Bush's Midnight Regulations

The 43rd president may set yet another dubious record.

Veronique de Rugy from the February 2009 issue

(Page 2 of 2)

After Inauguration Day the midnight period ends. The new president can start the process of making his own rules, but that takes years. Or he can try to reverse the midnight regulations by using a law that has been successfully deployed just once. The Congressional Review Act creates an expedited process for Congress to repeal, by a simple majority vote in each house, any regulation it doesn’t like. The president then signs the bill, and the rules are reversed.

Given the Democratic majority, that tactic might work this time around. Now is the time to see whether Democrats really are any different from Republicans.

Contributing Editor Veronique de Rugy is a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University.

Comments

|1.14.09 @ 12:33PM|#

That image is begging for someone to PhotoShop a doob between his fingers.

|1.14.09 @ 12:50PM|#

No, no, no! The Bush administration deregulated everything and wrecked the economy in their free market zeal! Predatory capitalism!

Michael Ejercito|1.14.09 @ 12:55PM|#

What propensity for regulation?

ktc2|1.14.09 @ 1:05PM|#

Great more of Bush's theocratic bullshit for future enjoyment.

Colonel_Angus|1.14.09 @ 1:15PM|#

This is like the third Reason article about "midnight regulations", and I still don't see the fucking problem here. For once Bush is reducing some of the government's over regulation, at least with some of these policies, although others like the pharmacist bullshit are not legitimate functions of government. If we're talking about records, Obama could very likely break Bush's record when he leaves office, especially with regulation on financial stuff, health insurance, and enviro shit.

|1.14.09 @ 2:26PM|#

isn't it correct to say that all these regulations that are being approved by the president have all been previously approved by both the senate and Congress. As I recall the president can't make law he only signs off on them. Thus lets also blame the Senate and Congress for these laws. If the president can make any law he wants then the auto bailout that so many of you have touted as illigal is also legal. Now I don't like any of these laws either but lets have consistancy in our hate.

|1.14.09 @ 2:30PM|#

isn't it correct to say that all these regulations that are being approved by the president have all been previously approved by both the senate and Congress.

Not, strictly, approved by them, but certainly authorized by them, in theory.

And, of course, subject to rejection by them as well. Not to mention by the new President. And, in theory of course, by the courts, as being ultra vires or simply unconstitutional.

Not that any of that ever happens.

Crystal Methodist|1.14.09 @ 2:40PM|#

Sure! Let the market decide how much arsenic should be contained in drinking water!

What could possibly go wrong?

Lefiti|1.14.09 @ 2:49PM|#

You market fundamentalists are amazing. Substitute "copulation with witches" for "regulation" and what you write would not be rearkable in 17th-century Salem. Fuckng lunatics.

|1.14.09 @ 3:17PM|#

No, no, no! The Bush administration deregulated everything and wrecked the economy in their free market zeal! Predatory capitalism!


Lefiti is absolutely right! Your cultist fanatical attitude blinds you to the truth. The above statement was said in sarcasm. I'm not stupid, you guys. Anyway, I need a good counter argument for Obama's fiscal stimulus plan and you guys are my favorite antagonists. This website helped me get an A last time...so tolerating your silly ideas is so totally worth it.

Anyway, it's like really immature to think that deregulatory policies weren't at fault in the current mess. How do you think Obmama's new stimulus can be combined with better regulation to get us back on the right track?

Jeff P|1.14.09 @ 3:21PM|#

I believe "Midnight Regulations" was an Ohio Players album...

economist|1.14.09 @ 5:13PM|#

Lefiti,
I'm sorry your self-stimulation video didn't get any views, but don't take it out on the rest of us.

economist|1.14.09 @ 5:14PM|#

Crystal Methodist,
Want to know something really scary?

There's already arsenic in your (regulated) drinking water.

This is because trace amounts of most elements can be found pretty much anywhere.

Latifah|1.14.09 @ 6:39PM|#

Really, this is getting repetitive, guys. Just replace your "well-reasoned comments," with "knee-jerk insanity that is bizarrely presented as being above mindless ideology," and you're no different than Lefiti. That's the only difference I see.

|1.14.09 @ 7:44PM|#

"That image is begging for someone to PhotoShop a doob between his fingers."

Or just a caption "INVISIBLE DOOB"

|1.15.09 @ 12:44PM|#

I'd like to see a President who has the nads to do the ultimate house cleaning on taking office:
Get rid of all of 'em.
No special interest (environment, etc.) could claim you've got a callous attitude towards 'em... because you've burned ALL of them. ANARCHY! :p

|1.15.09 @ 4:28PM|#

How do you think Obmama's new stimulus can be combined with better regulation to get us back on the right track?

Is that your current school assignment?

DannyK|1.15.09 @ 7:10PM|#

You could make an argument that every President should spend time trying to overturn his predecessor's midnight regs -- the only way to counteract this is to make it pointless by overturning as much as possible.