Democratic Dictators

     Although the powers of the President of the United States, the congress, and the judiciary are outlined in the constitution, in times of crisis presidents have consistently expanded the power of the executive, and even pushed the boundaries of what are considered acceptable actions in a democracy. President Lincoln suspended habeas corpus during the Civil War, but still held elections in the midst of the conflict. President Andrew Jackson, when informed that the Supreme Court had ruled against his actions concerning the seizure of Native lands, famously said that Supreme Court Justice “John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it." (Rosen, 2006). More recently, President George W. Bush instituted a program of “extraordinary rendition” (kidnapping), and “enhanced interrogation” (torture). All of these actions have two things in common: they tested the boundaries of executive power, and were considered to be quite controversial at the time they were imposed.

     Probably the most controversial executive action undertaken by an American president in modern times is Executive Order 9066. This executive order, issued by president Franklin Delano Roosevelt, established a military district that encompassed the whole of the Western United States, and led to the mass internment of Japanese-American citizens in concentration camps. Not to be confused with the Nazi “death camps”, these camps were literally concentration camps, in that they concentrated a population of people in a certain place. The hysteria surrounding Japanese-Americans at the time is what led to the imposition of this executive order. Propaganda produced for the government by Disney and Dr. Seuss portrayed Japanese-Americans as “fifth-columnists”, essentially internal saboteurs whose loyalties toward the United States were considered to be questionable. The racism that permeated the government at the time meant that there was little, if any resistance to the move by F.D.R. to intern Japanese-American citizens. Even among the Japanese-Americans themselves, there was little resistance to the massive internment program. Indeed, many Japanese-Americans fought against their ethnic homeland on behalf of the United States.

     Although E.O. 9066 was among the most egregious actions undertaken by F.D.R. during the war, it was far from the only execution of executive authority in a wartime environment. The massive expansion of executive authority during World War Two has continued to have far-reaching consequences to this day. Since WW2, the power of the executive has been seemingly ever-increasing. The current president, Barack Obama, has issued some sweeping executive orders that have caused much controversy in the nation, thereby continuing the tradition of expanding the power of the executive.  

     With the swipe of a pen, the President of the United States has tremendous power and influence over the lives of millions. Such power in the hands of a single individual is disconcerting, and something that the founders of the nation were extremely concerned about when devising our system of government. The President of the United States now has the power to kidnap, torture, and unilaterally launch a war. These powers far exceed those originally outlined in the constitution. Many of these actions have been dictatorial in nature, rather than democratic actions that have been created by the people’s representatives and undertaken in concert with the president. One is left to wonder just what may the next crisis prompt a president to do?

Works Cited:

Rosen, Jeffrey. Supreme Court History: the first Hundred Years. PBS. 2006. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/supremecourt/antebellum/history2.html