Executive Actions Vs Executive Branches

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When there are two major powers vying for power, there is inherent tension. This is exactly the case for the Legislative and Executive branches. Both branches were allotted powers in the Constitution, which give them reign over certain aspects of the country. Yet sometimes, their powers collide, creating tension and confusion between the two biggest powers in American government. When there is conflict between a state and federal law, by the Constitution, the federal law is higher. Yet who wins if the conflict is between two federal powers? Some ways the President can assert his power over the legislative branch are through executive actions and executive orders. While neither of these powers are directly guaranteed in the Constitution, they …show more content…
Basically, anything the President does or intends to do is executive action. Executive actions are not legally binding; rather they are a push towards legislation the President suggests to be made yet cannot make since he is not in the Legislative branch. On the other hand, executive order is a legal directive the President gives to federal agencies, department heads, or other federal employees. Executive orders are published to the Federal Registrar and go into effect 30 days after publication. These orders may bypass the rulings of Congress, yet can still be deemed unconstitutional and nullified by the Supreme Court if necessary. George Washington issued the first executive order and every single president following him has since issued an executive order. Both executive orders and actions are a way for the President to set his agenda and bypass his guaranteed powers from the Constitution and Congress to create …show more content…
Every single President has issued at least one executive order. Some presidents have used multiple executive orders, like FDR, who issued 3,721 executive orders during his twelve years in office. The first executive order issued by George Washington declared a day of public thanksgiving, which was his only order. Later on, Abraham Lincoln expanded the powers of executive orders when he tried to suppress rebellion in hopes of delaying war. His orders seemed to surpass the Constitutional powers originally granted to him and assumed by his predecessors, yet there are no limitations on executive orders in the Constitution so there was little grounds to deny him the power. One of his executive orders suspended habeas corpus, meaning the government could detain people for an indefinite amount of time. This executive order led to thousands of arrests and to questions of the Constitutionality of executive orders. Another famous executive order made by Abraham Lincoln was the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed the slaves in the Confederacy and also made the issue of slavery a direct war aim. Lincoln’s orders were issued during wartime, but Theodore Roosevelt’s executive orders during peacetime served much different purposes. Roosevelt’s 1,006 orders served for mostly functioning and administrative objectives, yet he did not limit himself. Roosevelt believed that the President should
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