Welcome back MY Dear Readers to The Other Shoe. If you looked, carefully, at the title of toady’s offering then you know that today is something special. In the, more than, four years that I have published this blog… four years and 493 (with this 494) articles I have rarely presented an ‘Editorial’. Events have transpired that have forced my hand, in that regard. Today I come to you, My Dear Readers, with a bone to pick.
.
The last couple of news cycles have been bloated with hype that Speaker Boehner is going to “Sue President Obama”. Sue our sitting President over, allegedly, his “misuse of power via ‘Executive Orders’”. OK… hang on… give me a minute to stop laughing. There, that’s better. OK…Seriously? Speaker of the House of Representatives is so ‘free’ of other obligations… The House of Representatives have so much ‘free time’… They have ‘finished their homework’? Oh… MERCY! I do take exception to that assertion. Let us review:
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Ohio – Republican (R) John Boehner was (first) sworn in as ‘Speaker’ of The House of Representatives on January 5th 2011 for the 112th Congress. Below is a video of Rep. John Boehner after being sworn in as Speaker of the House of Representatives.
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(To this day… I am still vexed by why he picked the… ‘large’ [‘oversized’] gavel for his Speakership. Note: Each Speaker is allowed to ‘pick’ his own gavel to be used as ‘Speaker’ for the House of Representatives.)
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So, the last Session of Congress that was lead by a Democrat Speaker was…. (can anyone tell me?)… the 111thCongress was the last to have a Democrat as a Speaker. Now, let us have a little review – The 111thCongress passed 861 Bills (see next graphic below)that garnered 383 New Laws [1]that were signed into law. The last act of Democrats, while in control of the House of Representatives, was to work very hard and passed 383 bills that were signed into law. (That was the ‘Second’ Session of the 111th Congress seated in 2010).
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Chart of Bills Passed by Congress Past 20 years
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Now, here is where it gets just totally squirrelly! Since (R) Rep. John Boehner was sworn in as Speaker the (Republican Controlled) Congress has voted (a Grand total of) FIFTY-FOUR times to ‘Repeal Obamacare’. Coincidently, each and every time their votes were ceremonial ONLY because they knew that they lack the votes in the Senate. Yet… and here is where the squirrelly part comes to play:
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Congressional Republicans have held FIFTY-FOUR votes repealing ‘Obamacare’.
The 112th Congress was documented as “The Least Productive Congress”[2]Passing few bills, making fewer laws than any since the 107thin 2001.
The 113th Congress (also) was documented as ‘The Least Productive in Modern History”[3]
.
80th Congress to 112th Congress ‘Bills Passed’
(80th Congress to 112th Congress ‘Bills Passed’)
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Now we are in the first session of the 114th Congress, and the pace of legislation has not changed. Yet, Speaker Boehner is calling on the ‘Bi-Partisan Legal Advisory Group’ to execute his (frivolous) action[4]. The ‘Bi-Partisan Legal Advisory Group’ is made up of: The Speaker of the House, The House Majority Leader, The House Minority Leader, and BOTH ‘Party Whips’. Let me see… is there anything else that this group of esteemed LEADERS of the House or Representatives could work on… instead? Say… like; ‘Immigration Reform’… ‘Improving Conditions at Veteran’s Administration Hospitals’… ‘Campaign Finance Reform’… oh, I could go on and one and list, maybe, fifteen items of National Importance that these Leadership Members could better spend their time on, than trying to figure out a way to sue President Obama over ‘Abuse of Executive Orders’. But, he is the Speaker… so let’s look at the number(s)!
.
Below is a graphic showing the NUMBER of ‘Executicve Actions’ by President from Washington to President Obama. Let’s take a look-see!
Last Update: Data Through June 20, 2014. (through 5.42 years of the Obama Administration)
Citation: Gerhard Peters. “Executive Orders.” The American Presidency Project. Ed. John T. Woolley and Gerhard Peters. Santa Barbara, CA. 1999-2014. Available from the World Wide Web: http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/data/orders.php.
Notes: 1 1789 to 1945 (Roosevelt) data includes “numbered” and “unnumbered” executive orders. 1945 (Truman) data includes only numbered executive orders including those with letter designations (ex. Executive Order 9577-A).
Data Sources: • 1789 – 1945 (Roosevelt) data obtained from Lyn Ragsdale, “Vital Statisitcs on the Presidency: Washington to Clinton.” rev. ed. (Washington, D.C.: CQ Press, 1998).
• 1945 (Truman) – present data compiled by Gerhard Peters, The American Presidency Project, from documents contained in the Federal Register.
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So, let me see… President Obama has used a total of 182 ‘Executive Orders’ (so far) in his two terms as President. What have the other Presidents passed?
