Republicans say they're for small, local government. Apparently not in Portland.
What ever happened to Dont tread on me?
Against the express wishes of Portlands mayor, Oregons governor and both of its U.S. senators all Democrats a federal crackdown cartoonishly named Operation Diligent Valor proceeds against demonstrations at the citys federal courthouse that have gone on for nearly two straight months.
In Georgia, theres an ongoing battle over mask mandates in response to covid-19: Republican Gov. Brian Kemp issued an order suspending mask requirements in more than a dozen cities, barring them from implementing policies that are more restrictive than the states. Kemp sued Atlantas mayor and city council, and accused Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms of ordering the Atlanta Police Department not to enforce the states ban on gatherings of more than 50 people.
And who can forget President Trump declaring in April that he could order states to reopen their economies? When somebodys the president of the United States, the authority is total, he said. And thats the way its got to be. Its total. Its total. And the governors know that.
Once upon a time, the rejoinder from right-wing radio hosts, activists and Republican politicians would have been Dont tread on me (or, in the case of federal gun-control legislation, a more direct challenge along the lines of Come and take it). In the tea party movements heyday a decade ago Republicans and conservatives were evangelists of federalism and limited government. In a 2014 Wall Street Journal op-ed headlined The Imperial Presidency of Barack Obama, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) warned that an imperial presidency threatens the liberty of every citizen. In 2016, the GOP platform condemned the Obama administrations unconstitutional expansion into areas beyond those specifically enumerated, including bullying of state and local governments.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/07/25/portland-trump-republicans-federalism/