Thread: Executive Orders

Have any of you ever looked at the executive orders which have been passed by our presidents over the years? These are just a few of the later ones, but wow! It seems as though our constitutional rights can be taken away from us by the president at any time if he sees fit. There are many, many more, but these were interesting.





EXECUTIVE ORDER 11921 allows the Federal Emergency Preparedness Agency to develop plans to establish control over the mechanisms of production and distribution, of energy sources, wages, salaries, credit and the flow of money in U.S. financial institution in any undefined national emergency. It also provides that when a state of emergency is declared by the President, Congress cannot review the action for six months.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 12148 created the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) that is to interface with the Department of Defense for civil defense planning and funding. An "emergency czar" was appointed. FEMA has only spent about 6 percent of its budget on national emergencies, the bulk of their funding has been used for the construction of secret underground facilities to assure continuity of government in case of a major emergency, foreign or domestic.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 12656 appointed the National Security Council as the principal body that should consider emergency powers. This allows the government to increase domestic intelligence and surveillance of U.S. citizens and would restrict the freedom of movement within the United States and granted the government the right to isolate large groups of civilians. The National Guard could be federalized to seal all borders and take control of U.S. air space and all ports of entry. Many of the figures in the Iran-Contra scandal were part of this emergency contingent, including Marine Colonel Oliver North.

Under the constitutional system, executive orders have no effect out in the several states, but rather are only administrative directives from the President to his various executive agencies. Period. The ONLY scneario by which they carry the force and effect of law is when they are issued under martial law. That being the case, anyone who is compelled to do anything under an EO may challenge the person or agency claiming authority under the EO to either verify that martial law is in effect (which would also require disclosing WHEN and by what mechanism martial law was declared) or, if such authority under martial law is not demonstrated, may feel free to disregard the order or any directives or demands made under the order.

There are those who claim that the state of emergency declared by FDR was never lifted and that there have in fact been subsequent states of emergency that have not been lifted. I would say that any such claim, while it may be the de facto reality, should be set aside because the grant of powers under the Constitution never authorized such perpetual power grabs by the Executive Branch. If in fact the Executive is operating under emergency powers, then it has usurped authority not ceded to it and should be, quite frankly, overthrown as a tyranny and reconstituted as provided for in the Constitution and the nation's charter, the Declaration of Independence.

I`m not surprised axcpet that they`ve been witten out in laymen terms.