Executive Order 11490, an
executive order of October 28, 1969, calls for federal agencies to prepare plans for a
state of emergency
A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to be able to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state du ...
that would require "over-all civilian manpower mobilization programs" and related emergency measures. The order was conceived and signed by President
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
.
Economist
Howard Ruff
Howard Joseph Ruff (December 27, 1930 – November 12, 2016) was a financial adviser and writer of the pro- hard money investing newsletter ''The Ruff Times''. Ruff was the author of ''Famine and Survival in America'' (1974), ''How to Prosper D ...
said of the order that it gave the president sweeping authority, unbalancing the
separation of powers
Separation of powers refers to the division of a state's government into branches, each with separate, independent powers and responsibilities, so that the powers of one branch are not in conflict with those of the other branches. The typic ...
in government, set in motion merely by the president claiming a national emergency. He said, "The only thing standing between us and a
dictatorship
A dictatorship is a form of government which is characterized by a leader, or a group of leaders, which holds governmental powers with few to no limitations on them. The leader of a dictatorship is called a dictator. Politics in a dictatorship are ...
is the good character of the president and the lack of a crisis severe enough that the public would stand still for it."
In 2012 the order was consolidated into
Executive Order 13603.
References
Executive Order 11490 - Assigning emergency preparedness functions to Federal departments and agencies
11490
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