executive power news stories on Newser

Lawsuit: Gov. Scott Running Florida a la Monty Python

Kevin Spak — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 14:41:44 CDT

A blind Florida woman is suing Gov. Rick Scott over his order suspending the state’s rulemaking process—and her attorneys had some fun with the filing. Rosalie Whiley thinks the governor overstepped his constitutional bounds, while the governor says he has the “ supreme executive power ” to do so. In the...

Obama Unites Parties ... Against His Libya Evasions

Kevin Spak — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 13:33:05 CDT

President Obama has finally gotten Democrats and Republicans to agree on something. Unfortunately for him, it’s their distaste for his “odd stand on the Libyan war’s legality,” a Washington Times editorial observes. With this resolution , Congress told the president that his present stance on Libya—that the mission is so...

Frontrunner Kagan Would Tilt Court Further Right

Harry Kimball — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 14:13:00 CDT

The smart money's on Elena Kagan to be President Obama's pick as John Paul Stevens' replacement on the Supreme Court. The solicitor general is "exceptionally smart" with loads of qualifications and expertise, writes Glenn Greenwald, but she'd be a disaster for liberals. The former dean of Harvard Law School is...

Bush Redux? Runaway Exec Power Traps Obama, Too

Jason Farago — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 07:34:35 CDT

George W. Bush expanded executive power to an extreme degree, but he wasn't an exception, writes historian Garry Wills. Since World War II, the presidency has accrued massive, unintended authority—controlling nuclear weapons, intelligence agencies, and a worldwide military network under "the cult of the commander in chief." Barack Obama...

Obama's Kitchen Has Too Many Chefs

Kevin Spak — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 11:42:01 CDT

President Obama has broken his promise to restore the power of Congress “by appointing a virtual army of ‘czars,’” Republican Eric Cantor writes in the Washington Post . The administration now has at least 32 czars—more than Russia ever did—with each spearheading major policy initiatives. That’s an “end-run...

Top Court Candidates Differ Widely on Exec Power

Jason Farago — Mon, 25 May 2009 04:53:16 CDT

Most Supreme Court watchers say that Barack Obama's choice to succeed David Souter will change little, since the retiring justice was a reliable member of the court's liberal bloc. But on critical questions of presidential power, which Souter regularly sought to check, the new justice's vote could be crucial. Obama's...

Obama Could Be Most Powerful President Ever

Kevin Spak — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 08:42:00 CST

Barack Obama enters office today with a realistic shot of becoming one of the most powerful presidents in history, writes Barton Gellman in the Washington Post . Historians and officials in the outgoing and incoming administrations agree the presidency is already at or near an apex of power, and Obama’s popularity,...

23% Dub Cheney 'Worst VP Ever'

Peter Fearon — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 02:31:00 CST

Dick Cheney is arguably the most powerful vice president in history, but one American in four say he's also the worst in history, according to a CNN/Opinion Research Corp survey. Of those polled, 23% rate Cheney's job performance as the worst ever, with another 41% rating him poor. That still...

Sarkozy 's Reform Bill Passes By a Hair

Katherine Thompson — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 09:25:00 CDT

French President Nicolas Sarkozy hailed the passing yesterday of a constitutional reform, fulfilling a key campaign pledge. The overhaul of parliamentary and executive powers passed in the assembly and senate by a single vote, capturing 539 votes when it needed 538, the BBC reports. The opposition says the change will...