Donald Trump's Plan To Dismiss Congress - Permanently
The Constitution doesn't give him the authority to do so, but he'll try anyway
Last week, during a meeting with Senate Majority Leader John Thune and House Speaker Mike Johnson, Trump raised the possibility of using recess appointments to install some of his Cabinet appointees if they have trouble getting through Congress.
This isn’t the first time he and his team have mentioned this part of their plan, but it is the most recent.
"This remains a significant possibility in the eyes of the White House," one of the people familiar with the meetings said, emphasizing this is not expected to happen this week, but remains under active consideration.
No President has ever exercised this authority, and reading the language of the Constitution it’s clear the framers only intended it to be used in highly extreme cases when there was some disagreement between the two chambers:
Article II, Section. 3.
He shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on extraordinary Occasions, convene both Houses, or either of them, and in Case of Disagreement between them, with Respect to the Time of Adjournment, he may adjourn them to such Time as he shall think proper; he shall receive Ambassadors and other public Ministers; he shall take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed, and shall Commission all the Officers of the United States.
While we do currently live in uncertain and chaotic times, we do so because Trump and his sycophants are manufacturing the crises we face. In reality, the economy is strong, the labor market is robust, and there is plenty of fuel to build affordable housing, provide childcare to workers, and make real progress toward Universal Healthcare if the GOP actually cared about such things.
Instead, they’re far more worried about deporting as many brown people as possible to validate their racist and fascist worldview.
With Pete Hegseth helming the Pentagon, Trump has someone in power over the military who would gleefully use servicemembers to further his fascist agenda.
Let’s say Trump orders Congress to adjourn indefinitely and members of Congress refuse to comply. Hegseth can send troops over to the Capital building to have them forcibly removed, and he would do so at the drop of a hat.
Those same troops could keep members out of the Capital so they could not reconvene, and Hegseth would happily prevent the people who confirmed him from attempting to remove him.
Trump is being led by Heritage Foundation extremists who have allies on SCOTUS who will back up any outlandish decision he makes with rulings that solidify a unitary executive.
My question is whether or not Congress is aware of the danger posed by the people they just put in power, and if they’ll have the gumption to stand up.
How much twisting and turning is too much for the U.S. Congress?
I believe we’ll find out quite soon.
I have to hand it to you, that permanent adjournment part was not on my bingo card. I had the recess appointments basically checked off already. But permanent adjournment I did not have.