President Obama is working hard to expand and solidify his “regulatory footprint” in his last days in office, according to a new report from Fox News.
The executive branch is set to enact more than 3,700 new regulations this year (a record) and expand the Federal Register to exceed 87,000 pages (also a record). The President has been stymied by a Republican Congress from his first days in office, so he’s adopted and will continue to use his “pen and phone” strategy all the way until inauguration day.
Meanwhile, President-elect Donald Trump said that businesses more often cite overbearing regulations as the primary hindrance to growth. Taxes they expect; ridiculous, expensive regulations they do not.
But while the next President will no doubt work to reduce the nation’s regulatory burden, the entrenched bureaucratic class in D.C. will outlast his efforts. That’s why an Article V Convention of States is so necessary.
A Convention of States can propose constitutional amendments that permanently limit the power of the federal government to enact regulations. Congress -- not a group of non-elected bureaucrats -- is the rightful lawmaking body in our constitutional republic. Amendments could be written that clarify this principle and ensure that each major rule or law is approved by the people’s representatives.
