By virtue of the authority vested in me as President of the United States, Executive Order No. 11583 of February 24, 1971, is amended by substituting for section 1 thereof the following: "SECTION 1. Office of Consumer Affairs. The Office of Consumer Affairs (hereinafter referred to as the 'Office') is hereby established in the Executive Office of the President. The Office shall be headed by a Director, who shall be appointed by the President, and there shall be in the Office two Deputy Directors who shall also be appointed by the President. The Deputy Directors shall perform such duties as the Director may designate, and in case of a vacancy in the office of Director or during the absence or incapacity of the Director, the Deputy Directors, in the order designated by the President, shall act as Director. The Director and Deputy Directors shall receive compensation at such rates as the President, consonant with law, may hereafter determine." RICHARD NIXON The White House May 26, 1971
Executive Order 11595—Amending Executive Order 11583, Establishing the Office of Consumer Affairs
Executive Brief • At a Glance
Executive Order No. 11583 of February 24, 1971, is amended by substituting for section 1 thereof the following: "SECTION 1.
Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis
Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.
Signed by President Richard Nixon on May 26, 1971, this order concerns Amending Executive Order 11583, Establishing the Office of Consumer Affairs. Executive Order No. 11583 of February 24, 1971, is amended by substituting for section 1 thereof the following: "SECTION 1. Office of Consumer Affairs. The Office of Consumer Affairs (hereinafter referred to as the 'Office') is hereby established in the Executive Office of the President.
Key Directives & Operative Actions
Executive Order No. 11583 of February 24, 1971, is amended by substituting for section 1 thereof the following: "SECTION 1.
The Office of Consumer Affairs (hereinafter referred to as the 'Office') is hereby established in the Executive Office of the President.
The Office shall be headed by a Director, who shall be appointed by the President, and there shall be in the Office two Deputy Directors who shall also be appointed by the President.
The Deputy Directors shall perform such duties as the Director may designate, and in case of a vacancy in the office of Director or during the absence or incapacity of the Director, the Deputy Directors, in the order designated by the President, shall act as Director.
Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted
Policy Areas & Topics
The Framers' Constitutional Council
1787 PrismEvaluating this order against the constitutional debates of 1787 and the limits of Article II executive power.
"When the President acts in absence of either a congressional grant or denial of authority, he can only rely upon his own independent powers, but there is a zone of twilight in which he and Congress may have concurrent authority."
James Madison
Separation of Powers & Legislative Primacy
"Power is of an encroaching nature, and it ought to be effectually restrained from passing the limits assigned to it." — Federalist No. 48 (1788)
Madison would view this order with watchful scrutiny. Operating in the 'Zone of Twilight' where Congress is silent, each such directive establishes an administrative precedent that steadily expands the executive perimeter at the expense of legislative primacy.
Alexander Hamilton
The Energetic Executive & Unified Command
"A feeble Executive implies a feeble execution of the government; and a government ill executed, whatever it may be in theory, must be, in practice, a bad government." — Federalist No. 70 (1788)
Hamilton would view this directive as the natural and indispensable functioning of administrative leadership. Without the power to coordinate agencies, manage personnel, and resolve operational ambiguities, the modern presidency would be reduced to an impotent figurehead.
George Mason
Bill of Rights, Due Process & 10th Amendment
"The purse and the sword ought never to be in the same hands... nor the liberties of the citizen placed at the pleasure of a single magistrate." — Virginia Ratifying Convention (1788)
George Mason and the Anti-Federalists would sound a fierce warning. They feared that Article II would inevitably evolve into an elective monarchy. When an executive order impacts private rights, property, or civil liberties without individualized judicial process, Mason would see their darkest predictions verified.
Five Measurable "Constitutional Friction" Dimensions
An objective audit measuring potential separation-of-powers tension against the United States Constitution and established Supreme Court doctrine.
Legislative Encroachment & Purse
Operates within delegated statutory execution without modifying legislative appropriations or taxing powers.
Executive Scope & Faithfulness
Directs internal executive branch machinery, agency workflows, and federal personnel.
Federalism & State Sovereignty
Engages state and local partners in cooperative federalism programs.
Due Process & Individual Rights
Focuses on internal governmental operations with no direct impairment of private rights or property.
Youngstown Jacksonian Tier
The order relies on inherent Article II executive discretion, civil service management, or foreign diplomacy where Congress has neither expressly approved nor prohibited action.
This order operates within Justice Jackson’s Zone of Twilight, resting upon concurrent presidential authority or congressional silence.
Referenced By Later Executive Orders (1)
Subsequent presidents who cited, amended, continued, or revoked this directive in later orders.
Scholarly & Legal Citations
Exec. Order No. 11,595 (May 26, 1971), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-11595-amending-executive-order-11583-establishing-the-office-consumer.