Friday, January 16, 2009

Is the Bailout Constitutional?

It's about time we ask this all-important question. (I think the answer to it is quite obvious.) It will be interesting to see if the Supreme Court hears the case and, if so, how the conservatives on the bench will settle the controversy. I take note of the thick irony that conservatives, looking ahead, may have to rely on our sempiternal enemy, the omnipotent Supreme Court, now that a tenuous and lonely conservative majority reigns there. One could argue with good reason that the addition of Roberts and especially Alito to the Supreme Court represent Bush's greatest accomplishment as president. Alas, we couldn't squeak in one more for a foolproof conservative firewall! The milquetoast Republican, Justice Kennedy will be the one to watch.

From the New York Times:

The bailout’s sheer size, the memorandum states, takes it beyond the realm of other Congressional delegations of authority that have been found constitutional. “As far as we can tell, Congress has never delegated so much power to an executive agency with so little to constrain the agency’s discretion,” the memorandum concluded, calling the result “a classic violation of the nondelegation principle.”

click here for the story

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