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Regarding Trump and the Constitution

Few things are as gratifying as seeing a confirmed “lefty” appeal to the authority of the Constitution.

I was immensely pleased to see that my letter of March 26 inspired Gabrielle Kenton to dust off a copy and check out the limits to presidential authority. After this review, she identified he was acting in an authoritarian manner, but failed to mention how, other than the cause of the moment, fighting a war without Congressional approval.

I wonder if she is aware that the last war formally declared by Congress was World War II?

All the Democratic wars — for example, the 1914 Vera Cruz occupation, Korea, Vietnam and Bosnia — were never declared by Congress and, hence, apparently unconstitutional.

Ah well, done and gone. But how about a few other unconstitutional activities. Where is giving money to NPR sanctioned in the Constitution? Planned Parenthood? Student loans? EBT? On and on it goes.

It begins to look like very selective outrage. If President Trump does it, find out how it is illegal, to the point where a lawsuit claiming discontinuing payments to NPR was unconstitutional.

If a Democratic President does it, contort and obfuscate and say, “All good.”

Do you truly care about the Constitution and whether current policy is aligned with it? If so, you have a lot of protesting work ahead of you.

Much of what our government does today would astonish those who signed their names in 1787. Or do you just hate the current president and want to derail his choices? His constitutionally delegated choices?

Charles Clark

Hilo