Gilmore case...Who can make laws?
Eric Cordian
emc at artifact.psychedelic.net
Tue Sep 7 11:44:46 PDT 2004
TD writes:
> This describes the "Government" as creating secret laws. But, theoretically,
> only the congress and the Senate can create new laws, correct? The Executive
> branch has never been empowered to create laws, and I'm thinking these
> travel laws did not go through congress or the senate.
The big loophole here is "regulation." Congress passes a law declaring
that some governmental organization has the power to regulate something,
and then that organization may create rules, impose financial penalties,
and send people to jail under a plethora of laws against obstructing
organizations blessed with regulatory powers.
Congress, for instance, does not make every single law governing the
behavior of pharmacutical companies, or every single law governing the use
of the radio spectrum. Instead, it makes one law granting the FDA or FCC
regulatory powers, and exercises only oversight with regards to their
subsequent behavior.
An argument that the TSA cannot make rules, even secret rules, regulating
air travel, because it is not Congress, will not pass the giggle test in
court, unless you can show that the TSA exceeded its regulatory powers.
--
Eric Michael Cordian 0+
O:.T:.O:. Mathematical Munitions Division
"Do What Thou Wilt Shall Be The Whole Of The Law"
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