How congress can stop Obama’s regulatory state

Good day all. Since the 2014 election, President Obama has decided he will rule by decree via the regulatory agencies. He has been doing this all along of course, but now he is ramping up his power grabs big time.

Recently, he announced that he was going to start regulating the internet by having the FCC ((Federal Communications Commission)) start treating broadband providers as utilities. He’s also been using the NLRB ((National Labor Relations Board)) to help unions force their way into companies.

The EPA ((Environmental Protection Agency)) long ago went past it’s mandate and is now actually harming the United States. The only way people and companies could fight back was through the courts, and Obama has been packing those with like minded cronies. There is another way the regulatory agencies can be stopped, and that’s through congress using the Congressional Review Act. Here are a few details on what Congress can do and what could happen from The Hill:

Republicans believe they have identified a potent weapon in their fight against President Obama’s regulatory agenda. GOP lawmakers plan to employ the seldom-used Congressional Review Act (CRA), which gives lawmakers the power to formally disapprove of major agency rules, as they seek to ratchet up their attacks on federal red tape.

“It hasn’t been possible to use this in a divided Congress,” House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) told The Hill, “but now that it is, we certainly are interested in reviewing regulations to make sure they meet with congressional intent.”

What most people forget, including pretty much everyone who works in the regulatory agencies, is that Congress delegated authority to them and can take back that authority any time they want. The only reason Congress hasn’t, is due to simple laziness. They really couldn’t be bothered to go through the process to revoke the tens of thousands of regulations these agencies cook up each year. Now, it looks like that the damage being done by the regulatory agencies is finally sinking in to some of the members of congress.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) began threatening to use the CRA to stop regulations last year, after the Environmental Protection Agency proposed a rule aimed at cutting carbon emissions from new power plants.

Those rules will end up closing a large number of power plants. If these rules are allowed to stand, you will see an enormous level of stress put on the power grids. The power generation companies have been planning to replace or upgrade the older, less efficient and “dirtier” power plants for some time.

They need time to do so and frankly, the actions of the EPA and other agencies makes it actually more difficult to upgrade or replace a powerplant. The new rules don’t allow them the time they need, so their only answer will be to shut them down. With insufficient power generators online, we will start seeing rolling brown outs and black outs. The EPA would rather that power companies build lots of bird munching windmills and bird incinerating solar power stations. If you think windmills and solar power will replace those plants, they won’t. The technology just isn’t there and if it weren’t for taxpayer subsidies, the “green energy” plants would close as uneconomical.

One issue with a CRA is that any bill passed by congress has to go to His Royal Golf Proness, King Putt. We all know how he will react to these bills landing on his desk.

While Obama can and likely will veto any efforts to undo regulations through the CRA, the threats carry more weight now that Republicans control both chambers of Congress.

This won’t stop Congress from trying to reign in the out of control agencies.

Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman James Inhofe (Okla.) and other Republicans are zeroing in on the EPA, believing they can use the Review Act against rules for new and existing power plants, water, ozone and coal ash.

“There is widespread agreement among Republicans and the business community that the EPA under the Obama administration is out of control and it’s taking things to the extreme,” a senior aide to Inhofe said.

Out of control is putting it mildly. You may recall a post I did back in 2012 on the former EPA Administrator for Region IV, Al Armendariz. He pulled a Gruber while and announced that his plan was to go after companies for violating laws and regulations even if they hadn’t actually violated anything. He was forced to resign when the videos came out. The fact is, he was just the tip of the iceberg who was careless enough to get caught.

Now the CRA has not been used very much, again due to the inherent laziness of most members of Congress.

“The CRA has been used sparingly in the past and some folks may say it’s too aggressive, but frankly the aggressive nature of this administration’s regulations demands an aggressive response.” Lawmakers have only struck down one rule under the Congressional Review Act in 43 attempts, according to the Government Accountability Office. In 2001, Republicans repealed the Clinton administration’s controversial ergonomics rule aimed at curbing workplace injuries.

I don’t expect them to achieve much this time either. One reason being that Der Fubar will veto any bills designed to curb his reign of errors. When that happens, the bill then goes back for a vote to override King Putt’s veto. Unless the Democrats decide to put the country first, instead of the Democrat Party, the veto’s will be sustained.

It is unlikely, however, that Republicans would be able to muster enough Democratic votes to override an Obama veto of any measure striking down major regulations.

“It’s an exercise in futility for Republicans, because the way the CRA works is Congress has to pass it, but then it has to be signed into law by the president, and it’s very unlikely the president would sign off on this,” said James Goodwin, senior policy analyst at the left-leaning Center for Progressive Reform. “These are his rules, he made them a priority, and he made them a priority for good reason,” he added.

A good reason? Perhaps to a member of the Progressive Liberal Fascist Democrat Elite such as yourself. To the people who have to live under them? It’s driving more and more people into poverty. Il Douche may and probably will veto all these bills, and no doubt the corrupt members of the Democrat Party will back him, but the American People will see just where the Democrats and Obama stand, and it’s not with us.

But Republicans believe that forcing Obama to stand behind his “job-killing” regulations will sour voters on his message and turn the political tides in their favor.

“This shows that Congress is really legislating, and it’s President Obama and some of his allies in Congress that are getting in the way,” an aide to Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) told The Hill. “It’s going to demonstrate to the American people that it’s President Obama standing in the way of our good ideas, and not the other way around.”

Senator Hatch has one small problem with this plan, and that’s getting it past the Obama Propaganda Services. The major news agencies, such as the New York Times, CNN, NBC and the others will outright lie about what is going on.

Inhofe’s staff says the EPA’s rules for water and ozone are ripe for the picking, because of widespread public opposition. The EPA says the Waters of the U.S. rule is intended to clarify the agency’s authority over smaller bodies of water like ponds and streams, but farmers oppose it as an unconstitutional “land grab.”

Oh, there is no doubt it’s a land grab. The EPA has already been reamed out over previous attempts at violating the rights of land owners. If they start going after farms, well, you will see higher food prices, probably to the point where people can’t afford to actually eat. The only question now, is will the Democrats throw themselves on the grenades Obama will send them and uphold his vetos, or will they decide that protecting his “legacy” is less important then protecting their seats in Congress?

If nothing else, using the Congressional Review Act will put Democrats on record as to whether they stand with the president on certain policies.

“The desire of Democrats to distance themselves from the president is only beginning to grow,” the senior Inhofe aide said. “One of the best ways they can distance themselves is by voting to overturn bad regulations.”

Interesting idea isn’t it? Do the PLFD’s vote to protect “The One’s” legacy and probably lose their elections in 2012, or do they vote to override and give themselves a small chance of surviving? Frankly, I’m betting on the former. The current crop of Democrats have demonstrated time and time again that they are “True Believers” and will do anything to advance the power of the state. I will be very surprised if any of Obama’s vetos are overridden.

Thatisall

~The Angry Webmaster~

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