On December 20, 2006, President Bush signed H.R. 6407 (Public Law No. 109-435), the “Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act” but in his signing statement (President’s Statement on H.R. 6407, the “Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act”) he “declared his right to open mail under emergency conditions, contrary to existing law and contradicting the bill he had just signed, according to experts who have reviewed it” according to an article in the New York Daily News and reprinted in the Seattle Times:
- Bush says feds can open mail without warrant by James Gordon Meek, New York Daily News (Seattle Times), January 4, 2007.
The opening of mail isn’t the only qualification in the signing statement. There are a total of six paragraphs stating various qualifications to the law in “executive branch shall construe” statements.
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