Posted on 05/22/2007 11:29:27 AM PDT by grapeape
wideawake’s got it right. The directive ensures that a constitutional government continues in the event of catastrophic attack, etc. (like a nuke in DC).
That is not what it says.
Nowhere does it say that the President "takes complete power."
It says that he is supposed to lead the activities of the Federal Government in ensuring constitutional government.
Scenario: DC is destroyed, the President, all the Congressmen and Supreme Court justices are lost.
Directive would then oblige the Presidential successor to make sure that orderly elections are held in each Congressional district to restore Congress, and then nominate judges before this newly empaneled Congress.
Who authorizes disclosure of the directive?
The President.
If it is on the President's website, then he has authorized its disclosure.
They can say it but we cant talk about it?
We're talking about it right now, smart guy.
Is this a power granted the president under martial law?
http://members.tripod.com/~Sidlinger/ml.html
Now comes Dubya with this order, which I believe is a simplified and somewhat more palatable replacement for Clinton’s policy (which begs the question, why now, after six years?).
The constitution does not provide absolute power to the executive under any circumstances, and that’s good, because there would be much opportunity for abuse of such a provision. But one has to be a realist about things and have contingencies in place nonetheless. I don’t believe this society would survive a prolonged period of anarchy. Some of us have our own plans for what we would do and where we would go if TSHTF, but here there are plenty who are clueless or otherwise unable to take care of themselves. These people would be better served by an extra-constitutional plan to restore order than by no plan at all, sad but true.
As for me, I am blessed to be in a temperate zone with ample habitable wilderness within 30 minutes of home, and I am confident I could live off the land any time of year, at the same time making use of other skills and equipment to network with kindred folk worldwide. So I’ll just be temporarily out of the way.
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