DOJ On McGahn: Courts Have No Role In Fights Between Congress, White House | Talking Points Memo

TPM Article Topics
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Federal courts should not rule on separation-of-powers disputes between Congress and the White House, the Justice Department argued Friday.

This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=1282505
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So Executive Power is unchecked and there is no remedy or Constitutional oversite by Congress?? I call BS!

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Check.

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Questions for the lawerly among us:

  1. Does the court actually take these arguments seriously, or are they just obliged to listen while they blather?
  2. Why is DoJ even involved in the case, let alone arguing for McGhan and the White House?
  1. Wouldn’t a decision prevent “case after case?” Isn’t that the point of a decision?
  1. WTF?
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The GOP are bad faith actors, that’s all there is to it. They’ve taught their base to HATE democrats, and they will choose despotism over democracy in a heartbeat.

They need to be driven from this land in shame as the racists, toadies, and warmongers that they are.

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Wait a minute… My understanding has always been that we have the three branches of government to counter balance and act as checks on each other. But now the DOJ is actually arguing that the courts have no authority in disputes between the Executive and Legislative branches ? That seems a unique interpretation of our system.

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Didn’t Republicans in Congress just give something like 150 speeches about how Trump wasn’t obstructing Congress because the courts were the proper venue to decide disputes between the President and Congress?

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That’s the best DOJ can come up with?

ETA–Congress’ authority to compel testimony and conduct investigations is, in part, based on SCOTUS rulings.

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Isn’t resolving issues between the executive and legislative branches one of the main functions of the judicial branch?

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This reminds me of a scene from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid just before a knife fight.

[Butch]
No, no, not yet, not until me and Harvey get the rules straightened out.
[Harvey]
Rules? In a knife fight? No rules! [Butch kicks Harvey in the groin]
[Butch]
Well, if there aint’ going to be any rules, let’s get the fight started. Someone count. 1,2,3 go.
[Sundance]
1,2,3, go! '['Butch knocks Harvey out"

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Someone please correct me if I am wrong but…There is no attorney client privilege between White House counsel and the President? And also…as the third co-equal branch of government the courts function is exactly to decide the constitutional law between the executive branch and the legislative branch.

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BTW, one of the nice features of the DOJ argument is that Trump doesn’t need to listen to the courts if he loses. He is the king, after all.

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Did they just, on the record and in open court, deny the role of the judiciary to resolve disputes between the other two branches of government?

What the actual fuck?

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Trump wants a banana republic. The slipperiest slippery slope argument ever.
When will they run out of appeals?

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If we take the Trump advocate at face value – always somewhat dubious – political checks are the appropriate path here. Early on, impeachment was specifically cited by a judge. This underlines the value of the second count of impeachment. Trump’s obstruction of Congress is so broad it warranted a special reply and litigation to address the matter piecemeal is of limited value.

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Desperate people plead desperate things.

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Apparently they’re now the Department of JustKidding.

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But then again this whole farce is just a delay tactic…the trump administration will use every option to keep this court fight alive to run out the clock. When McGahn is eventually ordered to submit to the subpoena and appear he will claim attorney client privilege- which doesn’t exist between White House counsel and the president- and then fight that all through the courts and when he loses that run on the clock we get to do it all over again and make the arguement about executive privilege. Pretty much a guarantee to run the clock out on this until June of 2021

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Didn’t the Supreme Court in 1974 settle a dispute beteeen Nixon and Congress by ordering the release of the White House tapes? Does Justice contend that 9-0 decision wad incorrect?

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That would be the Department of Just Us wholly owned subsidiary of Wm. Barr, Esq., not the Department of Justice.

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