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5 days ago | 
palmbeachpost.com | Kevin Wagner
Question: Can a U.S. President suspend the "writ of habeas corpus"? Answer: The writ of habeas corpus is a safeguard against unlawful detention. It requires the government to justify, under the law, holding someone in custody. The U.S. Constitution mentions only a few rights explicitly in its original text, and habeas corpus is one of them.
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1 week ago | 
floridatoday.com | Kevin Wagner
Since the 1930s, dozens of proposed Constitutional amendments have been introduced to limit debt spending, but none have come close to passing. Show Caption Hide Caption Disabled protesters removed from House committee hearingDisabled demonstrators protesting a Republican proposal to cut benefits were forced to leave a House committee hearing and arrested. Question: Has Congress ever been "required" to balance the budget?
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1 week ago | 
palmbeachpost.com | Kevin Wagner
Question: Has Congress ever been "required" to balance the budget? Answer: The U.S. Constitution gives Congress a great deal of leeway over the spending of money. As we have discussed before, Congress has the power of the purse, which means it has the power to collect (tax) and spend (appropriate) money. When Congress spends more than has been collected in taxes the U.S. has to borrow the money.
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2 weeks ago | 
usatoday.com | Kevin Wagner
Question: Should there be a maximum age for elected officials? Answer: If it seems like members of the our government from presidents to legislators seem to be getting older, it is largely because they have. Earlier this year, Donald Trump, at age 78, surpassing Joe Biden by 5 months, became the oldest person to be sworn in as U.S. President. Historically, the majority of U.S. presidents, including George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, were elected in their fifties.
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3 weeks ago | 
yahoo.com | Kevin Wagner
Question: Why doesn’t Congress act more as a check on the President? Answer: Political science has spent a fair amount of time studying how and why members of the U.S. Congress make the decisions that they do. One of the most significant early books on the issue was written by David Mayhew in 1974 titled, “The Electoral Connection.” Mayhew essentially argued that you can understand the choices made by members of Congress when viewing it through their desire to be re-elected.
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3 weeks ago | 
palmbeachpost.com | Kevin Wagner
Question: Why doesn’t Congress act more as a check on the President? Answer: Political science has spent a fair amount of time studying how and why members of the U.S. Congress make the decisions that they do. One of the most significant early books on the issue was written by David Mayhew in 1974 titled, “The Electoral Connection.” Mayhew essentially argued that you can understand the choices made by members of Congress when viewing it through their desire to be re-elected.
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1 month ago | 
palmbeachpost.com | Kevin Wagner
Question: Can the president remove heads of independent agencies, such as the Federal Reserve and U.S. Postal Service? Answer: The question of whether the president can simply remove the heads of federal agencies has become more complicated. The answer used to be straightforward, and depended on the legislation that created the agency or position. There is usually a process in the law which explains how and when an agency head can be removed, and under what circumstances.
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1 month ago | 
yahoo.com | Kevin Wagner
Question: Can the president remove heads of independent agencies, such as the Federal Reserve and U.S. Postal Service? Answer: The question of whether the president can simply remove the heads of federal agencies has become more complicated. The answer used to be straightforward, and depended on the legislation that created the agency or position. There is usually a process in the law which explains how and when an agency head can be removed, and under what circumstances.
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1 month ago | 
yahoo.com | Kevin Wagner
Question: Can Congress stop tariffs? Answer: While I have written about tariffs before, questions about trade and regulation are understandably filling up my email box. In the current environment, it is easy to forget that the regulation of trade in general is a power that was given to Congress. Under the U.S. Constitution, Congress directly holds the power to impose and collect tariffs.
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1 month ago | 
palmbeachpost.com | Kevin Wagner
Question: Can Congress stop tariffs? Answer: While I have written about tariffs before, questions about trade and regulation are understandably filling up my email box. In the current environment, it is easy to forget that the regulation of trade in general is a power that was given to Congress. Under the U.S. Constitution, Congress directly holds the power to impose and collect tariffs.
