But He's Our Imperial President! | Gene Healy | Cato Institute: Commentary

But He's Our Imperial President! | Gene Healy | Cato Institute: Commentary:

"On Tuesday, we examined the vast powers President Obama wields abroad; on Wednesday, we looked at how he's turned the Imperial Presidency inward, extending executive control over the private sector. Let's recap:

Abroad, Obama claims the power to start wars at will; scoop up your email and phone records without answering to a judge; assassinate you via drone strike far from any battlefield, and — should your relatives complain — keep the whole thing secret in the name of national security.

At home, Obama has summarily fired the CEO of General Motors, America's largest automaker; flouted bankruptcy law to shaft Chrysler's creditors and pay off his union allies; pressured half-nationalized car companies to produce pokey little electric cars, had his National Labor Relations Board assert veto power over a private company's decision to move a factory to a 'right to work' state; and, via imperial edict, began restructuring the industrial economy by imposing restrictions on carbon dioxide emissions despite Congress' refusal to pass cap-and-trade legislation.

Sometimes it's hard to remember that the presidency was supposed to be a constitutionally limited office."