Congressional Fashion Statement: New lapel pin makes a Constitutional point

[DeepModem Mom]

NYT: October 10, 2007,
Congressional Fashion Statement
By David M. Herszenhorn

WASHINGTON, Oct. 10 – The way Representative John Yarmuth of Kentucky sees it, lawmakers on Capitol Hill and Americans everywhere have forgotten who the Founding Fathers really intended to run the country –- not the President who was more of a Constitutional after-thought but the Congress, the people’s elected representatives.

Mr. Yarmuth said he and many of the 41 other freshman Democrats in the House had been puzzling for some time over just how to remind voters of this, how to mold a most basic lesson of American civics so that it could be carried far and wide by the modern techniques of political messaging. And then an idea struck.

Today, on the House floor, Mr. Yarmuth began distributing small buttons, seemingly made of parchment, with the words, “Article 1” – as in Article 1 of the Constitution, which states, “All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives.” In other words: Mr. President, the Congress would like to remind you, that you, dear pal, are Article 2.

Mr. Yarmuth said that about 50 lawmakers, most of them fellow freshmen, had quickly snapped up the pins. Two Republicans, suspicious perhaps, of a Democrat bearing gifts, politely declined, though Mr. Yarmuth said that he was hoping to recruit Representative Ron Paul, the Texas Republican, strict constitutionalist and candidate for president, to distribute the pins to fellow members of the G.O.P....

***

“It came out of thinking about why we were all elected last year,” Mr. Yarmouth said. “The war had a lot to do with it but another, I think equally important factor was the sense that the people’s voice was not being heard in deliberations of government, that the presidency had gotten much too powerful and arrogant, with executive privilege cliams and signing statements and a wide range of things like that. He added: “The American people wanted to push back against the imperial presidency.”...

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/10/10/congressional-fashion-statement-were-article-1/

[sinkingfeeling]

1. I like it and hope to hell they replace those stupid flag pins!

[rodeodance]

2. Congressional power has eroded since about 1950-----once given away, it is seldome retrieved.

[Cirque du So-What]

3. Kudos to Rep. Yarmuth

I wish he was my rep; I'm stuck with Chimpolini apologist extraordinaire Ron Lewis.

I hope this is able to overcome corporate media roadblocks and gain traction far & wide.

I'll see your jingoistic lapel pin and raise you a living document!

[Bitwit1234]

4. OK lets see if the lapel pin flag guys wear it.

Probably not, they don't believe in the Constitution, unless they find something "that puts it in their pockets." You know what I mean...money money money.

[sutz12]

5. They might also remind people of the Oath of Office...

wherein they swear to "Protect and Defend the Constitution" not land, corporate profits, or political offices, or even the people.

[KKKarl is an idiot]

6. But but ...wait a moment

What about the terrorists? Who will defend us but our George. Surely not those defeatist congressional democrats. After all the people did not know what they were voting for. Lets blame it on those pesky women voters. They should not be allowed to vote. Well maybe we should give the vote to white men only because even if they are evil they are not Muslims.

Ok I concede

argument lost: White men wrote the constitution

[Hippo_Tron]

7. IMO, I see no problem with congress yielding power to an executive, however

The problem lies in the fact that in order to take that power back they need to pass another law or resolution which is subject to the President's veto, meaning that the President has to give the power back. Congress needs to be able to take any power back from an executive that they grant him.