Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Angry Obama: Congress Letter to Iran Challenges Obama's Power

By Douglas V. Gibbs

President Obama is not king, he is not the ruler, and he is not the final say on federal activities.  The American form of government was designed with multiple checks and balances in place that includes many limitations upon the powers of the President.  The Executive Branch is subject to various processes in government, a great many of those requiring approval by Congress, and more often than not, approval specifically by the U.S. Senate.  The reasoning by the framers of the United States Constitution was to ensure the President could not act without the approval of the States, who have a vested interest in the decisions made by the President of the United States.  After 1913, and the 17th Amendment, the U.S. Senate changed from appointment by the States, to direct election by the people, a progressive change that eliminated the voice of the States from the workings of the federal government.  However, the requirements regarding senatorial approval of executive actions in regards to international agreements remained in place.  Technically, the ratification by the Senate is in regards to treaties, but vast agreements by our President is only supposed to be through treaty, and all of his decisions overseas short of war are supposed to be subject to congressional approval.

To remind President Obama, and the Iranian government, of the reality that presidential agreements require senatorial approval, a letter signed by Senator Tom Cotton, a Republican from Arkansas, and 46 other Senators, was sent to Iran, warning the government in Tehran that any nuclear deal that President Obama plans on making with them will still need congressional approval.  President Obama does not have the authority to act unilaterally.

The usual characters, including Vice President Joe Biden, and Senator Harry Reid, were angry with the Republicans for sending the letter, and in Biden's case, indicated that the letter "offended" him.  Biden suggested that the President does have the "constitutional authority to reach a meaningful understanding with them [Iran]."

Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs dismissed the GOP letter as "mostly a propaganda ploy."  Remember, Iranians believe in a powerful centralized system, where the leader can make decisions irregardless of any checks that the people may want in place.

"It is very interesting that while negotiations are still in progress and while no agreement has been reached, some political pressure groups are so afraid even of the prospect of an agreement that they resort to unconventional methods, unprecedented in diplomatic history," Iran's top diplomat added.

Obama himself compared the Senate Republicans to reactionary members of Iran's government, saying "I think it's somewhat ironic that some members of Congress want to make common cause with the hardliners in Iran. It's an unusual coalition."

That's not the first time Obama and his minions have tried to compare conservatives with Islamic radicals.

Cotton defended the letter, saying in an interview with ABC News, "It's the job of the president to negotiate but it's the job of Congress to approve ... We're simply trying to say that Congress has a constitutional role to approve any deal, to make sure that Iran never gets a nuclear weapon. Not today, not tomorrow, not ten years from now.

"We're on the verge of a deal that could allow Iran to get a nuclear weapon in as little as ten years, so it's important that Iran realize that Congress will not allow that outcome to happen," the senator added.

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest accused the Republicans of wanting to rush to war, rather than seek peace in our time, saying with his worthless two cents, "the rush to war, or at least the rush to the military option, that many Republicans are advocating is not at all in the best interest of the United States."

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., used the old line of American voters twice electing Obama, suggesting that elections mean something. . . except last November, when the Republicans gained control of the U.S. Senate.

"Republicans don't know how to do anything other than juvenile political attacks against the president," Reid said as Cotton listened.

Democratic Rep. Jared Polis, of Colorado, went so far as to call Cotton, a veteran, "Tehran Tom" on Twitter.

The Democrats, whenever one of their guys are in the White House, and especially with Messiah Obama in office, have the belief that Obama has authority to pretty much do anything he wants, including lifting most trade, oil and financial sanctions that would be pertinent to the nuclear deal in exchange for an Iranian promise to limit its nuclear programs.

If there was a Republican president in the Oval Office, their tune would be different, and if a member of the GOP even attempted half of what Obama pulls, they would be marching in protest, and the liberal leftists of broadcast news would be filling coverage calling the Republican a variety of tyrannical names, and there would be images constantly flashed of the president with a Hitler mustache. . . as they did with George W. Bush.

In the talks with Iran, the United States is working through negotiations alongside Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia in an effort to reach agreement on the framework of a permanent agreement by the end of this month. Negotiations are due to resume next week in Switzerland.

Business Insider put out a story about what it is like when Obama gets mad, but I am sure the timing is coincidental.

-- Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary


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