Another power grab

[ABushismaDay]

By TOM FAHEY
The Union Leader
Aug. 8
CONCORD, N.H. - Gov. John Lynch said yesterday he joined governors from around the country in protesting a move in Congress that eases the access Presidents have to National Guard divisions.

Lynch said language allowing the President to federalize National Guard units without a governor's consent is in the U.S. House version of the defense appropriations bill.

"Governors are very concerned about the language," he said. Allowing the President to act without a governor's involvement "is unprecedented. Governors are united in our opposition," Lynch said during a conference call with reporters.

At their weekend meeting in South Carolina, National Governors Association members signed a joint letter to both houses of Congress urging them to kill the provision.

How the idea made its way into the House's version of the 700-page bill is a bit of a mystery. "Nobody knows who did it," Lynch said.