George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley maintained that “a real self-destructive attitude among some members [of Congress]” has been used by the Obama administration to expand the executive branch’s powers well beyond what the Constitution’s framers intended and “to a very dangerous point” on Wednesday’s episode of the Fox News Channel’s “The Kelly File.”
“A new model of government is emerging. Now, that model is the very model that the framers told us to reject” Turley said. “When you look at the actions he’s taken they have gotten to a very dangerous point. He is arguing that even after asking for things and Congress refusing, he could do those very same acts, he can order those very same changes on his sole authority.”
When asked for his response to the argument that President Barack Obama has not greatly expanded the power of the executive branch because he has made fewer executive orders than previous presidents, Turley stated this argument “came up in my last testimony before the House Judiciary Committee a few months ago,” and “even the witness supporting the White House agreed with me that counting executive orders is a silly business. It has no relevance at all. You could have a single executive order that guts the government, or you could have a thousand that do nothing. You can’t look at the number of executive orders.”
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
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