When every day is presidents' day

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List of players: When every day is presidents' day – would Biden be the real favorite? – List of litigants against the growing urgency of Trump – Audible: Do you like fries of freedom? – Tudder for a udder

WHEN EVERY DAY IS THE DAY OF THE PRESIDENTS
We are at the heart of a much needed and long-awaited discussion on executive power.

But do not expect it to last.

Over the past seven decades, Americans have learned to live without the little republicanism that was so much part of our foundation and the first century and a half of our history.

Think of the long slide in the abomination that we call "Presidents' Day". The party is always «George Washington"Anniversary", according to the law, after surviving a standardization effort of observance as a generic honor for all presidents.

Abraham Lincoln, born February 12, has never had federal compliance, but most states have had holidays for the great emancipator. Washington was born on February 22nd. This created a kind of vacation block in February, which was useless for schools and employers.

Over time, confusion between federal and federal compliance and pressure from advertisers looking for a standard way to repair mattresses and minivans wiped out the holidays.

Certainly, it is not true that really It does not matter what we call the day for reasons of celebrations. Americans should not need to know when and how to venerate our two greatest leaders. In addition, the ski weekends …

What matters is that the generic holidays are an unfortunate reflection of the royalist tension that has so pervaded American political thought.

There is no doubt that in our republic, the president has many powers of a king of limited duration. The commander-in-chief's power to defend himself against an attack or to forgive a criminal is truly masterful.

In fact, the federalists feared, in support of the Constitution, that the legislature was too powerful and that the executive was too weak to do its job. Disappointed with decisive action capacity, executive power would become a kind of ceremonial state chief, a hood ornament for the country. In the meantime, Congress would be unable to provide decisive answers to "huge" national emergencies.

It turned out that it's exactly the opposite. Congress can rarely act, it's true. But the answer of what is supposed to be the preeminent branch has been to give up its own authority. For decades and under the control of both parties, the Congress has turned into a lion pipsqueak of our government.

The idea behind venerating Washington and Lincoln is that they were special men who, at crucial moments, led the country out of the dangerous situation to take pride in it. And in both cases, who had the opportunity to be demagogues or to hold on to power, they instead handed these authorities over to the representatives of the people.

But the reason their sacrifice is so remarkable is that it is so rare. And it's so rare because, as the verdict of 10,000 years of history makes clear, the people generally do not want power. Autocracy and highly centralized power have not been the norm in the history of mankind because of autocratic efforts, but also by the will of the people.

Being a citizen of a republic is a harder duty than being the subject of a king or a queen. You must make decisions. You must know the facts. You must participate.

The US imperial presidency has grown and grown to the point where we are currently debating whether the current oval office occupant can even ignore the focus of congressional domestic spending. The fact that we even have a debate on the subject tells us how much we have fallen.

And in this case, as in any usurpation of the executive that took place before, the executive reports abuses that have been committed and that have been allowed to stand before a ridiculous Congress. We will not tackle the cause of Congressional madness here, except to say that the individual ambitions of career legislators have made the elaboration of legislation rather absurd.

We landed, and that's fine for the current presidency and the one that preceded it. all seems focused on the man in the White House. Day after day, focus on one human being. As if a president could be so powerful …

Regardless of the sign they hung on the window of the mattress store today, it does not matter, but we would argue that separating ourselves from the individual observance of men was a step closer to a monarchical America.

The truth that most of us would probably not like to confront, is that America likes it better as well.

The rulebook: fantasy
"The representatives of the people, gathered in a popular assembly, sometimes seem to believe that they are the people themselves and betray strong symptoms of impatience and disgust at the slightest sign of any kind. Opposition of another district … " – Alexander Hamilton, Federalist No. 71

TIME OUT: UNDER INFLUENCE
Fashion criticism Vanessa Friedman NYT: "What does it mean that your greatest legacy is that of" taste "? I'm thinking about this since the last news from Lee RadziwillDeath came, with the flood of photographs from every corner of social media representing Mrs. Radziwill throughout her life – in white corduroy and a blue t-shirt with boat neck, bunting bouffant and tunics; in pink with her sister, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, at the top of an elephant during a tour in India; in a white and silver beaded dress dancing with Truman Capote at his black and white ball; in a black patent python jacket – all of them used to pay tribute to his extraordinary "taste". I've been thinking about it since some obituaries and obituaries seem to use the word almost as a compliment of setbacks; a reference to a life that has more impact in style than in substance … But are the two really so independent of each other?

