“I’ve got a pen and a phone” (executive authority)

U.S. President Barack Obama said on January 14, 2014, that if Congress didn’t act on legislation, he would try to go around that legislative body:
 
“I’ve got a pen and I’ve got a phone—and I can use that pen to sign executive orders and take executive actions and administrative actions that move the ball forward.”
 
“I’ve got a pen and a phone”—the shortened version—quickly became famous (or infamous). To some, it represented executive power; to others, it represented executive tyranny.
 
 
Wikipedia: Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II (US Listeni/bəˈrɑːk huːˈseɪn ɵˈbɑːmə/; born August 4, 1961) is the 44th and current President of the United States, as well as the first African American to hold the office. Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, Obama is a graduate of Columbia University and Harvard Law School, where he served as president of the Harvard Law Review. He was a community organizer in Chicago before earning his law degree. He worked as a civil rights attorney and taught constitutional law at University of Chicago Law School between 1992 and 2004. He served three terms representing the 13th District in the Illinois Senate from 1997 to 2004, running unsuccessfully for the United States House of Representatives in 2000 against Bobby Rush.
 
Twitter
Brett LoGiurato
‏@BrettLoGiurato
MSNBC chyron: “Obama: I have a pen and a phone”
10:25 AM - 14 Jan 2014
 
POLITICO
Obama’s pen-and-phone strategy
By JENNIFER EPSTEIN 01/14/14 11:49 AM EST Updated 01/14/14 04:09 PM EST
President Barack Obama offered a brief preview Tuesday of his State of the Union address, telling his Cabinet that he won’t wait for Congress to act on key agenda items in 2014.
 
“I’ve got a pen, and I’ve got a phone,” he said at his first Cabinet meeting of the year. Outlining the strategy, Obama said he plans to use his pen to sign executive actions and his phone to convene outside groups in support of his agenda if Congress proves unable or unwilling to act on his priorities.
   
CBS (Washington, DC)
Obama On Executive Actions: ‘I’ve Got A Pen And I’ve Got A Phone’
January 14, 2014 1:05 PM
WASHINGTON (CBS DC/AP) — Calling for “all hands on deck” to assist the economy, President Barack Obama is urging his Cabinet to identify ways to keep his administration relevant to people struggling in the up-and-down recovery.
 
With two weeks left before delivering an economy-focused State of the Union address to Congress, Obama is picking up the pace of his jobs message and demonstrating how he can advance his economic agenda administratively and through his ability to coax action from important interest groups.
 
“We’re not just going to be waiting for legislation in order to make sure that we’re providing Americans the kind of help they need. I’ve got a pen and I’ve got a phone,” Obama said Tuesday as he convened his first Cabinet meeting of the year.
     
The Blaze
Obama Threatens More Executive Action: ‘I’ve Got a Pen and I’ve Got a Phone’
Jan. 14, 2014 1:32pm Fred Lucas
President Barack Obama’s path around Congress will be a pen and phone, he said in remarks before a cabinet meeting Tuesday, affirming his ability to take executive action when Congress blocks his legislative goals.
 
“So Congress is going to be busy, and I’m looking forward to working with Democrats and Republicans, House members and Senate members, to try to continue to advance the economic recovery and to provide additional ladders of opportunity for everybody,” Obama said. “But one of the things that I’ll be emphasizing in this meeting is the fact that we are not just going to be waiting for legislation in order to make sure that we’re providing Americans the kind of help that they need. I’ve got a pen and I’ve got a phone.”
 
YouTube
Obama Pen and Phone Speech UNEDITED
Bart Mann
Published on Jan 16, 2014
Obama’s Unedited Pen and Phone Speech
   
NPR
Wielding A Pen And A Phone, Obama Goes It Alone
Updated January 20, 2014 8:04 AM ET
Published January 20, 2014 3:36 AM ET
President Obama has a new phrase he’s been using a lot lately: “I’ve got a pen, and I’ve got a phone.”
 
He’s talking about the tools a president can use if Congress isn’t giving him what he wants: executive actions and calling people together. It’s another avenue the president is using to pursue his economic agenda.
       
YouTube
Obama ft. Lil Wayne - Pen and a Phone
TPNNVideos
Published on Jun 11, 2014
We all know how much President Obama wishes he were a celebrity. He recently teamed up with Lil Wayne on this just leaked song entitled, “Pen and a phone” (Satire)
 
The Hill
Obama’s ‘pen and phone’ barrage
By Tim Devaney - 12/28/14 06:00 AM EST
It’s been the year of the “pen and phone” for President Obama.
 
Obama in January declared his intent to use executive power to enact policy changes without Congress, and he has lived up to his promise, making aggressive moves on climate change, immigration, land protections and the minimum wage.
 
Obama knew he would have to rely on executive action given Republican control of Congress, and he has raced through 2014 to get as much done as possible.
     
Washington (DC) Free Beacon
Obama’s Executive Orders Longer And More Restrictive Than Previous Administrations
Executive orders total 1,086 pages since Obama took office

BY: Ali Meyer  
January 5, 2016 9:55 am
Since President Obama has taken office, the length of the executive orders he has issued now exceeds the length of the executive orders issued by former presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, according to a count from the Federal Register.
(...)
In January 2014, President Obama emphasized in a Cabinet meeting that he would not just sit idle and wait for Congress to introduce legislation.
 
“I’ve got a pen and I’ve got a phone—and I can use that pen to sign executive orders and take executive actions and administrative actions that move the ball forward,” Obama said.