Gun rights advocates are taking aim at the President’s gun control proposals. Undergoing close scrutiny are 23 executive orders President Obama signed Thursday.
So what is a presidential executive order? It is not mentioned in the Constitution; however every president since George Washington has issued them. They mostly go unnoticed.
The governance of this country is based on law. A law is approved by both the Senate and the House and signed by the President. An executive order, on the other hand, simply provides clarification, direction and explanation of an already-enacted law.
In 1952, the Supreme Court reviewed an executive order by President Harry Truman putting the operation of the nation’s steel mill under the control of the federal government.
“Because it did this, the Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional because it was creating new law,” explained Dickinson College visiting professor Brandon Lenoir. It wasn’t clarifying existing law."
Obama’s executive orders among other things encourage sharing background check information, directing the Attorney General to look into who can own a gun and identifying incentives for schools to hire police resource officers.
Professor Lenoir expects attorneys on both sides to study the President’s orders.
“From the controversial aspect of what’s going on with gun control that we have people on both sides lining up to battle,” Lenoir stated. “The fact that the President is using the executive order mechanism to clarify some laws naturally it’s going to be raised to the attention of the average American where most of the executive orders go unnoticed."
The professor said he expects to hear many opponents call on Congress to repeal the executive orders. But that won’t happen.
Only the Supreme Court can rule a presidential executive order to be unconstitutional.
So what is a presidential executive order? It is not mentioned in the Constitution; however every president since George Washington has issued them. They mostly go unnoticed.
The governance of this country is based on law. A law is approved by both the Senate and the House and signed by the President. An executive order, on the other hand, simply provides clarification, direction and explanation of an already-enacted law.
In 1952, the Supreme Court reviewed an executive order by President Harry Truman putting the operation of the nation’s steel mill under the control of the federal government.
“Because it did this, the Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional because it was creating new law,” explained Dickinson College visiting professor Brandon Lenoir. It wasn’t clarifying existing law."
Obama’s executive orders among other things encourage sharing background check information, directing the Attorney General to look into who can own a gun and identifying incentives for schools to hire police resource officers.
Professor Lenoir expects attorneys on both sides to study the President’s orders.
“From the controversial aspect of what’s going on with gun control that we have people on both sides lining up to battle,” Lenoir stated. “The fact that the President is using the executive order mechanism to clarify some laws naturally it’s going to be raised to the attention of the average American where most of the executive orders go unnoticed."
The professor said he expects to hear many opponents call on Congress to repeal the executive orders. But that won’t happen.
Only the Supreme Court can rule a presidential executive order to be unconstitutional.