With Democrats unable to successfully pass large bills with their party’s wish list items in them, congressional members are looking to pressure President Joe Biden into using his executive authority to enact big chunks of the party’s far-left agenda, according to left-leaning Punchbowl News.
Punchbowl acknowledged that the Democrats showed different “level[s] of frustration with how stymied the legislative process has become on Capitol Hill,” with the midterm elections getting closer and closer every time they fail to pass chunks of the party’s agenda.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), chair of the far-left Congressional Progressive Caucus, told the outlet that next week she would release a list of items they want to see done by executive orders, so “everything” that they want to do can get done before the midterms.
“We’re gonna make sure that we do everything we can to cut costs for American consumers. And that means that we are going to look at executive actions, and we’re going to look at legislation,” Jayapal said. “I don’t want anyone to think that we believe that executive action is better than legislation.”
House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, a close Biden ally, said executive actions work, putting his salt behind the idea. By backing the concept of executive actions, Clyburn shows just how much his party is in trouble since he is the third highest-ranking House Democrat member.
“I did have a very extensive discussion on the extent to which the president may intercede on [his priorities] with executive orders… Before the 13th Amendment was passed … slaves were freed in 1863 by executive order,” Clyburn said. “So executive orders do have the power.”
“Executive orders do have the power,” he added. “I’d be very pleased if [Biden’s] legal staff could do some research … to see whether that or not executive order can be used to accomplish some” of their agenda items.
Rep. Raúl Ruiz (D-CA), chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, told Punchbowl Biden should lift the refugee cap by executive order, claiming that his caucus has more ideas for Biden. “The CHC has developed a strategy on executive orders, and we’re going to start negotiating with the administration very soon,” he said.
Freshman member Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-NM) said she also wants to see executive action on two key immigration issues: expanding the DACA and Temporary Protected Status (TPS) programs. [The administration is] at a point where they are in the rulemaking and where they can reauthorize DACA and adjust it, so it is applicable to today’s kids,” she said.
Jacob Bliss is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow him on Twitter.
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