Green light

We had a couple of letters last week bashing the president for making appointments while the Senate is still in session — or at least some Republicans insist it is.

The Justice Department defended the legality of those appointments in a 23-page opinion released Thursday.

The opinion apparently stems from a very similar conclusion reached during President George W. Bush’s first term, when he was advised that a recess during a session of the Senate can meet constitutional requirements that permit the president to make appointments as long as the recess is of sufficient length.

Which, if recess appointments made by the last five presidents are any measure, the current one considerably exceeds.