One of the most discouraging things about the future of our republic is the creeping indifference, on all sides, to the constitutional separation of powers.

The latest example happened on Thursday, when President Obama announced the near-finalization of a unilateral executive ruling that private federal contractors will heretofore have to provide seven days of paid annual sick leave to some 600,000 employees who currently do not get paid sick leave. Some critics rightly lamented that such regulation of private companies is unwise as a matter of policy (true) and is an example of federal overreach (true). But few even batted an eye at the greater concern: This is clearly an instance of de facto lawmaking, and the Constitution vests all federal lawmaking power in Congress, not the president.