On Wednesday’s broadcast of CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT) argued that the difference between President Donald Trump’s birthright citizenship order and attempts to expand executive power under President Joe Biden is Trump’s order isn’t a close call legally and “If they ignore rulings of the court, if they slag the courts in a way that further erodes their confidence, I think that’s the big difference.”
Co-host Andrew Ross Sorkin said, “[T]here are presidents that have done things that have gone beyond the law, and part of what they do is they try to stretch the law. And the question is, how the American citizenry is supposed to think about that.”
Himes responded, “So, every president tries to expand their presidential power and gets knocked back by the Supreme Court or by the Congress. What’s different about this is that this isn’t even close. Again, I’m not a lawyer, but I can read the first line of the 14th Amendment and tell that the President’s birthright citizenship [order] is contrary to the Constitution. And the other thing that’s different is, traditionally, presidents have said, okay, the Supreme Court said what I did is unconstitutional, yes, sir, I abide by that ruling. What we’re hearing from the MAGA people, the Trump people, is that, who are these courts, anyway? That gets you into kind of constitutional crisis land. If they ignore rulings of the court, if they slag the courts in a way that further erodes their confidence, I think that’s the big difference.”
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
