Government of the Bureaucrats and by the Bureaucrats Shall Diminish Freedom

Democracy and Power 115: Other Power Players – Bureaucrats

Our carefully constructed system of checks and balances is being negated by the rise of a fourth branch, an administrative state of sprawling departments and agencies that govern with increasing autonomy and decreasing transparency.
– Jonathan Turley, Shapiro professor of public interest law at George Washington University. 

Government of the Bureaucrats and by the Bureaucrats Shall Diminish Freedom 

IRS officials testified before Congress and America witnessed powerful bureaucrats claim they did not break any laws.  They asserted they complied with IRS rules.  They did nothing wrong.  Ludicrously, they claimed they did not know who ordered the targeting and restricting the rights of conservative groups seeking a tax-exempt status.  Arrogance best describes their attitude and behavior.  Following are snippets from videos of their testimony:

Rep. Paul Ryan gets IRS Commish Miller to Admit No Progressive Groups were Targetted.

Commish, “I don’t remember”  Names of Who is Responsible for Targetting Conservatives

Commish Miller: “Absolutely Not Illegal” for IRS to Target Groups and Individual Citizens

They are arrogant with power because bureaucracies govern with increasing autonomy and decreasing transparency.  George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley has written an incredibly important article in the Washington Post, which should be read by every America concerned about governance, democracy and the rule of law.   

Turley asserts that federal bureaucracies have more authority and punishment-power over Americans than our elected officials.  For example, in 2007, the federal government enacted 138 laws.  The bureaucracies produced 2,926 rules, including 61 major regulations.  As Turley wrote:

In fact, the vast majority of “laws” governing the United States are not passed by Congress but are issued as regulations, crafted largely by thousands of unnamed, unreachable bureaucrats.

Dangerously, the nameless  bureaucrats have enormous powers over every American.  Again, Turley:

It’s often impossible to know, absent a major scandal, whom to blame for rules that are abusive or nonsensical.

Presently, America has four bureaucratic scandals, the Benghazi scrubbing and deceit, the AP phone records,  alleged criminal investigation of Fox News reporter Rosen, and the IRS targeting.  These are very serious abuses of power, cover-ups and deceits by government. Perilously, the administrative state of sprawling departments and agencies that govern with increasing autonomy and decreasing transparency is the most dangerous force against our Constitution, democracy and freedom.