New Executive Order Seizes Control over Civilian Activities

[onenote]

45. Among the misconceptions being spread about this EO

As others have pointed out, this is not a "new" EO in the sense that it is an update and restatement of EOs that have been issued for decades. This one specifically supersedes the very similar version issued by the Clinton WH in June 1994.

Nonetheless, a number of statements have been made (largely spurred by the Examiner article) that misrepresent what the EO does and does not do. For example, it has been claimed that this version greatly "expands" the previous versions by, among other things, being applicable during peacetime. In fact, the language referring to "peacetime" in this version is identical to the language in the 1994 EO. Also, the Examiner piece, while acknolwedging that this isn't the first "preparedness" EO, suggests that every previous such EO has sparked a "constitutional crisis" which is laughable.

Are there differences in the wording of this version compared to the previous version? Yes. Many of the changes reflect changes in the organization of government that have occurred since 1994. For example, under the Clinton era EO, there are a number of references to FEMA. But FEMA is no longer a separate agency -- its part of DHS (along with other agencies that previously were either independent or parts of other cabinet departments).

I haven't exhaustively compared the 1994 and 2012 versions, but I have scanned them both and if there are nefarious diffrerences I haven't noticed them. If folks have identified substantive, signficant changes from the 1994 version to this one, I would urge them to post them.

In short, this EO doesn't represent the creation of a "new form of government" and it will not be talked about for ages. Its largely a ministerial action to update something that has been on the books for several decades.