If a president can just do a recess appointment

[radfringe]

then why bother with confirmation hearings? (and what happened to the principle of checks and balances?)

seems whenever bush* has a candidate who is "ify" on confirmation - he waits till Congress recesses and then appoints them

presidents, in the past, have made recess appointments - but not with the arrogance and hubris style of bush*

perhaps Congress should be reviewing the "recess appointment" procedures -- that would make sense - but then we are dealing with rubberstamping republican...

meanwhile -- call it a pen or a thumb - with the bolton appointment - bush* is giving Congress the finger and rubberstampers just smile and say "anything you want Mr. pResident"

[Spinzonner]

1. Well, it is more dignified than stamping his feet and whining

[donheld]

30. Is it really?

:shrug:

[tritsofme]

2. What is there for Congress to review?

Article II Section 2 pretty much sums it up.

It may be unethical, but there is nothing to stop a President from doing it short of constitutional amendment.

[unblock]

3. article ii section 2 is not congress's source of power on this matter

if congress had a mind to, it could refuse to authorize funding for the recess appointee, or for that matter, could refuse to pass any of the president's agenda, or hell, could even impeach and remove the president.

but of course, none of this would ever happen with a same-party rubber stamp congress....

[tritsofme]

6. Republicans would love that even more.

Refuse funding for something related to the UN?

Suggest that to Tom Delay and he might jump all over it!

[Warren Stupidity]

14. I believe that the recess appointee gets no salary.

And loses his job at the start of the next congress.

The Bolton appointment is an embarassment for the Bush administration. We won this one.

[IdaBriggs]

17. Seriously? No salary for Bolton! Ha ha! nt

[radfringe]

4. why bother with any confirmation hearings?

seems to be a waste of time (and money) to hold any hearings and votes

theoretically - any president can just wait until Congress is in recess and just appoint all the people he/she wants - and there's not a damn thing Congress can do about it

yeah - I know they can "vote" on it again when a "new" congress goes into session -- but so what - the minute congress goes into recess, a president can just reappoint or appoint someone else

with bush* sneaking in people through the back door - he's turned the entire "advise and consent" process into window dressing.

imagine the "outrage" from repugs if Clinton or another Democratic President pulled the same stunt....

ARRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

what's next? national state of emergency and smirk-boy dissolves Congress entirely? Congress has already handed over their balls and spines to him -- what's left?

[oscar111]

7. Rad, great prose "Congrs has already handed over their ... and .. to him"

ho ho , great phrase. I predict it will catch on and be repeated a lot.

Malloy, are you around?

[radfringe]

10. gelded jellyfish

is also a phrase I use when describing congress --

NO BALLS - NO SPINE

[tritsofme]

9. The way I look at...

Presidents usually get everyone in their administration confirmed anyways.

The things that really matter, judges, can be recess appointed, but their term ends at the end of that Congress.

[Bunny]

5. Well, the upside is that Bolton can only remain there until January

2007, when the current Congress is replaced. So it's not a permanent appointment - at some point the guy HAS to be approved by Congress. In Bolton's case, however, it's not the best news because he can do a lot of damage in the next year and a half, but still...

[radfringe]

13. 2007

big deal. Bolton can do alot of damage between now and then

meanwhile - what's there to prevent bush* from pulling another backdoor appointment with someone else just as bad or worse?

bush* flipped the bird at Congress and they are just rolling over for a belly rub. for pete's sake - bush*'s audicity is unbelievable - the chairs in congress are still warm from their butts -- bush* probably had a calendar marked off with "X's" - "days to go until I can appoint Bolton"....

[jmowreader]

24. What's there to prevent Bush from reappointing Bolton?

I think we're really misunderestimating Bush's capacity for audacity.

For every appointed official in the Bush* administration, there's definitely someone 500 times worse. Nothing--NOTHING--could stop Bush* from waiting until the first recess after the 2006-election Congress is seated, then firing all of his current cabinet and other appointees and installing every Nazi in America to replace them.

If he follows the law (fat chance, huh?) and leaves office in January 2009, all of his appointees are going to have to leave with him. So why not have the ones he really wants for his last two years?

