ADMINISTRATIVE STATE LOSES AGAIN
The administrative state loses again! This time in the case of Marin Audubon Society, et al v. FAA, the D.C. District Court of Appeals struck down the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), a toothless cabal inside the Presidential Executive Office. The CEQ has exceeded its authority for decades by publishing its guidance in the Federal Register implying its guidance has the force of law. From the decision by a three-judge panel:
“As the parties argue the case, it centers on whether the Agencies complied with regulations of the Council on Environmental Quality, an entity within the Executive Office of the President. We will not address these arguments. The CEQ regulations, which purport to govern how all federal agencies must comply with the National Environmental Policy Act, are ultra vires.”
Ultra Vires means “beyond the scope of its authority.
This undoes fifty years of bureaucratic law. Coupled with the end of the Chevron Deference, this gives the incoming Trump Administration tremendous power to shrink the size and scope of the administrative state. This means that three-letter agencies will have to fight their battles in the Federal Courts, not with their own unaccountable-to-the-voters administrative law judge.
Couple these steps with the future Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) 
that’s going to be led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, whose quotes are highlighted by Clarice Feldman over at The American Thinker:
“Vivek Ramaswamy, co-nominee for the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) made clear the chainsaw they intend to take to the bureaucratic state:
“Here’s a key point about our mission at DOGE: eliminating bureaucratic regulations isn’t a mere policy preference. It’s a legal *mandate* from the U.S. Supreme Court:
— West Virginia v. EPA (2022) held that agencies cannot decide major questions of economic or political significance without “clear congressional authorization.” This applies to *thousands* of rules that never passed Congress.
— In Loper Bright v. Raimondo (2024), the Court ended Chevron Deference, which means agencies can’t foist their own interpretations of the law onto the American people. Over 18,000 federal cases cited the Chevron doctrine, often to uphold regulations, many of which are now null & void.
— In SEC v. Jarkesy (2024), SCOTUS restricted the use of “administrative law judges” by agencies. The same agency that wrote the rules shouldn’t be able to prosecute citizens in “courts” that it controls.
— In Corner Post v. Board of Governors (2024), the Court held that new businesses can challenge old regulations, greatly expanding the statute of limitations & opening many more rules up for scrutiny. So we shouldn’t just look at rules passed in the last 4 years, but over the past 4 decades (or more).”
When Obama bragged in 2009 as the new POTUS, that “elections have consequences”, he had no idea how that statement would come back to bite him. It’s incredible that just fifteen years later the out-of-control federal government (courtesy of Obama, and his minions Biden and Harris), would become the reason Donald J. Trump would be twice handed the Presidency by the American people.
Between taking away the authority of the three-letter agencies, and then defunding them, Americans will again live freely. As freedom-loving gun owners, we can hope that the ATF shrinks down to size, if not eliminated entirely.
There’s a new boss in town, and he’s not the same as the old boss. Please stay Ready at All Times, and help us defend all of Iowa’s rights by renewing or joining IFC today.
Shoot Straight, Speak The Truth, and Never Surrender Our Liberties.
Dave Funk
Member, Board of Directors
Iowa Firearms Coalition
#2A4IA
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