Executive Orders: Tyranny by Memo

Voice of The Stateless

14 Apr 2025 — 2 min read

Photo courtesy of Kevin Lamarque. Used under Fair Use (17 U.S.C. § 107) for news reporting and commentary

How many laws did Congress pass last year? Doesn’t matter. Because your president — regardless of party — doesn’t need them anymore. We’ve entered an era where executive orders aren’t just administrative tools. They’re law by fiat. Policy by pen. Tyranny wrapped in stationary.

And the most dangerous part? Most Americans are numb to it.

“We Don’t Need Congress”

Executive orders were never meant to legislate. They were supposed to guide the internal operations of the executive branch. But today, they’re used to rewrite immigration law, cancel student debt, launch military operations, and redefine entire sectors of the economy — all without a single vote from the people’s representatives.

Obama used them when Congress wouldn't act. Trump used them to override agencies. Biden signed over 100 in his first year. This isn’t governing — it’s rule by decree. The Constitution was meant to prevent exactly this: concentrated power in the hands of one man.

But now, every president is a king. Or worse — an unaccountable CEO with nukes.

A cartoon illustrating the excessive use of executive orders, with a towering stack labeled "Executive Orders" overshadowing the legislative process.

The "Emergency" Excuse

Most executive orders rely on one magic word: emergency. Declare one, and suddenly the limits disappear. During COVID, we saw governors and the White House alike suspend constitutional rights under the emergency clause. They shut down businesses, mandated vaccines, regulated speech online, and criminalized gatherings.

They told us it was temporary.

Now the playbook is permanent.

Climate emergency? Gun violence emergency? Misinformation emergency? Each one a blank check for more executive action. Each one a loophole around democracy. You don’t get a vote. You get a press conference.

No Checks, No Balance

There is virtually no legal oversight. Congress rarely pushes back. The courts only intervene when public outrage forces their hand — and even then, it takes years. Meanwhile, agencies enforce these orders like law. Try defying one and see how quickly the IRS, the FBI, or the DOJ shows up.

If the president can wage economic war with sanctions, lock down your town, and freeze your bank account — all without a single law passed — do you really live in a republic?

Or are we just pretending?

🗽 Americans need to stop treating executive orders like leadership. They are shortcuts around liberty, used by both parties, always at your expense. Demand that Congress reclaim its role. Call out both sides when they cheer for power grabs. Because if we don’t put the brakes on this now, the presidency won’t be a branch of government — it’ll be the whole damn tree.

📢 No more rule by signature. Restore constitutional lawmaking. Or accept that you're being ruled, not represented.

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