Flag on the game? – Send us an email at [email protected] with your tips, comments or questions.

Dashboard
Trump work performance
Average approval: 41.8 percent
Average disapproval: 54.4%
Net score: -12.6 points
Change since a week ago: up 3.6 points
[[[[The average includes: Fox News: 46% approve – 52% disapprove; Gallup: 44% approve – 52% unapproved; CNN: 42% approve – 54% disapprove; PCI: 39% approve – 57% disapprove; Quinnipiac University: 38% approve – 57% disapprove.]

Would the auction be the real pediment?

Politico: "Joe BidenThe biggest advance at the start of the 2020 Democratic ballot may well be a curse. Although most polls show that the former vice president hovers around 30% of Democratic votes in primary, which is good ahead of Sen, who ranks second. Bernie Sanders, two recent polls paint a completely different picture – asking whether Biden is a true favorite or just has a great reputation. These polls show that many more Democratic voters are undecided on the candidate to support, and they felt that Biden's support at a much less intimidating rate of 9 to 12%. The results are so varied in part thanks to the different methodological choices of the pollsters. But analyzing the results is more than an academic exercise: as Biden weighs in on a third presidential campaign, he and his allies need to determine whether polls one year before the primary season actually reflect Biden's true strength – and his Potential rivals must calculate if Vice President could overwhelm the lesser known challengers in 2020. "

The way of the mothers – The Boston Globe: "At the time when the 2020 Democratic primary is emerging, its leading candidates – all accomplished state women – are drawing attention to another role that they play: Mum. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Amy Klobuchar both spoke of being mothers in the opening statements of their candidacy for the presidency. senator Kamala Harris often talks about her husband's two children and the nickname they gave him: Momala. It is already apparent that women in 2020 plan to use their own experiences to adopt policies that more widely affect working mothers and parents, by firmly integrating issues such as childcare and family leave into the mainstream. policy. For example, this week, Warren is planning to put in place a universal child care and preschool education plan, which she says would be paid for by taxing the wealth of the wealthiest Americans.

Weekend loaded on the trail – "Five Democrat Senators vie for party candidacy to challenge president Donald Trump in 2020 deployed Saturday across the country to campaign and meet voters. Kamala Harris, of California, spent her second consecutive day in the state of South Carolina, at the heart of the advance poll, and held a public meeting in Columbia, the capital. Also visit the state was Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, which met about 800 voters in Greenville before going to Georgia … Cory Booker New Jersey and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York focused on New Hampshire. Booker made his first visit to this country since he joined the race earlier this month. He organized a question-and-answer session with over 400 voters in Portsmouth. Meanwhile, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota made her own unusual choice by making her first campaign by visiting Wisconsin before heading to Iowa, home of the country's first caucus. And a Democratic heavyweight who has not yet addressed his plans for 2020, former Vice President Joe Biden, made his own appearance at the Munich Security Conference. "

Bernie's team talked about his sad reputation with non-white voters – NYT: "Shortly after Senator Bernie Sanders suffered an overwhelming defeat at South Carolina's Democratic primary in 2016, the African-American advocacy team sent a memo to key campaign leaders with an urgent warning. "The margin by which we lost the African-American vote must be – at least – halved or there is simply no way to victory," the team wrote in a statement. the memo, which was reviewed by the New York Times. Mr Sanders won 14% of the vote against 86% of the vote. Hillary Clinton, according to exit polls. On seven pages, the team presented a strategy to win black voters, including the use of social media influencers and Sanders' presentation of an important speech on discrimination in a city. like St. Louis or Cincinnati. The restricted circle of Mr. Sanders did not answer.

LIST OF DISPUTES AGAINST TRUMP'S EMERGENCY GROWTH
NBC News: "California and a dozen other states have filed lawsuits against the national emergency declaration of Donald Trump, California 's Attorney General. Xavier Becerra said Monday. "The president admitted that the statement was unfounded, he admitted that there was no crisis at the border, he is now trying to steal funds legally allocated by the Congress to the various states and the people. of our states, "said Becerra. Andrea Mitchell on MSNBC Monday afternoon. "The separation of powers is being violated, we will go there and ensure that Donald Trump can not steal money from the states and people who need it, since we have paid taxpayers' money in Washington, DC, to obtain these services. & # 39; he said. … New Jersey, Colorado and Connecticut have all confirmed to NBC News that they were part of the lawsuit. "The only national emergency is the President's trafficking in lies and deception", Connecticut Attorney General William Tong says in a statement. "

