Quote:
Originally Posted by Pete F.
You think Trump*, the man with “absolute power”, who thinks he can decide when and how states can use the powers not assigned to any branch of the federal government, has a clue what the Constitution says?
I'm guessing that in the case of a national emergency which obviously spread beyond the borders of the several states, he might have some overriding authority. Whether he was right or wrong about it, he did fall back on the federated solution and left it up to the states with guidelines. I'm sure he has "some" clue what the Constitution says. Maybe not a lot. Maybe a lot. I don't know. Apparently you think you do. He does have legal advisers to correct him if necessary. Didn't amount to a crisis or any problem other than opportunity to try to bash him. You do seem to think it's a big deal.
I think you’re on the right track but that big money and corporations have taken over the political process in the last 50 years, taking control of everything that is required and profitable while leaving the loss leaders to government.
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I think there is a historical process beginning in the Progressive era in which the Federal Government began reigning in the power of big business, the so-called Robber Barons, resulting in a growing regulatory environment and Supreme Court cases that started to give the Fed growing bits of power.
That mushroomed into the FDR administration's full assault on private enterprise and the creation of a large and continuously growing, since then, administrative state which was the first truly massive step in abandoning the constitutional order and replacing it with ideologically Progressive government.
Johnson's Great Society was the next big leap in that direction. And the Clinton and Obama Admins. took it to the edge of complete transformation.
The growing national regulatory state made it progressively more difficult for smaller businesses to function and compete with larger ones so there was an expanding consolidation of many smaller entities, manufacturers (including auto), insurance companies, banks, medical hospitals, grocery store chains, franchised restaurant chains,etc., into bigger nationwide rather than local ones. Wage regulations, workers rights, workplace safety, and a plethora of other government regulations made it harder and harder to stay small and far easier to corporatize into larger entities.
I think corporatization is more a defense against a powerful centralized government, which is less and less reigned in by constitutional limitations, than it is a taking control of that government.
As well, it is easier, more advantageous, for the Central Government to regulate and keep track of fewer, larger, more cooperative corporations, than many thousands of smaller independent ones. It is also easier to get big campaign contributions. It's a symbiotic relationship between big government and big business.
When companies like Walmart or Microsoft were too independent thinking in their practices, big gov made some threats and a more comfortable relationship was made. Government regulatory power has been an advantage for large corporations over smaller business, but also has been a bit of a Damocles Sword as well.
The relationship is somewhat fascistic. Those who think that Progressive government will save them from fascism have not been paying attention.
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