreserved authority to block entry into the United States to any persons or group of persons he “deems detrimental to the interests” of the country. And he can simply do it “by proclamation” and entirely on his own authority.
The mere fact that a bottom-rung judge would have the presumption to wrest that power from the president and arrogate it to himself is beyond disturbing. The only thing more disturbing is that we are letting him get away with it. It’s absurd that the only figure who is allowed to dictate immigration policy “by proclamation” is the one figure who has no authority whatsoever to do it.
It must not be forgotten that this toxic activism will not be confined to this renegade judge. Other minor-league judges will take note that one of their colleagues has taken control, all by himself, of a major area of American policy, is dictating policy to the president, and everybody is letting him get away with it. Some judges will certainly tell themselves that if Judge Watson can do it, what’s stopping me from doing the same thing in another area of public policy? The result will be total chaos, with an entire nation in the grip of ego-driven junior league judges routinely exceeding their authority and wresting complete control of American policy from our elected officials.
I, for one, do not welcome our new judicial overlords. And neither should President Trump. If the president were to ignore Judge Watson’s tyrannical edict, on the grounds that the judge has no more legal authority than a traffic court judge to issue it, what could Judge Watson do about it? If the president were simply to go straight on ahead and begin implementing his perfectly constitutional policy, what could Judge Watson do to stop him? Precisely nothing.
Upon taking office, President Trump quite pointedly hung a portrait of Andrew Jackson in the White House. Jackson is perhaps most noted for telling the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court to take a hike when he issued an unconstitutional order. Jackson is reported to have said, "John Marshall has made his decision; now let him enforce it!”
This is the only way judicial tyranny is going to be broken in America. It will be broken by elected officials who fulfill their oaths of office to uphold and defend the Constitution by flatly refusing to knuckle under to black-robed oligarchs who tread where the Constitution forbids them to go. For elected officials to do this is not civil disobedience; it is constitutional obedience of the highest order.
Meanwhile, Judge Watson is making America less safe by the day as thousands of unvetted refugees, who would otherwise have been blocked, have been flooding into the United States. Who knows how many acts of terror will be committed by these Muslim migrants this judge has foolishly, recklessly, and wrongly allowed into our country?
President Trump’s highest calling is to protect the safety and security of the United States. He shouldn’t let a low-level judge stop him.
AG Sessions must know this law as well as any lawyer.
Why then is he and President Trump not calling this judge out and ignoring this judicial tyranny?
The worst repercussion is the precedent it sets for further usurpations down the road.
The Constitution now says whatever the hell five out of nine Supreme Court Justices want it to say.
It’s making our muzzie invaders more comfortable, don’t you know? It is also a hindrance to our national security.
But who the hell cares as long as the muzzies are happy.
You have to pull the rubber back on a slingshot before letting go of it; he’s just pulling it back IMHO.
“Why then is he and President Trump not calling this judge out and ignoring this judicial tyranny?”
That just might be the question of the year! What is the history, if any, on Federal judges stopping an executive order, which for the record should only apply to the executive branch of the government.
Why aren’t we hearing about any appeals on this? Are they not happening, or just not being reported? Or are they waiting for Gorsuch? In theory, I’m okay with the President ignoring judicial decrees that usurp his constitutional authority but, in practice, it would create chaos. In this instance it remains best to work it out through the judicial system.
Our best hope is that Sessions is working round the clock in coordinating action plans to begin a massive corruption probe that reaches deep into the pockets of the real haters&rat financial supporters in this land.
..or better yet, Spend this weekend signing the arrest warrants for the leadership of the Dem party. Quit messing with this nation’s future by allowing rats any say in its direction. RICO their arses!!
Every move they have made the last 50 years has inflicted great societal and fiscal losses across the board, while their supporters grew fatter and even more arrogant in thier actions.
He won’t defy the judges until he has Gorsuch in place.
It’s time to tell the little President Hawaiian judge to go self copulate.
The next lib prez will do anything he/she wants precedent or not. Trump might as well be the one to start guiding the boat in the right direction.
I'm fairly convinced this will happen.
What then?
How much crap should the President take?
Yup, and somebody better point this out to him... fast.
For some odd reason, I feel as if President Trump may be baiting a trap, which is soon going to spring.
So now some Judge will stop the Sanctuary city crackdown and some other Judge will stop the building of the Wall. What is the point of having a President? Look at all the money we could save with no Congress, who needs them?
This is all wrong and what happens when the new Supreme Court Judge disappoints everybody and votes with the Liberals on all this. It is way past time for Trump and Sessions to show the courage of their beliefs and stand up to these Judges.
Separation of powers. What ever is done must be by the book to avoid the appearance of Executive tyranny, even in the efface of judicial tyranny.
Good question. I think you’re right. Some judge or six will say that the Feds can’t withhold funds from sanctuary cities. The judiciary is way stacked against Trump. And I’m inclined to think he doesn’t have nearly enough of his team in place to adequately fight them all in court. It’s gonna be one helluva slog.
even in the face of judicial tyranny.
I don’t know where that extra ef came from!
I hope he has a trump card, so to speak, up his sleeve.
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