We know Congressman Cline is capable of denouncing actions by a sitting President. He did it almost every week during the four years of the Biden administration.
So it’s revealing– though hardly surprising– that Cline has been silent about three particular executive actions signed by our new President that you would think should set off alarms for him.
• President Trump signed an order declaring that children born in the United States of undocumented parents are not entitled to US citizenship.
But the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution makes it abundantly clear:
“All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside”
There are no exceptions. The American-born children of undocumented parents are, of course, subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.
Cline likes to brag about his devotion to the Constitution and frequently tells audiences that he carries a copy of it in his pocket. Has he read it lately?
Why is Cline silent about this now?
• Trump issued an order to delay for 75 days a law passed by Congress to ban the TikTok ap in the United States.
TikTok’s China-based parent ByteDance was supposed to find a U.S. buyer or be banned on Jan. 19. Trump’s order could give ByteDance more time to find a buyer.
“I guess I have a warm spot for TikTok,” Trump said.
Shou Zi Chew, TikTok’s CEO, attended Trump’s inauguration earlier in the day, seated with American tech heavyweights.
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The platform went offline before the ban approved by Congress and upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court took effect Sunday. After Trump promised he would pause the ban Monday, TikTok restored access for existing users. Google and Apple, however, still have not reinstated TikTok to their app stores.
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The law that Congress passed and now-former President Joe Biden signed in April allowed for a 90-day extension if there had been progress toward a sale before the statute’s effective date. Less certain is whether that provision can be applied retroactively, according to Sarah Kreps, director of Cornell University’s Tech Policy Institute.
“Executive orders cannot override existing laws,” Kreps said. “It’s not clear that the new president has that authority to issue the 90-day extension of a law that’s already gone into effect.”
Cline fully supported the law in question.
“Our bill is not an act of censorship, it is a safeguard for our citizens, a firewall against foreign adversary controlled applications,” said Rep. Ben Cline (R-Va.).
He told Maria Bartiromo of Fox Business:
“We know China is using [TikTok] to collect data on Americans. So China is looking in the phone records, listening to the phone conversations, acquiring the metadata of Americans.”
So whether or not ByteDance sells TikTok in the next 75 days, the dangers Cline warned about are still as real as ever– with Trump’s approval.
Why is Cline silent about this now?
• Trump issued roughly 1,500 pardons and commuted the sentences of 14 others in connection with the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol. He has called the insurrectionists “hostages.”
Trump commuted the sentences of individuals associated with the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, who were convicted of seditious conspiracy. He then issued “a full, complete and unconditional pardon to all other individuals convicted of offenses related to events that occurred at or near the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021,” a category that included people who assaulted law enforcement officers.
Chris Graham of The Augusta Free Press reports that among those pardoned was Jay Matthew Kenyon of Harrisonburg, who was sentenced earlier this month to 15 months in prison for brandishing a knife at police during the assault on the Capitol.
Here is what Cline posted on Facebook on the day of the insurrection:
On January 8, 2021, he issued a statement about the death of a Capitol police officer:
“Elizabeth and I are heartbroken to learn of the passing of Capitol Police Officer Brian D. Sicknick, who sustained a fatal injury while engaging rioters at the Capitol earlier this week,” Cline said. “Our Nation mourns the loss of Officer Sicknick, who gave his life in defense of the People’s House. Congress stands united in our rejection of the violence that occurred this week, and I continue to urge the swift prosecution of those involved to the fullest extent of the law.”
Does Cline feel the same way now? He has been notably silent about January 6 since then, and he remains silent about Trump’s mass pardon. Despite Cline’s frequent tributes to the bravery and dedication of police officers, we shouldn’t expect him to insist that Mr. Kenyon serve his full sentence.
I have no doubt Cline will have countless more opportunities to be silent over the next four years of the Trump administration.
Cline Watch 