For years, Barack Obama himself has said if he acted without Congress and signed executive order granting amnesty to millions of illegal immigrants it would be illegal. He was very clear on the matter, articulating it over and over again. Tonight at 8pm eastern, Obama is expected to announce he’s doing exactly what he said he wouldn't.
Glenn reacted on radio today.
"The president, if he does what they're saying he's going to do and through executive order just changes our immigration laws, he's officially become a dictator, has he not?," Glenn said on radio this morning.
If Obama does announce he will move forward on immigration reform via executive order, he will be flip flopping on many of his earlier promises.
On the show, Glenn played a montage of several sound bites where Obama promised not to govern by executive order:
The notion that I can just suspend deportations through executive order. That's just not the case. Because there are laws on the books that Congress has passed. There are enough laws on the books by Congress that are very clear in terms of how we have to enforce our immigration system. That for me to simply through executive order ignore those congressional mandates would not conform with my appropriate role as president. - March, 2011I can't solve this problem by myself. We'll have to have bipartisan support to make it happen. - April, 2011
We're also a nation of laws. That's part of our tradition. And so the easy way out is to try to yell and pretend I can do something by violating our laws. - November, 2013
I can't simply ignore laws that are out there. I have to work to make sure they're changed. - October, 2010
I know some wish I could just bypass Congress and change the law myself.
[Cheering]
But that's not how a democracy works. See, a democracy is hard. But it's right. Changing our laws means doing the hard work of changing minds and changing votes one by one. - April, 2011
Sometimes when I talk to immigration advocates, you know, they wish I could just bypass Congress and change the law myself. But that's not how a democracy works. - May, 2011
Now, I swore an oath to uphold the laws on the books. Now, I know some people want me to bypass Congress and change the law on my own. Believe me, the idea of doing things on my own is very tempting.
[applauding]
I promise you. Not just on immigration reform.
[laughter]
But that's not how our system works. - July, 2011
"I don't know what he will do tonight, but based on what he said and what is being said is coming tonight, this is an impeachable offense. Impeachable, in his own words," Glenn said.
Glenn warned that this opens the door for future presidents to circumvent Congress and legislators on both sides of the aisle should be opposed to an executive order.
"That's not the way our system works. Do you want that to happen?" Glenn asks. "You say I'm not going to enforce laws, and I don't care what Congress does, you have made a dictator. This is the moment. This is the crossing of the Rubicon. You cross this bridge, you don't come back from it."