Obama's Legal Transgressions: What Laws Were Broken?

There are several instances where Barack Obama, the 44th President of the United States, has been accused of breaking the law. One notable example is the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) programme, which granted amnesty and various benefits to millions of foreign nationals living in the US illegally. This has been seen as a violation of the Constitution and an overstepping of presidential power. Obama has also been criticised for his handling of the Benghazi attack, warrantless wiretapping, and for allegedly lying about the Fast and Furious scandal. Additionally, Obama was suspected of violating the Logan Act by meeting with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak without formal consent from the US government. These incidents have sparked debates about the appropriate limits of executive power and the role of the president in shaping immigration policy.

Obama's alleged violation of the Logan Act

In March 2024, former US President Barack Obama paid a 'courtesy' visit to UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at 10 Downing Street. They discussed the work of the Obama Foundation, a non-profit organisation, and other topics, including artificial intelligence. Following the meeting, Make America Great Again (MAGA) supporters accused Obama of violating the Logan Act, a federal law that criminalises the negotiation of a dispute between the United States and a foreign government by an unauthorised American citizen.

The Logan Act was passed in 1799 in response to George Logan, a Pennsylvania state politician and pacifist, who had unauthorised discussions with France during a period of quasi-war between the US and France. The Act prohibits American citizens from engaging with foreign governments or leaders without the consent of the US government.

It is suspected that Obama did not receive formal consent from the US government to meet Sunak, which would constitute a breach of the Logan Act. However, it is highly unlikely that the legislation would be applied in this case. The Act has been in place for nearly 200 years, and while several people have been accused of breaching it, only two people have ever been indicted, and neither was convicted.

In addition to the alleged Logan Act violation, Obama has been accused of breaking the law in several other instances during his presidency. These include:

• Fast and Furious
• IRS illegally targeting conservative groups
• Secretly obtaining phone records from Associated Press journalists
• Supporting unconditional, warrantless wiretapping
• Ignoring constitutional requirements for appointees
• Lying about the Benghazi attack

Obama's alleged failure to uphold his constitutional duty

Barack Obama has been accused of failing to uphold his constitutional duty as President of the United States on numerous occasions. One notable example is the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA) programme, which granted amnesty and various benefits to millions of foreign nationals living in the US illegally. Obama's Republican critics argued that he had overstepped his executive powers and usurped Congress's authority to regulate immigration policy. They claimed that Obama had violated his constitutional duty to "take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed".

Another instance where Obama allegedly failed to uphold his constitutional duty was in his response to the 2012 attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, Libya. Obama was accused of lying about the nature of the attack, which resulted in the deaths of four Americans, including the US Ambassador to Libya. Critics charged that Obama had failed to provide adequate security for US personnel and had attempted to cover up the true circumstances of the attack for political reasons.

Obama has also been criticised for his use of executive orders and memorandums to take actions without congressional approval. For example, he authorised the "Fast and Furious" operation, which allowed guns to be sold to straw purchasers in an attempt to track Mexican drug cartels. The operation went awry, resulting in thousands of weapons falling into the hands of criminals. Obama was also accused of using the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to target conservative groups for extra tax scrutiny and of secretly obtaining phone records from Associated Press journalists.

Furthermore, Obama's decision to order military action against Libya in 2011 without prior consultation or authorisation from Congress has been described as a violation of the Constitution and the War Powers Act.

Finally, Obama's immigration policies, particularly his expansion of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) programme, have been criticised as unconstitutional power grabs that set a dangerous precedent for executive overreach.

Obama's alleged support of warrantless wiretapping

Barack Obama has been accused of supporting warrantless wiretapping, despite having pledged to end it during his 2008 presidential campaign.

In 2012, Obama signed an extension of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), a bill that gives the government clearance to tap into American citizens' communications with people outside the U.S. without a warrant, as long as it is done in the name of collecting foreign intelligence. This means that government entities such as the National Security Agency (NSA) can monitor Americans without probable cause. They only need an order from the secret FISA court, and they don't have to alert the targeted citizen before the wiretapping.