[Fescue4u]

28. At which point, he can be recess appointed again

Not much can be done with these constitutional loopholes

[opihimoimoi]

8. Bush has just SHOUTED to America.....FUCCCKKKKKK YOUUUUU

I can do what the Fuck I want and Ya can't do shit cept mummer gibberish...

Most of ya don't even unnerstan what the Hell I did anyhowes....

and even if ya did, so what?

Legacy? Fuck that.....

I'm a Lame Duck?? Watch me fuck with you common guys till it hurts. I'll show ya what a Lame Duck can do....

[H2O Man]

11. That is an important point .....

that needs to be focused upon in the "mainstream" corporate media. He holds the public, and even more, the concept of a balance of powers in the federal government, in total contempt. Bush wants to be portrayed as a "strong leader" who is cutting through the red tape of bureaucracy. As you point out, he is actually just a self-centered brat forcing his agenda on the nation .... and as all recent polls show, his agenda isn't popular with the public right now.

[SammyWinstonJack]

33. He wants to be portrayed as a Dictator, as he has expressed

on numerous occasions, because that would be so much easier. Then he wouldn't have to, as he put it, go to Congress and "knock some heads and twist some arms" to get what he wants done.

[mopaul]

12. why bother with counting votes, or with the constitution, or ANYTHING?

THAT'S the attitude, why bother with silly rules and laws? unless it's a blowjob.

[Name removed]

16. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

19. Very "subtle" Capt. Kirk.

[Freddie Stubbs]

20. Unfortunately, he did follow the Constitution

Article II, Section 2, Clause 3: The President shall have Power to fill up all Vacancies that may happen during the Recess of the Senate, by granting Commissions which shall expire at the End of their next Session.

http://www.house.gov/Constitution/Constitution.html

[Swamp Rat]

15. Bushler is a 'dictater' now. He can do what he wants.

We need to stop kidding ourselves... :yoiks:

[Hubert Flottz]

18. Maybe we can do a "recess appointment" on our...

IRS forms?

[opihimoimoi]

22. My long lost Mountain Man....sending beer and pretzels, oops, hot dogs

[Hubert Flottz]

26. HEYYYYYYYYYYYY MAN!

I got to go fillet some frying sized walleye that I caught last night, before the ice melts, but I got time to say Howdy! I came home and turned on the puter and saw that a RE-PIGS stole another SE-lection in OHIO! WTF is the matter with them unpatriotic fu?ks?

If a tree falls in the forest in Ohio and there is a REPIG in the area, does the tree still make a sound? NO...and it don't make a dent in their hard f-----ng heads either! Their "Rockwell 4536789089765.4 hard" heads, are so well protected from the truth, because the foolish heads are about 30 feet up their dumb a$$es. The GOPer "Faithful" couldn't hear the entire damned forest fall and nothing but cold cash, EVER, makes a dent in their numb skulls.

Come, we go make the fixin's for the walleye fry!

[opihimoimoi]

27. Lemme add some crabs to the Fry....Last night went crabbin w some

friends,,,,caught about 40 0r so

biggest about 2 lbs ..they get to 16 tho

Lemme tell ya, very good eating

the small ones are in my system and will be eating size in 6 to 9 months.,

Come Hawaii and we go eat crabs....

[Hubert Flottz]

29. I'm whippin' up some corn muffins, tubs of slaw, baked sweet...

taters, splosive baked beans, HOT...BBQ Ribs, roasted corn in the shuck, walleye fillets fried in peanut oil, cold ducks,..and icy beerz. DAMN the cholesterol, full speed ahead and steady as she goes! Chocolate Cakes and Key Lime Pies, Welcome!

Why worry about your CH2COOR-CHCOOR'-CH2-COOR and the damned hypertriglyceridaemia? We'll probably all get nuked by Bushco Inc. and Saddam Bin Laden, before we can get old anyhow...

Come, we restock the fallout shelters with cold vodka and lemons!

EDIT...to get back on topic... Bush couldn't even pass recess!

