Why does Trump's DOJ think the 48 year old law requiring a president to turn over records at the end of an administration to be "unconstitutional"?

[yulbsari]

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/justice-department-presidential-records-act-unconstitutional/

[abc3643]

The Administration may be onto something. This should ultimately result in a SCOTUS case. I wouldn't be surprised if they win too.

The Presidential Records Act of 1978 is important and I agree with it.

Comparable legislation is the Federal Records Act of 1950 but that has been amended multiple times. In short, the Federal Records Act governs documents from federal agencies with a "record" being determined by the National Archivist.

This is from a 2019 amendment to the act:

Key Terms: Federal Record

44 U. S. C. §3301

(a) Records Defined.—

(1) In general.—As used in this chapter, the term "records"—

(A) includes all recorded information, regardless of form or characteristics, made or received by a Federal agency under Federal law or in connection with the transaction of public business and preserved or appropriate for preservation by that agency or its legitimate successor as evidence of the organization, functions, policies, decisions, procedures, operations, or other activities of the United States Government or because of the informational value of data in them; and

Now, you need to understand something important:

Congress and the Supreme Court are not federal agencies so they are immune from the Federal Records Act. This implies that there is an imbalance of power. Congress, being the Legislative Branch, is putting a burden on the Executive Branch (and, furthermore, according to the Justice Department, that is not an enumerated power of Congress in Article I of the US Constitution). Yet, Congress is not subject to the same rules that it wants to place on the Executive Branch.

So, it is definitely conceivable that the SCOTUS would rule for the Administration. If a law was enacted that affected all branches of government equally, then it might be considered constitutional.

As usual, the best but most difficult course of action is to have a constitutional amendment about records.

[Anonymous]

If he doesn't like, he considers it "unconstitutional" He's never read it so he has no idea what that words means anyway.