On the Other Hand, Does a President Have a Right to Do That?

If a private loan company - bank or what have you - wants to charge a certain amount of interest, and the person getting the loan agrees to pay it... does the President or any politician have the right to say, "No, you can't charge that much?"

Then there's this other thing that Obama doesn't have the right to do, seat nominees using a law that says he can do it when Congress is not in session, to do it when Congress is in session.

It's a bad precedent...maybe the Republicans shouldn't oppose it. Because when they get back in power, as they will do either in 2012 or most definitely in 2016 (but hopefully sooner), they will be able to do the same thing!

RUSH: All right, some people in the e-mail have taken exception with my description of Obama as "lawless" and acting outside the Constitution. Let me share with you a quote, and this is from a video. It might have been from yesterday out in Ohio, but it's within the past couple days. Obama said, "When Congress refuses to act -- and as a result, hurts our economy and puts our people at risk -- then I have an obligation as president to do what I can without them." He got applause. "I have an obligation to act on behalf of the American people. I'm not going to stand by while a minority in the Senate puts party ideology ahead of the people that we elected to serve. Not with so much at stake, not at this make-or-break moment for middle class Americans. We're not gonna let that happen."

Now, the Founding Fathers said this is exactly what's supposed to happen! It's called "the separation of powers," and it's to make sure that things like this do not happen, that an all-powerful executive does not run roughshod over the government. But President Obama has just said: Because the Congress won't do what I want them to do I'm gonna do it myself. That is extraconstitutional! That is not the way this government was set up. It was not the idea of the Founders. That's acting outside the Constitution, and there's no question about it -- and the Obama campaign is claiming he's doing all these recess appointments and things like this "to help the economy." Reuters again: "Hammering populist themes that show him to be a champion of the middle class, aides say the president will keep taking steps to show voters he'll make moves on his own to help the economy if Congress refuses to act."

If Congress "refuses to act," it is his job to sit down and talk to 'em and make 'em act and get them to vote the way he wants. He does not have -- unless they grant it to him (and they're doing it, by the way) -- the authority to run roughshod over them. But if they don't stop him, he can do it. We can't. Congress has to stand up for itself. Now, the Democrats run the Senate. I think they're happy for this to happen. Dingy Harry loves for this to happen because they're sitting there blaming it on the House Republicans who have no role in this. It's an election year, so blame the Republicans for it. Folks, it is clearly lawless. If you regard the Constitution as law, this is lawless behavior by an out-of-control, rogue executive. This is what happens in banana republics, tinhorn dictatorships. In places like Venezuela, this is what happens -- all under the guise of populism and helping the middle class.

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