USA Today: Trump objects to oversight provisions of coronavirus law, setting stage for new front with Democrats

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump used a relatively rare signing statement Friday to object to portions of the $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus law, potentially opening a new front with Democrats on the oversight of how that money is spent.

Trump said he would ignore portions of the law demanded by some Democrats to give Congress additional visibility into the stimulus spending, arguing that those requirements would infringe on the separation of powers enshrined in the Constitution.

Congress and the White House moved with stunning speed to pass the massive economic stimulus, the largest in the nation’s history, in an effort to avoid economic calamity from the coronavirus. But now that the measure is law, the administration must shell out hundreds of billions of dollars quickly while attempting to avoid controversy. …

“Americans expect and deserve accountability for the $2 trillion coronavirus emergency spending bill, and Congressional oversight of this Administration’s handling of the funds is absolutely critical,” Common Cause President Karen Hobert Flynn said in a statement.

“This attempt by President Trump to bypass oversight is nothing more than a corrupt power grab by an administration known for bending over backwards to shower rewards on its political supporters,” she added.