Post #36666 by ges on the US Policy board

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The Republican House seems to be willing to diminish the power of Congress and give more of it to the President, upsetting the balance between those branches of government.

Congress essentially banned presidents from unilaterally and permanently impounding funds in a 1974 law. But during the presidential campaign, Mr. Trump, in a video on his campaign website, vowed to restore the power so that he could “squeeze the bloated federal bureaucracy for massive savings.”

What would impoundment mean for presidential power?

Legalizing permanent impoundment would transfer power from Congress to the presidency.

The founders devised the separation of powers to keep each branch from accumulating too much authority and posing a threat to liberty. Central to that is Congress’s control of decisions about taxation and spending — its power of the purse.

He can't get 'massive savings' from the Federal government without cutting from Medicare, Social Security and Defense. And Defense seems sacrosanct. Trump may or may not understand this but he's happy to lie about it.

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