Last updated on July 18th, 2023 at 01:39 pm
Gov. Greg Abbott is claiming that he is more powerful than President Biden, but the Constitution says federal law is the law of the land.
Greg Abbott Claims Governors Are More Powerful Than Presidents.
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Greg Abbott claims governors' orders supersede presidential orders, "I believe that the governors' orders will supersede the president's orders because the president does not have the authority to impose this."
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The Constitution disagrees. pic.twitter.com/sdMtLkrYr9
— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) September 14, 2021
Abbott said on Fox News, “As you point out, it is states and governors who have the authority. I issued an executive order already in existence that prohibits any government from imposing a vaccine mandate on my fellow Texans. So we are going to have a constitutional showdown. I believe that the governor’s orders will supersede the president’s orders because the president does not have the authority to impose this.”
Gov. Abbott was reviving the old argument on nullification. Abbott was claiming that a state can nullify laws or orders from the federal government that they disagree with.
The nullification theory has been around since the Founding Fathers, and it has gotten nowhere with the courts.
The Constitution states that federal law supersedes state law. A presidential executive order supersedes a governor’s executive order.
There is no constitutional showdown coming.
Gov. Abbott will lose in court, as President Biden has hundreds of years of precedent on his side.
Abbott’s comments are the latest reminder that self-described “constitutional conservatives” are always trying to destroy the Constitution.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
