Whatever you think of the current president, it's painfully obvious that the role of the executive has far exceeded the Founders' vision.
The men who wrote the Declaration of Independence knew how much damage an overreaching president could inflict. They imagined an office that would execute the laws pass by representatives of the people, deal with foreign governments, and occasionally use his veto power.
Today, whether Barack Obama or Donald Trump sits in the Oval Office, our national politics revolves around the White House. The media obsesses over the president's every move, the president is blamed or praised for things he does not control, and he steps into a legislative role with every executive order.
It wasn't always like this. With the occasional exception, the president stayed within his constitutional box for our country's first 150 years. But, as Rob Montz explains in a recent op-ed in USA Today, everything changed in the early 20th century.
All of that changed with Franklin Delano Roosevelt. His “fireside chat” radio addresses — delivered in his charming aristocratic lilt — provided comfort, advice, and moral instruction to millions. Along the way, they created an unprecedented, immensely exploitable emotional connection with the public.
This connection formed the nexus of the obscene set of expectations that have come to define the office: the president is the savior of the national soul; the healer-in-chief administering alms in the wake of disaster; the superhero battling America’s enemies; the master executive personally credited with the performance of the economy.
Under FDR, these expectations fueled a radical expansion of presidential power, specifically through his use of executive orders. FDR’s predecessors averaged a couple hundred per administration; he issued over 3,700, creating vast new jobs programs and public agencies.
Concentrating power makes the system more vulnerable to abuse. It was an executive order, after all, that established the internment camps for Japanese Americans in the wake of Pearl Harbor. There was little public debate over whether FDR actually had the authority to lock a hundred thousand innocent citizens into cages, though there was a Supreme Court case. The mystique worked its magic.
It's time to place real, permanent limits on executive powers. Even if you like the policies of the current president, he can't hold his office forever. Soon another man or woman will take his place, and we need to have checks in place before that happens.
An Article V Convention of States can propose constitutional amendments that limit the power and jurisdiction of the president. These amendments can shrink the executive branch, limit the arenas it controls, and keep all legislation (aka, "rules and regulations") flowing through Congress.
Millions have already joined the movement, and twelve states have passed resolutions calling for such a convention. Will you join us? Sign the Convention of States Petition below!