George W. Bush = 291
William J. Clinton = 364
George H.W. Bush = 166 (ONE term)
Ronald Reagan = 381
Jimmy Carter = 320
Gerald R. Ford = 169 (LESS than One Term)
Richard Nixon = 346
Lyndon B Johnson = 325 (One Term)
John F Kennedy = 214 (One Term)
Dwight D Eisenhower = 484
Barrack Obama = 182 (In nearly TWO Terms)
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Yeah, wow… that is a total “abuse of power”! While facing two sessions of ‘The Least Productive Congress” President Obama has used fewer ‘Executive Actions’ than any other sitting President in my lifetime (five year at least, Two Term Presidents). It would seem that Speaker Boehner is… jumping the gun. ?!? Shouldn’t there appear to be some abuse of a power before one would go and sue? Seems logical to me! Then why is Speaker Boehner jumping the proverbial gun? Why?
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APPEARENCES. Aye, there’s the rub! Living, as we do, in a visual and visceral society, Speaker Boehner need not wait for President Obama to do anything wrong, first. A good 20% to 22% of Americans already ‘see’ President Obama as ‘lawless’, so one need not actually wait for this President to do something wrong before hanging him out to dry. But… there is this nagging thought, in the back of my head.
.
Immigration Reform… Campaign Finance Reform…. V.A. Hospitals… Veterans Benefits… REAL WORK that needs to be done, left standing at the crib, while Speaker Boehner plays games with the Leaders of the House of Representatives.
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This is worse than ‘Much Ado About Nothing’… This is an ‘abuse of power’ by… The Speaker!
Notes from Behind the Keyboard – Editorial
June 26, 2014 2 Comments
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Danny Hanning of The Other Shoe – May 6th, 2014
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Welcome back MY Dear Readers to The Other Shoe. If you looked, carefully, at the title of toady’s offering then you know that today is something special. In the, more than, four years that I have published this blog… four years and 493 (with this 494) articles I have rarely presented an ‘Editorial’. Events have transpired that have forced my hand, in that regard. Today I come to you, My Dear Readers, with a bone to pick.
.
The last couple of news cycles have been bloated with hype that Speaker Boehner is going to “Sue President Obama”. Sue our sitting President over, allegedly, his “misuse of power via ‘Executive Orders’”. OK… hang on… give me a minute to stop laughing. There, that’s better. OK…Seriously? Speaker of the House of Representatives is so ‘free’ of other obligations… The House of Representatives have so much ‘free time’… They have ‘finished their homework’? Oh… MERCY! I do take exception to that assertion. Let us review:
.
Ohio – Republican (R) John Boehner was (first) sworn in as ‘Speaker’ of The House of Representatives on January 5th 2011 for the 112th Congress. Below is a video of Rep. John Boehner after being sworn in as Speaker of the House of Representatives.
.
.
(To this day… I am still vexed by why he picked the… ‘large’ [‘oversized’] gavel for his Speakership. Note: Each Speaker is allowed to ‘pick’ his own gavel to be used as ‘Speaker’ for the House of Representatives.)
.
So, the last Session of Congress that was lead by a Democrat Speaker was…. (can anyone tell me?)… the 111th Congress was the last to have a Democrat as a Speaker. Now, let us have a little review – The 111th Congress passed 861 Bills (see next graphic below)that garnered 383 New Laws [1]that were signed into law. The last act of Democrats, while in control of the House of Representatives, was to work very hard and passed 383 bills that were signed into law. (That was the ‘Second’ Session of the 111th Congress seated in 2010).
.
Chart of Bills Passed by Congress Past 20 years
.
Now, here is where it gets just totally squirrelly! Since (R) Rep. John Boehner was sworn in as Speaker the (Republican Controlled) Congress has voted (a Grand total of) FIFTY-FOUR times to ‘Repeal Obamacare’. Coincidently, each and every time their votes were ceremonial ONLY because they knew that they lack the votes in the Senate. Yet… and here is where the squirrelly part comes to play:
.
.
80th Congress to 112th Congress ‘Bills Passed’
(80th Congress to 112th Congress ‘Bills Passed’)
.
Now we are in the first session of the 114th Congress, and the pace of legislation has not changed. Yet, Speaker Boehner is calling on the ‘Bi-Partisan Legal Advisory Group’ to execute his (frivolous) action[4]. The ‘Bi-Partisan Legal Advisory Group’ is made up of: The Speaker of the House, The House Majority Leader, The House Minority Leader, and BOTH ‘Party Whips’. Let me see… is there anything else that this group of esteemed LEADERS of the House or Representatives could work on… instead? Say… like; ‘Immigration Reform’… ‘Improving Conditions at Veteran’s Administration Hospitals’… ‘Campaign Finance Reform’… oh, I could go on and one and list, maybe, fifteen items of National Importance that these Leadership Members could better spend their time on, than trying to figure out a way to sue President Obama over ‘Abuse of Executive Orders’. But, he is the Speaker… so let’s look at the number(s)!
.
Below is a graphic showing the NUMBER of ‘Executicve Actions’ by President from Washington to President Obama. Let’s take a look-see!
.
(Source for chart below: http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/executive-orders/disposition.html)
.
