Executive Order

Mr. Obama’s recent signing of an amended version of Slick Willie Clinton’s EO (Executive Order) 12919 (titled “National Defense Resources Preparedness”), has a good many conservatives up in arms, with more than a few going so far as to claim that this is nothing less than a coup aimed at US citizens. Left wing apologists on the other hand state there’s nothing to worry about, 12919 is merely updating the existing National Defense Preparedness Act, and that everything is more or less “normal”. I rather suspect the truth lies somewhere in between.

In this country an “executive order” is a directive issued by the head of the executive branch at some level of government. The term is most commonly applied to orders issued by the President in his role as chief executive of the federal government. Executive orders may also be issued by a state governor or a city’s mayor. In other countries they’re often known as decrees or orders-in-council. U.S. Presidents have been issuing executive orders since 1789, usually to help agencies of the executive branch manage the operation of the federal government, and they do have the full force of law, since they are usually issued in accordance with Acts of Congress which give the President some degree of discretionary power. Harmless enough, right?

According to Article 1 of the United States Constitution, only Congress shall make federal law. However, since the "War and Emergency Powers Act" was passed in 1933, every president has usurped lawmaking powers via “Executive Orders”. In some cases (notably FDR) the justifications cited by the President when issuing an Executive Order have come under considerable criticism for exceeding Executive authority, and challenges to the validity of an order have sometimes resulted in legal proceedings and the order declared unconstitutional. While there is no provision in the Constitution that specifically permits executive orders, there is a vague mention of "executive power" given in Article II, and the declaration that the President "take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed". Most Executive Orders use these Constitutional reasonings as the authorization allowing for their issuance to be justified as part of the President's sworn duties. But wars have (and are) being fought on executive order, including the Kosovo Air War during Clinton’s second term, without the required congressional declaration of war. However, the extent to which the president may exercise military power independently of Congress remains continues to be an unresolved constitutional issue.

Critics have accused various presidents of abusing executive orders, using them to make laws without Congressional approval, and of moving existing laws away from their original intent. It’s also quite common for presidents to issue executive orders that allow federal agencies to enact administrative regulations in order to circumvent the legislative process, often pointing to EO 12148 which includes authorization to put ALL executive orders into effect in times of increased international tension, economic crisis, and/or financial crisis. Further, EO 11921 allows the Federal Emergency Preparedness Agency to develop plans to establish control over production, distribution, energy sources, wages, salaries, credit, and the flow of money. Now, Mr. Obama signs on to EO 12919, which hands the office of the President the power of absolute rule. The Drudge Report calls it “Martial Law”, the Huffington Post says it places the US on a “war footing”, and others call it a “coup against US citizens”. But while no one really agrees on what it means, a lot of knowledgeable folks seem to think it’s bad. So what’s in this document?

This EO simply authorizes the different Cabinet departments to take command of their respective parts of the economy during a national emergency, which is an “emergency” that the president declares, not congress. We all know that in a true national emergency or war the government is going to do whatever it takes to stay in power, regardless of Constitutional niceties, and this order merely "legalizes" that process. It’s no longer open for debate, and it's not a conspiracy theory, it's the Obama administration’s official policy. It does not necessarily mean that at 0600 hours tomorrow morning FEMA thugs will come marching up the lane to seize your farm. It does not mean that at noon on next Tuesday the FBI will start marching us off to the camps. It does not mean that the federal reserve is about to grab your bank account, nor does it mean that local law enforcement officers will immediately be ordered to seize the contents of your pantry. And it does not mean that UN troops will start patrolling Main St. What it does mean is that any or all of this can happen, merely on a presidential whim, without the benefit of Congressional approval, and despite our rights under the Constitution! Additionally, in my view 12919 fits all too conveniently into Mr. Obama’s announced plan to change America… at any rate it certainly would redistribute the wealth in one fell swoop! You might also want to think about how the officially sanctioned killing of American citizens without benefit of a trial, the Patriot Act’s stripping us of our rights, the unprecedented powers of the Department of Homeland Security, and the fact that we’ve been told by government officials that the Constitution, and Congress, are now irrelevant, all fit together like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.

Now my question is… why would this order even be considered necessary by the government if the powers-that-be did not see it as a viable means of retaining their control of the nation? (Keep in mind that they also control the armed forces and law enforcement.) This piece of paper states that the President alone has the authority to take over all resources in the nation (labor, food, land, industry, etc.) in the name of “national defense" -- a vague phrase that could be twisted to mean almost anything. Mr. Obama now has the authority (technically) to decide what he wants to do, and then (legally) order the army carry it out. The triggering excuse could be something as simple as a fabricated intelligence report threatening an attack with weapons of mass destruction. But wait, it gets even better! Mr. Obama and President Bush have both declared that we are under a state of National Emergency (which has never been rescinded), and thus the enabling conditions of this order have already been met. Technically EO 12919 is already in effect!

You might also notice that nothing in the order talks about protecting the rights of the American people, but rather it's all about protecting the government. The government needs stockpiles of weapons, food and resources, but John Q. Citizen doesn’t… or at least that seems to be the philosophy of our current government which sees itself as being all powerful. With Executive Orders the state, in a manner surprisingly similar to the Soviet Union, is supreme. The federal government, thanks to the activities of the political left in America, now has the right to do whatever they want to do, at a bureaucrat's whim, a federal department's press release, or due to a politician’s failing polls. Your property, your desires, your children, your job, your rights as an American citizen, your very life… now belong to the government.

Does any of this sound familiar? Well… Heil Hitler ya’all.