Gowdy, Issa, and Goodlatte Introduce Bill to Stop Executive Overreach

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), Congressman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) today introduced the Executive Needs to Faithfully Observe and Respect Congressional Enactments of the Law (ENFORCE the Law) Act (H.R. 4138) to rein in the growing problem of executive overreach and restore balance to the separation of powers enshrined in our Constitution. The introduction of this bill follows the House Judiciary Committee’s careful consideration of the President’s failure to faithfully execute our laws. The Committee has held two hearings on this issue, at which members heard from constitutional scholars on the scope of this problem and legislative solutions. The House Judiciary Committee will markupthe ENFORCE the Law Act tomorrow at 10:30am in 2141 Rayburn.

Article II, section 3, of the U.S. Constitution declares that the President “shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed.” However, President Obama has failed on several occasions to enforce Acts of Congress that he disagrees with for policy reasons and has also stretched his regulatory authority to put in place policies Congress has refused to enact. While President Obama is not the first to stretch presidential powers beyond their constitutional limits, executive overreach has accelerated at an alarming rate under his Administration.