This is wrong!

[MikeBjerum]

Whether you agree with the Patriot Act or not, the Pres. approved it and signed, or had his staff sign it for him with an autopen.

Apparently his royal highness is too important and busy to be bothered with actually picking up a pen and doing his job.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_theticket/20110617/ts_yblog_theticket/republicans-unite-against-autopen-ask-obama-to-re-sign-patriot-act

[tombogan03884]

If he can't even be bothered signing a bill himself WTF is he doing in the office ?  (Besides living it up on our dime I mean )

Hmmm, lives in public housing and doesn't want to work, sounds familiar.

[Ichiban]

As I recall, the bill was passed at the 11th hour and the POtuS was in France(?).  No time to get the actual bill to him to sign before the Patriot Act expired.

I don't know the legality of signing a copy of the bill (printed locally) rather than the actual bill but I would think that would be akin to using the autopen.

I think the autopen got the legal okay during W's time in office.

[fightingquaker13]

Its actually an interesting legal question, politics aside. Does the POTUS' intent to approve a bill, spoken to a minion authorizing the auto pen mean that its law, or must the POTUS put actual pen to paper like signing a contract? I'm sure some creative defense attorney will give us the answer soon.
FQ13

[Solus]

Just hand out rubber signature stamps to those who might need them.

Not as technically impressive, but just as functional.....

[Sponsor]

[MikeBjerum]

As I recall, the bill was passed at the 11th hour and the POtuS was in France(?).  No time to get the actual bill to him to sign before the Patriot Act expired.

I don't know the legality of signing a copy of the bill (printed locally) rather than the actual bill but I would think that would be akin to using the autopen.

I think the autopen got the legal okay during W's time in office.

There is this brand new invention that attorneys and courts have been using lately for contracts called a facsimile machine (FAX for short).  And I hear that any day now there is this fancy new thing called the World Wide Web that can transmit whole documents in the blink of an eye.

I don't care who started it or who ok'd it!  It is wrong, and we have the technology to handle any situation today.  If it is truly a twenty-third hour and fifty-nine minute thing, it is better to say sorry folks.  I don't care which side of the issue you are on, these games are stupid and must come to an end!

[tombogan03884]

It's called forgery.