"The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;"
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"To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offences against the Law of Nations"
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"To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water"
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"To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces
To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions"
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"To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof"
http://www.archives.gov/national-archives-experience/charters/constitution_transcript.htmlCongress has far more power granted to it in the Constitution than the President does. In effect, they have FULL power because if they don't like the form of the government as it stands (CIA organized under the President, for example) they can change it via the legislature.
Here's what it says about the President:
"He shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by Law: but the Congress may by Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments."
So Congress has the power to "assign" the appointment of inferior officers where-ever they want.
The idea that the President has all the power is nonsense cooked up by Cheney. The Constitution intended the office of President to be a weak one for the very reason we see today - the tendency to usurp power.
Congress has the right to create the rules of government. So if they decide that it's against the Rules for Bush to put the CIA in the Executive Branch, he's tough out of luck. If Congress wants to, they can put the CIA under the Supreme Court. If they wanted to, they could put ALL Departments under the Supreme Court and Bush would have to try to come up with his own government with no funds from Congress.
Note also that the Constitution granted CONGRESS the power to call up the National Guard, so Bush's recent move to usurp that power to himself over the objection of the states is unconstitutional. But it's a Bush initiative, so we knew that.
There's nothing in the Constitution that says the only departments that can exist are those under the Executive. There's nothing that prevents Congress from forming their own departments.
Congress also has the power to:
"To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations"
So, in theory, they could tell Bush he has no power to interfere with oil in the Middle East (as a matter of commerce) since that falls under the Constitutional powers of Congress. And they could transfer the Commerce Department under the Control of Congress.
I'd like to see some of Bush's worst abuses of Presidential power challenged. I'd like to see him continue his "stay the course" stubborn attitude if he gets the unpleasant ultimatum that he could have ALL his powers removed through a simple reorganization of government and defunding of all the President's initiatives. Then they can kick him out of the White House and force him to go live somewhere else:
"The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory or other Property belonging to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to Prejudice any Claims of the United States, or of any particular State."
And since Congress has the power over all property belonging to the US, they can SELL Air Force One and Two, and deny the President and his pupeteer funding to buy a new one.