We will be the first to admit that we have had our druthers about some of the past votes that Congressman Labrador has made, but he appears to have retrieved his conservative pants from the cleaners and has shown a rather solid streak of proper conservative voting in the past year. It is unfortunate that our other congressman from the eastern part of our state is unable to find his way home to Idaho’s conservative values. Instead he continues to pander to the establishment Republicans with a business as usual attitude and a total disregard for the people he serves. Whether Donald Trump gets elected or not, it will be of primary importance to keep Congressman Labrador in Washington representing the conservative citizens of Idaho.
This will be Congressman Labrador’s fourth term and he is gaining longevity and respect especially with the conservative group he works with in the House to keep our establishment rhinos in line. If Trump is elected, Congressman Labrador should be in a prime position to become the chair of an important House committee giving him more power to help Trump enact important legislation. If Hillary should win, it will be even more important to keep our congressman in place so as not to lose our say as a conservative state when it comes to critical votes being cast on important issues that affect Idaho and our country. We can’t depend on Mike Simpson anymore because he is only interested in getting reelected and giving up more of our state lands to the federal government. Labrador, on the other hand, has actually been working with a process to show that our state can handle our land and should have more control and say over its management.
We would like to thank Congressman Labrador for the many meetings he has held around the state to inform his constituents about what is happening in Washington and to allow them time to ask pertinent questions about critical issues that concern them. I had the pleasure of attending one of those meetings and will tell you that it was comforting to see him answering questions honestly and with genuine concern. We hope he will take us seriously about the need for him to stay in Washington as he is the only representation Idaho has since we know Mike Simpson is a member of the Rhino herd and has turned on his constituents way too many times. Labrador has earned the confidence of Idaho’s citizens and we believe he should be given a fourth term to continue his efforts to work with other conservatives in the House to be the voice of reason and the balance of power. As for Congressman Simpson we are hoping he will either retire or be offered a lucrative position as the head of the National Dental Society to get him out of our hair and give us an opportunity to elect a true conservative to the 2nd congressional district.
Below you will find a letter from Congressman Labrador concerning the separation of powers which we urge you all to read as we are having a similar discussion in our own state with H.J.R. 5 which will be on the ballot this November. It is important that you vote in favor of this proposed amendment to our state constitution. We need to keep our executive, judicial branches and bureaucratic agencies in check. The only way to do that is to provide our representatives with the ability to revise rules that are not in tune with the original intent of legislation that has been passed.
Restoring the Separation of Powers
By Congressman Raul Labrador
Among the dirty little secrets I’ve learned as your congressman is that Congress willingly surrenders its constitutional authority to the executive branch. The result is a vastly expanded federal bureaucracy that controls decisions that should be made by Congress.
This attack on liberty isn’t new, though President Obama has refined executive overreach with his actions regulating the economy, environment, immigration and even public restrooms. It’s well past time for Congress to reassert its constitutional authority.
I have some good news. Last month, the House passed the Separation of Powers Restoration Act. I am an original cosponsor of H.R. 4768 and was proud to support the bill in the Judiciary Committee and the House floor.
The bill would overturn a 1984 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Chevron U.S.A. v. Natural Resources Defense Council. The Court held that when Congress does not directly speak to an issue in a law, the courts must defer to federal regulators’ interpretation of that law — as long as the agency’s view is reasonable.
The decision has shifted power to an already overgrown administrative state, as judges across America apply “Chevron deference” to federal agencies and their mountains of rules and regulations governing our lives. In 1960, the Code of Federal Regulations contained 22,877 pages; at the end of 2014, it reached 175,268 pages.
Making things worse, Chevron encourages lazy lawmaking. Given license to avoid the tough choices of clearly worded policy, Congress passes vague laws and leaves the interpretation to unelected bureaucrats.
The Separation of Powers Restoration Act would revive the robust judicial review intended by the Founding Fathers. Courts would start fresh when reviewing congressional intent, rather than surrender to agency interpretation.
This issue is at the very heart of our republic. Arguing for ratification of the Constitution, James Madison wrote in 1788: “The accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary, in the same hands…may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny.”
In 1803, in the unanimous Marbury v. Madison decision setting the precedent for judicial review, Chief Justice John Marshall wrote that “it is emphatically the province and duty of the Judicial Department to say what the law is.”
Chevron, combined with the Auer v. Robbins decision in 1997, has turned those foundational principles on their heads. With the passage of the Separation of Powers Restoration Act, the House has taken an important first step to rein in a reckless executive branch while restoring the constitutional authority of Congress and the courts.
