The hilarious hypocrisy of Republicans complaining about the imperial presidency

Where were these concerned conservatives during the Bush years?

Bush, Obama
(Image credit: (Illustration by Lauren Hansen | Images courtesy Getty Images, Jim Bourg-Pool/Getty Images, iStock))

President Obama's announcement that he will use prosecutorial discretion to semi-permanently prevent five million unauthorized immigrants from being deported has brought the usual accusations of galloping tyranny from conservatives. "Barack Obama: American Caudillo" is the title of Rich Lowry's very dumb column for Politico.

There is more awareness from Ross Douthat, who grudgingly recognizes that George W. Bush broke some important laws in his time. But only by eliding the very worst of the Bush years can Douthat reach his desired conclusion, that Obama's executive actions are an unprecedented imperial power grab. In fact, growth of the imperial presidency is a bipartisan affair, and George W. Bush is a major culprit.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Ryan Cooper

Ryan Cooper is a national correspondent at TheWeek.com. His work has appeared in the Washington Monthly, The New Republic, and the Washington Post.