Obama's decision to sign the FISA extension bill into law was criticised by civil libertarians and digital rights groups such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), who called the decision a "blight on our nation". Obama's support for the bill was seen as a reversal of his previous position, as he had criticised warrantless wiretapping as a presidential candidate in 2008.

In an interview on *The Daily Show* with Jon Stewart, Obama was questioned about his change in position on warrantless wiretapping. He claimed that his administration had modified the Bush-era warrantless wiretapping laws and built safeguards that weren't there before. However, critics argue that there is no indication that the warrantless wiretapping program has significantly changed since Obama took office.

In addition to signing the FISA extension, Obama's administration has actively opposed proposed safeguards and transparency provisions in Congress. They have also continued the Bush administration's strategy of invoking the 'state secrets' privilege to prevent the courts from reviewing the legality of warrantless wiretapping.

Obama's support for warrantless wiretapping, despite his previous criticisms, has led to accusations of hypocrisy and broken pledges. Some commentators suggested that his change in position could cost him enthusiasm and financial support from his base.

Obama's alleged violation of the Constitution and the War Powers Act

In 2011, Barack Obama allegedly violated the Constitution and the War Powers Act by ordering military action against Libya without congressional consultation or authorization.

The War Powers Act, also known as the War Powers Resolution of 1973, is a federal law intended to limit the US president's power to commit the country to an armed conflict without the consent of Congress. The Act requires the president to notify Congress within 48 hours of committing armed forces to military action and forbids armed forces from remaining in conflict for more than 60 days without congressional authorization for the use of military force or a declaration of war.

The Act was passed to address concerns about the erosion of congressional authority to decide when the US should engage in war, particularly in light of revelations that President Nixon had conducted secret bombings in Cambodia during the Vietnam War without notifying Congress.

Obama's intervention in Libya was not an isolated incident of alleged violation of the War Powers Act by a US president. Every sitting president since the 1970s has either sidestepped some of the law's provisions or labelled it unconstitutional. For example, in 1981, President Ronald Reagan deployed military personnel to El Salvador without consulting or submitting a report to Congress. In 1999, President Bill Clinton continued a bombing campaign in Kosovo beyond the 60-day time limit.

While members of Congress have occasionally objected to the executive branch's disregard for the War Powers Act, attempts to take legal action have been unsuccessful. Critics argue that the Act has failed to create better coordination between the executive and legislative branches and that it is too restrictive on the president's ability to respond to foreign emergencies.

Obama's alleged lawlessness in the Fast and Furious scandal

The Fast and Furious scandal, also known as Operation Fast and Furious, was a Justice Department program that allowed the sale of assault weapons to Mexican drug cartels. The Obama administration's alleged role in the scandal has been the subject of much scrutiny and controversy.

The scandal centres on the ATF's "gunwalking" tactic, where licensed firearms dealers were allowed to sell weapons to illegal straw buyers, with the stated goal of tracking the guns to high-level cartel leaders and arresting them. However, as of October 2011, none of the targeted high-level cartel figures had been arrested, and the guns began turning up at crime scenes on both sides of the Mexico-US border.

The Obama administration was accused of covering up the scandal and obstructing congressional investigations. In 2012, Attorney General Eric Holder became the first sitting member of the Cabinet of the United States to be held in contempt of Congress for refusing to disclose internal Justice Department documents related to the scandal.

The scandal resulted in increased tensions between the US and Mexico, with Mexican officials expressing anger and condemnation over the operation. It also sparked debate about the Obama administration's transparency and accountability, with critics arguing that it fell short of its promises to be the most transparent administration in history.

While the full extent of the Obama administration's involvement in the scandal remains unclear, the controversy surrounding Operation Fast and Furious has led to widespread criticism and allegations of lawlessness against the administration.

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