MUST READ: An Open Letter to Republicans in Washington

By Daniel Horowitz

Dear Republicans in Washington,

Houston, we’ve got a problem. 

We have a president who has made it clear he will unilaterally change laws in a way that will harm America’s economy for years to come – whether they pertain to labor, energy, health care, and of course, immigration.  He openly brags about his newfound ability to “change the law,” and he is only emboldened to continue building on the lawlessness for the next two years.

This begs the deeply uncomfortable and inconvenient question of our time: is there anything this president cannot get away with over the next two years?

Yet, at the same time that Obama has assumed the powers Alexander Hamilton referred to as the prerogative of perpetual and hereditary prince, you have publicly and preemptively ceded all powers Congress has to stop this regime.  You have made it clear to the president that no matter how egregious and unpopular his edicts are with the people, you will not wield the power of the purse in any consequential way.  You have telegraphed to him your fervent belief that Republicans would be blamed for any brinkmanship – no matter the issue, no matter how much you fund critical aspects of government, no matter the results of the election.

This begs the deeply uncomfortable and inconvenient question of our time: is there anything this president cannot get away with over the next two years?  He can violate any and every law on the books, yet what are you going to do about it?  Won’t it lead to a government shutdown?    

And this two-year constitutional crisis is based on the assumption that he doesn’t unilaterally nullify the 22^nd Amendment and run for a third term.  Ironically, the only thing stopping him from doing so is Hillary Clinton, not you and your fellow Republicans.  After all, we can’t have a government shutdown.    

Make no mistake about it, immigration is just the beginning.

Some of you badly want to spend your time focusing on corporate tax “reform” that Obama will veto in a heartbeat (and if he signs it, God help us) or sundry projects promoted by K Street during your daily conference calls. But at some point, Obama will make you care about his legislative activities.

Let’s talk candidly for a moment, especially with those of you who are regarded as conservatives in the media, by your constituents, and even many in the conservative political movement.  You don’t give a rip about the immigration issue, and many of you downright agree with Obama on the issue.  You know who you are.  You are among those who stand up and pontificate arguments similar to liberation theology with regards to putting illegal immigrants ahead of Americans. 

Accordingly, you are not gripped with a sense of pain and fear over Obama’s executive order.  Sure, some of you would rather Obama had not violated the Constitution; however, you will not lose sleep over it. 

But this is not about immigration.  You will be made to care.  You might not care about immigration, but if the truculent trajectory of Obama’s behavior is not blunted, rest assured that he will act in a similar vein on an issue you care about.

Some of you badly want to spend your time focusing on corporate tax “reform” that Obama will veto in a heartbeat (and if he signs it, God help us) or sundry projects promoted by K Street during your daily conference calls. 

But at some point, Obama will make you care about his legislative activities. 

Senator, you campaigned on stopping the war on coal and ran up historic margins in those counties hardest hit by Obama’s EPA lawlessness.

Senator McConnell: we all know that your K Street associates want amnesty for illegals and they don’t want to fully repeal Obamacare.  But undoubtedly, you must care about the thousands of people in your state who are now impoverished as a result of Obama’s war on coal.  Obama is about to unleash 3,400 new regulations, including a new ozone-layer regulation on power plants and factories that will destroy the economy in states like Kentucky.

Senator, you campaigned on stopping the war on coal and ran up historic margins in those counties hardest hit by Obama’s EPA lawlessness.  Much of your success came from the district of Rep. Hal Rogers (R-KY), the man who has dedicated his energy and passion to blocking the use of the budget to stop Obama’s lawlessness. 

So what will you do to stop the war on coal?  After all, you have suggested that any effort to fund the government sans the executive orders would lead to a government shutdown, which under all circumstances, would reflect badly only on Republicans.  So what is the end game?  Silence is not an answer.

 
Daniel Horowitz is Senior Editor of Conservative Review. Follow him on twitter @RMConservative. 

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