Tonight, Hinderaker makes a bunch of specious claims about how separation of powers works in the US — and he’s wrong about almost all of them.

His most laughable line is that this is just one “far left“ judge. In point of fact, Trump has lost 34 of 37 court challenges to his stupidly impotent black Sharpie scribbles — in just two months time. Most importantly he lost at the United States Supreme Court — twice.

The things Tangerine’s tried to do are not remotely close questions: the power to do them belongs almost exclusively in the Congress, under our checks and balances.

And so when John says “what is a president supposed to do — when he finds fraud?” Well the answer is… talk to Congress about it, or sue in the courts under a fraud statute. The answer is not that he gets to make up “rules” on the fly. No, the Congress has to act — for that.

It is simply not within the president‘s remit to take it upon himself to create “slush funds” by withholding spending — where Congress previously had ordered spending in certain areas.

This entire fight was long ago settled at the end of Richard Nixon‘s presidency — as a bipartisan reform law came out of the Congress — (signed by GOP Pres. Ford), due to Nixon’s lawlessness, called the Impound Control Act of 1974 (it has been amended and strengthened in the ensuing five decades). It was, and is, designed specifically to prevent presidents from doing what Trump tries now, and what Nixon tried then.

So to the extent that John sees some vast Constitutional argument ahead… all he’s doing is admitting that Trump does not respect the Constitution, so he will try to make it a fight.

Trump thinks he’s a king.

He is not.

Cheers, John.