Entertainment

What exactly is an executive order?

What exactly is an executive order?
What exactly is an executive order? What exactly is an executive order?

That controversial travel ban that Donald Trump is using to ban the entry of people from seven Muslim-majority nations? It’s known as an executive order.

You might have heard the phrase being thrown about a lot in the last couple of days and maybe you’ve been too embarrassed to ask exactly what the order means.

Don’t worry, because we’re here with all the deets you need to know.

Right, first off – what is an executive order and where has it appeared from?

An executive order covers – you’ve got it – the executive powers of the president. It’s basically an official statement by the president as to how the federal agencies he oversees are to use their resources and it’s derived from Article II of the US constitution. They have been used to implement historic policies in the past. OK, so what exactly does Trump get out of executive orders?

(Evan Vucci/AP)

Well, executive orders don’t actually give the president the power to appropriate new money from the US Treasury – which is the preserve of Congress. They’re supposed to fall within the parameters already set by Congress and the constitution.But that hasn’t stopped past presidents from using executive orders to implement some of the most momentous decisions in US history.The most famous example? Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 which ordered the end of slavery in the rebel southern states.Other notable examples include the internment of Japanese-Americans by Franklin Roosevelt during the Second World War, the desegregation of the armed forces by Harry Truman and Dwight Eisenhower’s dispatch of troops to integrate schools in Arkansas. Got ya. And so executive orders can be pretty controversial?

(Victoria Jones/PA)

Yup. Critics claim it amounts to “legislating by executive order” when a president cannot get his way in Congress. This runs counter to the spirit of the constitution – and leads to clashes with the legislature.Of course, Trump’s travel ban has triggered mass confusion and chaos worldwide, splitting families and setting off protests. Can Congress do anything about it?

(J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

If Congress dislikes an executive order it can legislate requiring the president to act in a particular way. But it has tended to give the president considerable leeway – particularly in relation to foreign policy and national defence.Executive orders are also open to legal challenge – usually on the grounds they exceed the president’s constitutional powers or they deviate from “congressional intent”. And so what’s the latest with Trump’s travel ban?

(J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

Well, House Speaker Paul Ryan has defended the divisive executive order on refugees and immigration, arguing that while the roll-out was bumpy, the policy is consistent with Republican principles.“The president has a responsibility to the security of this country,” Ryan said.Party congressional leadership was frozen out of the drafting of the order. But Ryan said that he backed the decision to stop the US refugee programme and ban all entries from seven Muslim-majority nations for 90 days.

(Niall Carson/PA)

Meanwhile, Theresa May is under growing pressure to say whether she was briefed by Donald Trump’s aides on his controversial travel ban when she met the new president for the first time last week.The Prime Minister has defended her invitation to honour Trump with a state visit despite a growing outcry, with more than 1.6 million people signing a petition calling for it to be scrapped.