What options does Obama have with Emergency Powers?

[Renew Deal]

Lets say we're down to the last couple days and the House refuses to agree to anything. Does Obama have any "emergency power" leeway? It was suggested in an article I read yesterday.

[Myrina]

1. 14th Amendment

n/t

[Renew Deal]

2. I'm talking more like suspending Habeas Corpus type powers.

But I agree on the 14th amendment.

[Fearless]

3. He could also try an Executive Order... but that would likely be overturned in court.

[Zen Democrat]

4. I've wondered what Obama has up his sleeve when he told Cantor, "Don't call my bluff, Eric"

Bill Clinton has called for him to use the 14th Amendment and arbitrarily use executive order to raise the limit, since NOT raising it would be unconstitutional. The next piece of business would be for the Courts to find that the 1917 law mandating a debt ceiling is unconstitutional.

For everyone criticizing Barack Obama and saying they won't vote for him next year, I give you two names:

Sonia Sotomayor
Elena Kagan

Then consider that two of the current liberal members of the Supreme Court, Justices Ginsberg and Breyer are 78 and 72, respectively, and are believed to be ready to retire. Scalia and Kennedy are both 75.

That's all I need to know.

[leveymg]

5. Look at the exchange in this thread about "Joint Res. of Disapproval". Maybe.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x1569810

[originalpckelly]

6. Let me get this right:

He's going to use emergency powers in a contrived, manufactured emergency?

Does anyone else see the problem with that?

[Renew Deal]

7. Is a manufactured emergency is still an emergency?

Just because it is preventable doesn't make it less of a problem. Of course, the congress does have a course of action. If they choose not to take it, it would be extraordinary for a president to act on his own. Would it be legal and what precedent would it set? I hope it doesn't got this way.

[originalpckelly]

8. No, if it's manufactured, then it's a fake situation cooked up to get us to do something...

that we would never do in normal times.

Even when there is a genuine emergency, emergency powers are basically one of the chief ways democracies become dictatorships. That's where the word dictator comes from, an office in the Roman Republic that was filled in times of emergency by an appointee of their Senate for a six month period, and what was done during that time was not later accountable under their system of law.

This whole thing is the reason they turned from a Republic into an Empire.

In this case we have not even a real situation. It's all contrived, just so we will wet our pants and let them pass austerity measures, while letting the rich not even have to bear the slightest bit of additional burden during these supposedly tough times for everyone.

[Renew Deal]

9. I disagree

It's a real situation cooked up to get us to do something. If the limit isn't raised there will be real consequences. I agree that it's contrived and cooked up. But there are consequences.

[NightWatcher]

10. he can launch a war without Congressional approval, why not raise the debt ceiling too?