Imperial Presidency?

WASHINGTON (NEWSCHANNEL 3) - Members of the House Judiciary Committee heard from four fellow Congressmen on what they call "The Imperial Presidency of George Bush."

Three Democrats and one Republican discussed what they felt was excessive power asserted by the executive branch over the other branches of government, in essence disrupting the balance of power put in place by the founding fathers.

Ohio Democrat Dennis Kucinich talked about the justification of going to war in Iraq. He claimed the war was both unnecessary and unprovoked and now Congress must restore American's faith in government.

Kucinich said that "the decision before us is whether to honor our oath as members of Congress to support and defend the Constitution that has been trampled time and again over the last seven years. The decision before us is whether to stand up for the checks and balances designed by our founding fathers to prevent excessive power grabs by either the judicial, legislative, or executive branch of government."

Congressman Kucinich was joined by Democrat Maurice Hinchey of New York, Brad Miller of North Carolina and Republican Walter Jones of North Carolina.

The testified to raise awareness of the need for more oversight of the presidency.