Executive Orders:Washington – Obama
President
Term
Total Orders1
Average / Year
EO Number Range
Total
8
unnumbered
Total
1
unnumbered
Total
4
unnumbered
Total
1
unnumbered
Total
1
unnumbered
Total
3
unnumbered
Total
12
unnumbered
Total
10
unnumbered
Total
0
unnumbered
Total
17
unnumbered
Total
18
unnumbered
Total
5
unnumbered
Total
12
unnumbered
Total
35
unnumbered
Total
16
unnumbered
Total
48
unnumbered
Total
79
unnumbered
Total
217
unnumbered
Total
92
unnumbered
Total
6
unnumbered
Total
96
unnumbered
Total
113
unnumbered
Total
143
unnumbered
Total
140
unnumbered
Total
185
unnumbered
Total
1,081
Total
724
Total
1,803
Total
522
Total
1,203
Total
968
5075 – 6070
Total
3,522
6071 – 9537
Total
907
9538 – 10431
I
504
9538 – 10029
II
403
10030 – 10431
Total
484
10432 – 10913
I
266
10432 – 10695-A
II
218
10696 – 10913
Total
214
10914 – 11127
Total
325
11128 – 11451
Total
346
11452 – 11797
I
247
11452 – 11698
II
99
11699 – 11797
Total
169
11798 – 11966
Total
320
80.00
11967 – 12286
Total
381
47.63
12287 – 12667
I
213
53.25
12287 – 12499
II
168
42.00
12500 – 12667
Total
166
41.50
12668 – 12833
Total
364
45.50
12834 – 13197
I
200
50.00
12834 – 13033
II
164
41.00
13034 – 13197
Total
291
36.38
13198 – 13488
I
173
43.25
13198 – 13370
II
118
29.50
13371 – 13488
Total
182
33.58
13489 – 13670…
I
147
36.75
13489 – 13635
II
35
24.65
13636 – 13670…
Last Update: Data Through June 20, 2014. (through 5.42 years of the Obama Administration)
Citation: Gerhard Peters. “Executive Orders.” The American Presidency Project. Ed. John T. Woolley and Gerhard Peters. Santa Barbara, CA. 1999-2014. Available from the World Wide Web: http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/data/orders.php.
Notes:
1 1789 to 1945 (Roosevelt) data includes “numbered” and “unnumbered” executive orders. 1945 (Truman) data includes only numbered executive orders including those with letter designations (ex. Executive Order 9577-A).
Data Sources:
• 1789 – 1945 (Roosevelt) data obtained from Lyn Ragsdale, “Vital Statisitcs on the Presidency: Washington to Clinton.” rev. ed. (Washington, D.C.: CQ Press, 1998).
• 1945 (Truman) – present data compiled by Gerhard Peters, The American Presidency Project, from documents contained in the Federal Register.
.
So, let me see… President Obama has used a total of 182 ‘Executive Orders’ (so far) in his two terms as President. What have the other Presidents passed?
.
Yeah, wow… that is a total “abuse of power”! While facing two sessions of ‘The Least Productive Congress” President Obama has used fewer ‘Executive Actions’ than any other sitting President in my lifetime (five year at least, Two Term Presidents). It would seem that Speaker Boehner is… jumping the gun. ?!? Shouldn’t there appear to be some abuse of a power before one would go and sue? Seems logical to me! Then why is Speaker Boehner jumping the proverbial gun? Why?
.
APPEARENCES. Aye, there’s the rub! Living, as we do, in a visual and visceral society, Speaker Boehner need not wait for President Obama to do anything wrong, first. A good 20% to 22% of Americans already ‘see’ President Obama as ‘lawless’, so one need not actually wait for this President to do something wrong before hanging him out to dry. But… there is this nagging thought, in the back of my head.
.
Immigration Reform… Campaign Finance Reform…. V.A. Hospitals… Veterans Benefits… REAL WORK that needs to be done, left standing at the crib, while Speaker Boehner plays games with the Leaders of the House of Representatives.
.
This is worse than ‘Much Ado About Nothing’… This is an ‘abuse of power’ by… The Speaker!
.
Nuff said?
.
Adieu!
.
Thank YOU!
.
The Other Shoe eBay Store
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http://www.ebay.com/usr/enzomatrixlt
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Danny Hanning of The Other Shoe – May 6th, 2014
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[1]http://www.congress-summary.com/A-111th-Congress/Laws_Passed_111th_Congress_Seq.html
[2]http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/jan/9/capitol-hill-least-productive-congress-ever-112th-/?page=all
[3]http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/08/113th-congress-bills_n_3563008.html
[4]http://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2014/06/25/should-speaker-john-boehner-sue-president-obama-over-executive-orders
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Filed under Domestic Policy, Huamnist Writing, Natrional Disasters, Politics, Republican Blunders, Social Commentary Tagged with Lifestyles, National Disaster, Politics, Republican Party, Social Commentary, Speaker Boehner, Speaker Sues President, Speaker Sues President Obama, The Republican Party President Obama