White House Reacts To John Kerry Assertion That 47 Traitors Letter is ‘Unconstitutional’

Posted by | March 17, 2015 18:00 | Filed under: Contributors Opinion Politics Tommy Christopher Top Stories

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Amid all the consternation over the letter that 47 Republican Senators wrote to the leaders of Iran in order to scuttle a nuclear arms deal, there was heavy speculation about a possible violation of something called the Logan Act. While the White House was happy to stand by and watch the debate over this arcane and never-used law (save a single indictment that was never pursued), I noted that the letter clearly violated another piece of legislation you might have heard of: the U.S. Constitution.

Over the weekend, a fairly senior administration official agreed with me. In an interview with CBS News, Kerry was asked if he would apologize to the participants of the P5+1 negotiations over the letter that freshman Sen. Tom Cotton authored, and Kerry’s response was rather emphatic:

“I’m not going to apologize for the unconstitutional, un-thought-out action by somebody who’s been in the United States Senate for 60-something days. That’s just inappropriate.”

My thoughts exactly, if “inappropriate” means “some bullshit.” While the Logan Act is a malleable law that lets politicians throw treasonous stank on an opponent without actually doing anything about it, violating the U.S. Constitution is another matter, entirely. While Tea Party types like to brandish their pocket copies at everything President Obama does, but when you’re the President, and someone actually does violate your constitutionally enumerated powers, you can’t just do an angry cable hit.

That’s probably why I couldn’t find any takers, among White House officials I spoke to Monday, who wanted to weigh in on Kerry’s remark. At Tuesday’s daily briefing, I asked Press Secretary Josh Earnest about Kerry’s remark, and while he wouldn’t deliver a legal opinion, he seemed to indicate that the letter was, perhaps, a violation in spirit…READ MORE

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Copyright 2015 Liberaland
By: Tommy Christopher

Tommy Christopher is The Daily Banter's White House Correspondent and Political Analyst. He's been a political reporter and liberal commentator since 2007, and has covered the White House since the beginning of the Obama administration, first for PoliticsDaily, and then for Mediaite. Christopher is a frequent guest on a variety of television, radio, and online programs, and was the villain in the documentaries The Audacity of Democracy and Hating Breitbart. He's also That Guy Who Live-Tweeted His Own Heart Attack, and the only person to have ever received public apologies from both Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck.

11 responses to White House Reacts To John Kerry Assertion That 47 Traitors Letter is ‘Unconstitutional’

  1. Anomaly 100 March 17th, 2015 at 18:32

    I dig Tommy’s hat.

  2. Suzanne McFly March 17th, 2015 at 18:50

    One thing I don’t understand is Kerry says he spoke with Congress about this deal 265+ times, why are even democrats saying the President hasn’t spoken with Congress at all about this issue?

    • Robyn Ryan March 18th, 2015 at 18:41

      It’s not Congress’ job to interfere in foreign policy. The US speaks with one, united voice – that of the chief Executive. The 47Traitors are guilty of giving aid and comfort to the same people they declare is our enemy. These guys aren’t governing. They are phoning it in.

      • Suzanne McFly March 18th, 2015 at 19:13

        I understand what the job of Congress is, what I don’t understand is why Kerry claims the administration has been keeping Congress aware of what is being considered in the talks and yet they are claiming they do not know what is being discussed.

        • Robyn Ryan March 21st, 2015 at 12:36

          I’m sure Kerry’s staff is providing the information. congress prefers to sign and run. both sides. Reid and his failure to read the human trafficking bill in committee is indicative of congressional interest in governance.

  3. William March 17th, 2015 at 23:49

    “I’m not going to apologize for the unconstitutional, un-thought-out action by somebody who’s been in the United States Senate for 60-something days. That’s just inappropriate”
    Translation: “He’s just a dumb-ass, and nobody takes him seriously anyway”

    • Robyn Ryan March 18th, 2015 at 18:38

      He ‘me too!’ signed,along with Jindal.

  4. jybarz March 18th, 2015 at 09:56

    Yep, I totally agree. Those 47 A$$holes in the Senate should be the ones to apologize not him.

  5. illinoisboy1977 March 18th, 2015 at 10:01

    Since the message went out in the form of an open letter, you can’t legally call it an interference with official negotiations. I think this is why they released it as such. You can write an open letter to anyone, concerning anything. As long as you don’t threaten death or violence (with the exception of airstrikes or other military options), you can pretty much say what you want and the 1st Amendment will trump all other concerns. Was the release of such a letter hasty? Yes. Was it rude? Absolutely. Was it bad form? No doubt. But, it was also perfectly legal AND in no way did it violate the Constitution.

    • Robyn Ryan March 18th, 2015 at 18:38

      I love the smell of desperation in the morning. It smells like victory.

  6. Robyn Ryan March 18th, 2015 at 18:36

    The Sec. of State speaks for the President. So the White House reaction to a request for comment is an eyeroll and a snicker.

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