Over reach of regulatory agencies--the deep state

NPR--liberal:  "The U.S. Supreme Court wrestled Wednesday with the implications of overturning a nearly 40-year-old precedent that could weaken the way the federal government regulates, well, everything.

A system in place for decades has governed how judges review curbs on air and water pollution, gun safety measures and workplace protections. But conservative legal foundations and business groups have urged the court to scrap that system, arguing it hands too much power to federal agencies at the expense of Congress and the judiciary.

Several of the court's conservative justices expressed deep skepticism of the current framework. But all three left-leaning justices offered support for keeping the system in place. And Justice Amy Coney Barrett, a Trump appointee, raised concerns about "inviting a flood of litigation" if they reversed course."

Supreme Court hears arguments in a case that could weaken federal rulemaking : NPR

Daily Signal--conservative: "The U.S. Supreme Court took up two cases Wednesday regarding the regulatory authority of the federal government as fishermen argue that government agencies are exceeding their authority by imposing costly mandates.

In Loper Bright Enterprises vs. Raimondo and Relentless Inc. vs. Department of Commerce, fishermen are challenging administrative law, dubbed “Chevron deference,” that asserts that when a federal statute is ambiguous about specific regulations, courts should defer to the implementing agency’s interpretation of the law.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration implemented a rule in 2020 forcing fishing companies (such as Relentless Inc.) to pay for federal observers to monitor the fishermen at sea on their own fishing boats—even though Congress did not give the agency authority to do so."

https://www.dailysignal.com/2024/01/17/supreme-court-hears-fishermens-challenges-to-costly-regulatory-authority-of-feds/?

NJB opinion:  Both Democrats and Republicans lean heavily on long-time bureaucrats to carry out their agendas, however Democrats also have the power of academe in their corner. Few conservatives can even get hired at major, powerful universities, let along make it through P & T. That limits their ability to get past the gatekeepers at the journals and print media. So we have the revolving door of CDC, FAA, EPA, FTC, FCC, FDA CFPB, etc. plus all the "tools" and "acts" and lobbyists and union leaders who control these groups. The liberal media are screaming that the SCOTUS could "gut" or "strangle" these agencies. Without ever mentioning the constitution. Or what's happening to us, the citizen/voter.

A friend says we need to pray about the SCOTUS decision: I'm all for prayer; Paul tells us to pray without ceasing. But it also wouldn't hurt Christians to be informed. What if each young mothers Bible Study group chose to look at just ONE agency/act /regulation that the federal, state and county governments are doing about foster care, trafficking of children, Head Start, safety of playgrounds, SNAP, school nutrition, and so forth. There are probably thousands. Sometimes church involvement is limited to applying for grants which in turn puts the government in the middle of the church via its budget.

She's not going to get over it

A retired teacher friend on Facebook whom I met 14 years ago as a blogger (I've never met her face to face and don't even know where she lives) has thrown down the gauntlet.  She's not going to get over Trump's election, she plans to rechannel her efforts to her representatives and senators to make sure they are voting as she wishes.  I left her a comment.

"That's probably a good idea. That's what conservatives did in 2009 and managed to get a number of seats changed in 2010 and 2012, although Republicans in Congress ignored them. At the state level Republicans control the majority of state houses probably as a result of the so-called Tea Party and Glenn Beck's 9-12 groups and reading clubs. The average American voter is running on what they learned in civics classes in high school if they even teach that in the 21st century. In classes I attended in 2010 we learned about the differences and importance of Supreme Court picks to determine if we had a real constitution or a plastic constitution. Also learned some history which has been pretty much covered up since even the 1920s. What a shock to some people to learn the origins of the KKK, lynchings and Jim Crow (Democrat party) and that it was the Republican administrations that led the fight for Civil Rights even in the 1960s. The biggest advantage was meeting like minded, lovely people after being demonized for so long. Some things were discouraging, like learning how committees at the local level for both parties control just about everything and don't want starry eyed newcomers upsetting their comfortable spots. You'll find out the same in your city, county and state elections. Our government at all levels is only quasi-representative. We elect a board at our church, or elect a school board, or a library board, or we answer to a team at work, and so forth. If we don't participate at some level of committee or board, our voices aren't heard. By the time of the election, it's too late. Hillary Clinton won the popular vote in the 2008 primaries against Barack Obama. But the popular vote didn't matter--it was number of primaries."