Text 6817, 50 rader
Skriven 2010-04-09 20:25:17 av Ross Cassell (1:123/456)
   Kommentar till text 6816 av Michiel van der Vlist (2:280/5555)
Ärende: Question about democracy
================================
Hello Michiel!

10 Apr 10 01:10, you wrote to Robert Bashe:

 MV> All very well, but that does not answer the question of who guards the
 MV> guardians. That there are nine and that the are never all appointed by
 MV> the same president is no guarantee that they will never go awry. As I
 MV> understand it, their rulings do not have to be unanimous. A simple
 MV> majority will do. So what if 5 out of the 9 go bananas?

Then we live with it, unless proof surfaces of them being coerced.

Nothing they do can be arbitrary, they simply cant hand pick laws and strike
them down (or affirm).

Back in the late 1990's, Congress enacted a law that empowered the President OF
The United States to strike individual lines from a bill (line item veto), if
the bill was an appropriations bill. This power is something many of the states
governors enjoy, but in this case, the governor has this power handed to him by
his/her states constitution. The Federal Constitution does not endow the POTUS
this ability, so congress thought they could rectify it with a law.

Several dissenting Congressman didnt like this bill, so as soon as Clinton
signed that bill into law, they challenged it to the USSC.

The USSC turned the challenge away, stating that the challengers had no
standing to bring a grievance because the power extended by this new law, had
not yet been wielded.

After Clinton used this new power on some appropriations bill, the challenge
was re-presented to the USSC, whereas it was struck down by the court as being
unconstitutional.

Just to clarify, as a bill travels through Congress, lets say a spending bill
to authorize some Federal project, representatives and senators will often
attach ammendments, riders etc, that have nothing to do with the main bill, so
a line item veto would be nice for the POTUS to be able to strike them off,
while approving the main body of the bill.

Anyway, you wont want to comprehend any of this and you will see our system as
flawed, but it has worked for over 2 centuries, without a need to issue Royalty
a ultimatum.

==
Ross
Fidonet Feeds Or Fidonet In Your Newsreader: http://www.easternstar.info
E-mail: ross(at)cassell(dot)us | Other Places: http://links.cassell.us
... CDC study cites that being a Democrat is hazardous to society.
--- GoldED+/LNX 1.1.5-b20060121
 * Origin: The Eastern Star - Spartanburg, SC USA (1:123/456)