treemaidengeek:

This is a big deal. Bigger and more mainstream organisations are standing up and speaking out.

The American Bar Association 2/10/25 statement rebuking Trump’s administration & emphasizing the importance of the Constitutional balance of powers

summary of daily political news by legislative historian and reporter-analyst Heather Cox Richardson including a synopsis of the ABA statement and an equally impactful NYT op-ed by 5 previous Secretaries of the Treasury, warning that DOGE’s access of the Treasury systems could cause “irreparable harm.” Excerpt:

“It is not for the Treasury Department or the administration to decide which of our congressionally approved commitments to fulfill and which to cast aside. […] While significant data privacy, cybersecurity and national security threats are gravely concerning, the constitutional issues are perhaps even more alarming.” [They reiterated] the key principle outlined in the Constitution: “The legislative branch has the sole authority to pass laws that determine where and how federal dollars should be spent.”

My longer abridgement of H Cox Richardson’s quotes from & synopsis of the ABA statement below:

Today [2/10/25] the American Bar Association took a stand against the Trump administration’s “wide-scale affronts to the rule of law itself” as it attacks the Constitution and tries to dismantle departments and agencies created by Congress “without seeking the required congressional approval to change the law.”

“The American Bar Association supports the rule of law,” president of the organization William R. Bay said in a statement. “That means holding governments, including our own, accountable.” He cheered on the courts that “are treating these cases with the urgency they require.”

“[R]efusing to spend money appropriated by Congress under the euphemism of a pause is a violation of the rule of law and suggests that the executive branch can overrule the other two co-equal branches of government,” Bay wrote. “This is contrary to the constitutional framework and not the way our democracy works. The money appropriated by Congress must be spent in accordance with what Congress has said. It cannot be changed or paused because a newly elected administration desires it. Our elected representatives know this. The lawyers of this country know this. It must stop.”

He called on “elected representatives to stand with us and to insist upon adherence to the rule of law…. The administration cannot choose which law it will follow or ignore. These are not partisan or political issues. These are rule of law and process issues. We cannot afford to remain silent…. We urge every attorney to join us and insist that our government, a government of the people, follow the law.”