The Feld-Blog

George Bush is not a particularly dynamic president. American’s generally think he is likable, but he certainly does not command any kind of wide-based popular support, nor is he particularly persuasive. So how has Bush been able to oversee one of the greatest and most sweeping power grabs for our executive branch since George Washington? I think its because our other two branches of government cannot wake up from their lazy naps long enough to accomplish anything.

Congress has largely been blinded by partisanship. Even when Bush takes giant strides into the legislative domain – ignoring congressional laws, pushing his own legislation through congress, spurning congressional investigation – the Republican majority remains loathe to take steps against a same-party President. Calls to censure the president for breaking laws and international treaties have fallen on deaf ears in this conservative congress. Even efforts to compel hostile testimony from controversial members of the executive seems to slip by.

Normally I might remain optimistic that the Supreme Court would remedy congresses reluctance to exert their power – after all, the Supreme Court has been known to overturn laws because they unconstitutionally delegate legislative responsibilities to the executive. But alas, this too has not happened. In fact, in a few recent cases, Justice Clarence Thomas and Antonin Scalia has parroted conservative political talking points in their legal opinions. Clarence Thomas recently dissented in a civil rights case over Guantanamo detainees stating that rejecting military tribunals for detainees not captures in war, “sorely hamper the president's ability to confront and defeat a new and deadly enemy.” Wow. I am not quite sure that Thomas didn’t just plagiarize that from one of Bush’s speeches frantically defending GITMO.

Thankfully, Scalia and Thomas are in the minority on these cases, but the majority has remained rather toothless. The Supreme Court ruled that Bush cannot institute Martial Courts for Guantanamo detainees, but despite this opportunity to take aggressive strides for civil rights and against abusing the rights of the international community, the Supreme Court relegated their decision to trials rather than the amorphous label ‘enemy combatant,’ this president’s overly aggressive foreign policy with a penchant to ignore international accords, or congresses almost complete abdication of military and foreign policy responsibilities. This is generally akin to slap on the wrist to a stampeding heard of rhinos. It’s not going to stop or stymie anything.

Our government was created with separation of powers and checks and balances so that, in the words of James Madison “ambition must be made to counteract ambition.” In other words, the success of our government is incumbent on each branch exerting the full force of their powers against each other. Congress and the Supreme Court need to wake up and fill their roles in this government.