What Trump’s latest ‘unconstitutional’ move means for the US

Fears of a ‘constitutional crisis’ in the United States are rising after President Donald Trump’s latest executive order. The White House’s latest order was signed to bring independent government agencies under full control of the president. Republicans have defended the move by referencing Article II of the Constitution, which gives the president ‘sole authority’ over the branch’s officials and employees.

But others have said the rule of law in America is being threatened. The House Judiciary Democrats pointed out Chief Justice John Marshall’s remarks in the famous Marbury v. Madison case in 1803, which established judicial review. Trump said he decides what the law is.

But Justice Marshall said: ‘It is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is.’. The executive order from Trump announced that independent government agencies – including the Federal Communications Commission, the Federal Trade Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

All three of those organisations were set up by Congress to be run independently. This means that if his order passes without judicial intervention, the organisations will be run by officials appointed by the president, rather than individually appointed people.

The organisations will have to consult with the White House about their plans to regulate, which is not in itself illegal. White House Press Secretary Will Sharf defended it, claiming: ‘The long-standing norm that only the president or the attorney general can speak for the United States when stating an opinion as to what the law is.’.

The order states: ‘For the Federal Government to be truly accountable to the American people, officials who wield vast executive power must be supervised and controlled by the people’s elected President.’. Legal scholar Peter Shane told the New York Times: ‘This is a power move over independent agencies, a structure of administration that Congress has used for various functions going back to the 1880s.’.

But he said Trump’s latest move has ‘crossed a line’ in what has been a long-standing understanding of the Constitution. The order also reads: ‘Previous administrations have allowed so-called “independent regulatory agencies” to operate with minimal Presidential supervision….

‘Therefore, in order to improve the administration of the executive branch and to increase regulatory officials’ accountability to the American people, it shall be the policy of the executive branch to ensure Presidential supervision and control of the entire executive branch. ‘.

Trump’s latest order comes after he signed more than 200 executive orders within hours of reclaiming the presidency, including renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, repealing a ban on drilling for oil in the Arctic and declaring a national emergency at the border with Mexico.

During his inaugural address, Trump declared that a new ‘golden age of America’ had begun, and vowed to make the US ‘greater, stronger and far more exceptional than ever before.’. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

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