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Right, so we're just arbitrarily moving the goalposts now that the data doesn't back the claim. Got it.
by 1_2__3 10y ago
Right, so we're just arbitrarily moving the goalposts now that the data doesn't back the claim. Got it.
- jMyles 10y agoNot arbitrarily, but with good reason. It sometimes makes sense to move the goalposts when they no longer work as a mechanism for measuring the metrics of the sport in question. In this case, the total number of executive orders doesn't speak to the degree to which executive power is used to do things other than execute.
- killjoywashere 10y ago> but with good reason. No, a hypothesis was asserted, and quickly disproven by data. Without stronger data, the rest of these responses are called "backpedaling", no matter how positive your language might sound.
- jMyles 10y agoYeah, the naked assertion of "more executive orders" is plainly false by the numbers. But, looking at GP's point more charitably, does that invalidate the spirit of the comment? I think it's clear that it does not. Instead, obviously we must consider the overall force of executive action in creating or changing policy, in order to evaluate whether the contents of this argument are supported by data. And, FWIW, it's likely that the comment doesn't consider the absurd lengths to which executive power were pushed at various times in the first century of the republic, not only to create policy but also to eviscerate the decisions of the judicial branch (obviously "John Marshall has made his decision; now let him enforce it" comes to mind). This is a rich and complex topics; moving the goalposts away from a discussion of the number of signed executive orders is quite sensible IMO.
- killjoywashere 10y agobut the next step would be to cite a survey of the content of those orders, not make a one-sentence claim.
- jMyles 10y agoAgreed. That is probably beyond the purview of a HN comment. If you are interested in the topic, there are a number of current political science researchers who focus on the powers of the presidency. Nancy Kassop (my thesis professor) might be an interesting author with whom to start - her work is precise yet easy-to-understand.
- WillyOnWheels 10y agoYou have a very cynical view of analysis of executive orders! I think it's totally fine to classify EOs in one bucket for half mast flag memorials and EOs like Nixon's establishment of the EPA in another bucket.