Stephen Miller in the hot seat – USA Today: "In an interview on 'Fox News Sunday', the host Chris Wallace press[conseillerprincipalTrump[seniorTrumpadviser[conseillerprincipalTrump[seniorTrumpadviserStephen Miller]on the need for a national emergency, citing US customs and border patrol data showing that 80-90% of the drugs seized during smuggling attempts occurred at ports of entry. … Wallace asked Miller to cite another example among 59 times that presidents used the National Emergencies Act, invoked to obtain money that Congress had refused to appropriate. Miller did not mention such a precedent and challenged the premise of the question. "They did not refuse to appropriate it," Miller said. "They passed a law stating that the president could have that authority. It's in the law. That's the decision made by Congress, and if people do not like it, they can do it. "

PLAY-BY-PLAY
Senate Judiciary Committee to Consider McCabe's Assertions – WaPo

North Carolina Election Officials Advocate "GOP Ballot Gathering" in Unresolved House Race – Raleigh News & Observer

AUDIBLE: LIKE FRIENDS OF FREEDOM?
"I think what you eat is a very personal decision and everyone should eat what he wants to eat. It's America, that's what we believe in freedom. " – Candidate for the presidential election Cory Booker (D-NJ) explained his vegan diet to his constituents via twitter during the weekend.

WHITENING
"Chris, be serious, neither[AnciengouverneurduMassachusetts[FormerMassachusettsGov[AnciengouverneurduMassachusetts[FormerMassachusettsGovBill Weld]or[MarylandGov[MarylandGov[MarylandGov[MarylandGovLarry Hogan]can be classified as "notables". I'll put[Anciengouverneurdel'Ohio[FormerOhioGov[Anciengouverneurdel'Ohio[FormerOhioGovJohn Kasich]in this category, but I do not think he's embarking on a race which he knows he can not win. " – Lou BanasBrea California

[[[[Ed. Note: I'm not sure of your definition of notability, Mr. Banas. But the second-term governor of a state of 6 million souls seems to me to fit any reasonable definition. The main challenge is that they do not have to succeed to do their damage. In 1980, Ted Kennedy did not beat Jimmy Carter, not more than Pat Buchanan unseat George H.W. Buisson in 1992, but both campaigns certainly had consequences. That's why the Trump campaign is justifiably concerned about such a race.]

"One of the biggest walls between us, the people, and an overzealous government is the separation of powers. The founding fathers, in perhaps one of their greatest acts of genius, have divided the power of the government into three distinct branches in order to ensure that no party has any "money". absolute power. Declaring an "emergency", after the president has already given the congress the opportunity to act and acted, creates a huge breach in this wall of protection. Obtaining short-term funds for the construction of a boundary wall in exchange for the constitutional protection wall created by the separation of powers is neither conservative nor wise. Liberals often believe that the end justifies the means. I hope the Conservatives do not get lost in this dangerous way. " – Steve Bartlett, Greenville, S.C.

[[[[Ed. Note: The Constitution always gives rise to a strange new respect for the party. It could be called hypocrisy, but it would be too narrow a vision. In fact, our charter has in mind to keep majorities from turning into rollers. In this case, it may be logical that the party outside of power is more respectful of the Constitution.]

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TESTER FOR A PATTAGE

Reuters: "A Tinder-inspired app helps farmers find potential partners for their livestock. Called 'Tudder' – a mix of Tinder dating apps and udder, it allows farmers to hit right on livestock that looks like them. They are then directed to a page of the SellMyLivestock website where they can browse more images and animal data before deciding whether to buy or not. Valuable information is available on issues such as milk yield and protein content, or calving potential, said Doug Bairner, CEO of Hectare Agritech, which manages SellMyLivestock (SML) and Graindex, a flatbed online agritech trading platform based in the United Kingdom. "Matching livestock online is even easier than doing it with humans because there is a huge amount of data behind these wonderful animals that predict what their offspring will be," he said.

AND NOW, A WORD FROM CHARLES …
"Nixon could indeed have committed crimes. But the sight of a former president on trial and perhaps even in jail was something Ford would not let through the country. " – Charles Krauthammer (1950-2018) writing in the Washington Post on July 27, 2017.

Chris Stirewalt is the political editor of Fox News. Liz Friden contributed to this report. Want a report at halftime FOX News in your inbox everyday? Register here.