[opihimoimoi]

31. Alrighty now, Am Impressed with menuuuu and agree with premise

of not worrying about cholooostreol...Full Speed Ahead...anb watch for the Burning Bush who wouldn't/couldn't/ Pass Recess....even if he bought a recess pass it would be invalid cuz the man can't seem to pass GO.

Come, we eat Pinto Beans with crab meat....

[Hubert Flottz]

32. Bush probably can't even pass gas!

That's why the bad attitude and it explains his 99.999999% shit content too! The only thing he could do, was cheerlead for the real guys on the team...

We played with our Tom Toms and he played with his Pom Poms! We dreamed of being the quarterback and kicking some serious ass, he wanted to lead cheers and do splits and cartwheels for the boyz on the A team. We laced up our boots and did our leg lifts and push ups, he put on his leg make up, bobby socks and Pee-Wee Herman model saddle oxfords! We grew up and served our country, Bush went AWOL, ran home to mommy and has only served himself for his entire pampered life. Bush honked the cheerleader horn through high school and college and so all he ever learned, was horn honking 101! You never see him, when he ain't honking his own horn, to this day!

A Horn Honking Cheerleader, is misleading the "FREE WORLD" straight down the old alpha and omega shitter, to Hell, or worse! The Bovine Repub Herd just moooooos and goes on dropping it's selfish BUSHIT and stepping in it themselves!

Come, we go Duck and Cover after dinner!

[opihimoimoi]

34. Uncle Uncle...you are in rare form man...rare form....

Them Bovine guys drop BS and Moo as they doo, then they chew cud all night at the square dance held at Gillys 2 Step.

Bush is not a real guy...he is a FRAUD...like a Stepford Asshole...

[Hubert Flottz]

36. You are exactly right about the horn honker in chief...

Junior G. W. ain't even a real A$$hole, he just Honks like one, looks like one, shits on everybody like one, smells like one...and ALWAYS...ACT'S...just exactly like one! He even expells a constant stream of Bullsh*t, like one! He ain't got the brains it takes, to be as useful as a real a$$hole though...Too full of bush*t to be a very good a$$hole

Bush is the studio CowPoke and his bovine Baptist "faithful" are the ones getting Poked, but they're too numb in the noggin to feel it. The "inhuman" cattle have been too busy chewing their collective cuds and gagging on their gnats, to notice the guy standing behind them on the big stack of rocks, with his drawers pulled down to his chimpy little prehensile knees...

G.W. Bush, "Cow-Pokin' is HARD Work!"
Jerry&Pat, "MOOowoOOOwOOOowoOOwOOO!"

You bet CowPokin' "is Hard Work" chief! It's not easy jumping down off of that big stack of rocks behind the bovines, to run around to the front of them bovines to give it kisses all the time. Most of the Bovines, are getting CowPoked, Without Even Getting A Kiss!

[trapper914]

21. In most cases...

...when the "recess" period is up, the appointee gets confirmed by the Senate.

It's up to us to remind our Senators that, when 2007 rolls around, we are not happy with Bolton. Wouldn't it be nice if the Dems controlled the Senate by then and Bolton could get his "up or down vote?"

[H2O Man]

23. You raise valid points.

There is a potential good use for recess appointments; of course, Bush does not use the good potential.

Bolton is as bad as we suspect. His goal is to disrupt the UN, and to promote conflict.But he doesn't have the official backing that Bush had hoped for. His ability to achieve his goals has been seriously compromised.

Of course, the neocons are saying that we have to present a united front, so that our enermies will not view us as weak. Bolton is our enemy. We need to unite with our friends around the globe, and reduce the ability of violent thugs from creating conflicts. Bolton is a thug, and the recess appointment actually is a sign of our growing strength.

[HamdenRice]

25. The basic Constitutional idea is that he is a "temp"

In other words, it really does not circumvent the confirmation process because the person appointed is clearly temporary. It enables the president to put people in place when Congress cannot act because it is in recess. It also prevents Congress from not acting by going into recess.

But the main idea is that it is a temporary appointment.

[Silverhair]

35. Both sides do it.

If we scream too much about this we are only being hypocrites.

Clinton used the recess appointments to put in Bill Lann Lee as assistant attorney general for civil rights over GOP objections.