[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 41 (Wednesday, March 12, 2014)]
[House]
[Page H2307]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
THE ENFORCE ACT
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from
Missouri (Mrs. Wagner) for 5 minutes.
Mrs. WAGNER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the ENFORCE Act.
When crafting the timeless document that is our Constitution, the
Founding Fathers emphasized the need to prevent the emergence of an
imperial monarch. In their wisdom, they gave Congress the power to make
laws and tasked the President with the responsibility to enforce those
laws--not just the laws he agrees with or the laws that are politically
convenient, but every law.
Mr. Speaker, President Obama has not lived up to this responsibility.
By picking and choosing which laws are worthy of enforcement, this
administration is undermining the very foundation of our representative
democracy.
The ENFORCE Act seeks to restore the balance of powers that the
Framers of our Constitution envisioned. The Constitution grants
Congress--not the President--the power to make the laws. Mr. Speaker,
this is why I support the ENFORCE Act, to provide Congress with the
ability to push back against the Obama administration's executive
overreach.
____________________