[The President of the United States]shall take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed.... ~ U. S. Constitution, Art. I, section 3.

Many people (including people on the right) are angry with the President for not issuing an Executive Order suspending enforcement of the Jones Act. Think of it: The President of the United States, constitutionally charged to see that the laws are faithfully executed, is to issue an order suspending the faithful execution of certain laws, as convenient.

Of course, the rationale is that this is an emergency of the sort which necessitates the suspension of this law, maybe others. Emergency -- that is the most common excuse used by tyrants to justify their excesses. One "emergency" after another; one suspension of law after another -- soon enough you have the Julio-Claudians and their successors running things.

It is odd that complaints come from the right, given their ire at the federal government's failure (or refusal) to enforce federal immigration law.

Supporters of this enforcement suspension cite the Bush Administration's suspension of it during the Katrina emergency. Robert Bluey explains a proffered distinction between the two events (here), such that Bush's suspension of the Act was justified, but Obama's would not be. But even if this distinction isn't valid, we are still talking about the suspended enforcement of law. Slow down and think that through. The President of the United States, because there is some crisis (you know, that thing which, according to Rham Immanuel, permits government to get away with things it otherwise could not), issues an Executive Order suspending enforcement of a law. While we're at it why not, if and when necessary, suspend enforcement of the Constitution, like Lincoln virtually did during the War to Prevent Southern Secession, or Wilson during World War I, or FDR during the crisis known as The Great Depression?

For the record: Like Senator McCain, I think the Jones Act should be repealed. (Wow. Something he and I agree upon. Who knew?) But so long as it remains in force, I'd prefer to see the POTUS exercise a habit of not picking and choosing which laws he shall faithfully execute and which laws he will not.