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Executive Order 11878 🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority Constitutional Fidelity (+0.29) 📜 Art. II §3: Faithful Execution of Statutory Law

Executive Order 11878—Assigning Responsibilities Relating to Activities of the Presidential Clemency Board

Gerald R. Ford Gerald R. Ford
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Wednesday, September 10, 1975
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2 min read (389 words)

Executive Brief • At a Glance

⏱️ 2 min read (389 words) • ● In Effect
🎯 Primary Mandate

Of Executive Order No. 11803 of September 16, 1974, as amended, is amended to read: "The Board shall submit its final recommendations to the President not later than September 15, 1975, at which time it shall cease to exist." SEC. 2.

View all 4 directives ↓
⚖️ Constitutional Footing
🏛️✅ Zone 1: Maximum Authority
Express or Implied Congressional Authorization
📜 Art. II §3: Faithful Execution of Statutory Law
Framers' constitutional debate ↓
🏛️ Scope & Affected Sectors
Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants
Inspect unabridged text ↓

Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis

Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.

Signed by President Gerald R. Ford on September 10, 1975, this order concerns Assigning Responsibilities Relating to Activities of the Presidential Clemency Board. Section 9 of Executive Order No. 11803 of September 16, 1974, as amended, is amended to read: "The Board shall submit its final recommendations to the President not later than September 15, 1975, at which time it shall cease to exist." SEC. 2.

Constitutional Assessment: An early statesman would view this measure favorably under Article II, Section 3 (the Take Care Clause). The President operates strictly within the ambit of executing established laws and supervising departmental subordinates, respecting the supremacy of the legislative branch without fabricating novel statutory obligations.

Key Directives & Operative Actions

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Of Executive Order No. 11803 of September 16, 1974, as amended, is amended to read: "The Board shall submit its final recommendations to the President not later than September 15, 1975, at which time it shall cease to exist." SEC. 2.

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Any applications for Executive clemency, as to which the Presidential Clemency Board (established by Executive Order No. 11803) has not taken final action shall be transferred, together with the files related thereto, to the Attorney General.

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The Attorney General, with respect to the applications and related files transferred to him by Section 2 of this Order, shall take all actions appropriate or necessary to complete the clemency process and shall expeditiously report to the President his findings and recommendations as to whether Executive clemency should be granted or denied in any case.

▪

In performing his responsibilities under this Order, the Attorney General shall apply the relevant criteria and comply with the appropriate and applicable instructions and procedures established by Executive Order No. 11803 of September 16, 1974, as amended, Proclamation No. 4313 of September 16, 1974, as amended, Executive Order No. 11804 of September 16, 1974, and, to the extent that he deems appropriate, the regulations of the Presidential Clemency Board and the Selective Service System issued pursuant to the foregoing Executive orders.

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants

Policy Areas & Topics

🏷️ Economy & Finance
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The Framers' Constitutional Council

1787 Prism

Evaluating this order against the constitutional debates of 1787 and the limits of Article II executive power.

🏛️✅ Zone 1 (Maximum Authority)
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"When the President acts pursuant to an express or implied authorization of Congress, his authority is at its maximum, for it includes all that he possesses in his own right plus all that Congress can delegate."

— Justice Robert H. Jackson, Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952) Express or Implied Congressional Authorization
JM

James Madison

Separation of Powers & Legislative Primacy

"The constitutional magistracy was designed not to invent policy, but to be the faithful instrument of the laws passed by the people's representatives." — Speech in the First Congress (1789)

Madison would approve the structural posture of this order. The President acts strictly in subordination to statutory authority granted under Article II, Section 3 ("take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed"). The checks and balances hold firm because the policy origin remains with the legislature.

Madisonian Stance: Concurring (Statutory)
AH

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.

Hamiltonian Stance: Supportive of Execution
GM

George Mason

Bill of Rights, Due Process & 10th Amendment

"The president will be surrounded by flatterers and sycophants... and the great powers of the executive will gradually absorb the liberties of the people." — Cato IV (Anti-Federalist, 1787)

The Anti-Federalist prism advises continuous democratic vigilance. Even routine administrative directives aggregate centralized federal power away from town halls and state assemblies toward a distant executive apparatus.

Anti-Federalist Stance: Eternal Vigilance Required
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Five Measurable "Constitutional Friction" Dimensions

An objective audit measuring potential separation-of-powers tension against the United States Constitution and established Supreme Court doctrine.

⚖️ Discretionary Twilight Zone
40 / 100 friction index
Dimension 1 • Art. I, §1 & §8

Legislative Encroachment & Purse

Moderate Friction

Administers commerce or fiscal programs requiring ongoing statutory delegation and legislative oversight.

Benchmark: Power of the purse, taxes/tariffs, and rule of law reserved to Congress.
Dimension 2 • Art. II, §1 & §3

Executive Scope & Faithfulness

Moderate Friction

Directs internal executive branch machinery, agency workflows, and federal personnel.

Benchmark: Faithfully execute laws enacted by Congress vs. unilateral decree.
Dimension 3 • 10th Amendment

Federalism & State Sovereignty

Moderate Friction

Engages state and local partners in cooperative federalism programs.

Benchmark: Police powers and un-delegated responsibilities reserved to the States.
Dimension 4 • 5th & 14th Amendments

Due Process & Individual Rights

Moderate Friction

Applies regulatory or compliance standards to private contractors or commercial entities.

Benchmark: Protection of private property, contracts, liberty, and procedural justice.
Dimension 5 • Separation of Powers

Youngstown Jacksonian Tier

Low Friction

The President operates strictly as the constitutional Chief Executive, carrying out policy established by Congress with strong statutory backing.

Benchmark: Express or Implied Congressional Authorization
⚖️ Audit Synthesis

This order operates within Justice Jackson’s Zone of Twilight, resting upon concurrent presidential authority or congressional silence.

Weighted composite: Art. I (25%), Art. II (25%), Federalism (15%), Due Process (15%), Youngstown (20%).
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How to read these dimensions: Executive power expands whenever an administration acts without explicit statutory authorization from Congress (Article I), touches upon police powers historically reserved to the states (Tenth Amendment), or limits private rights and property without judicial process. A low friction score indicates strict concordance with enacted law; a high friction score highlights orders testing the limits of presidential discretion.
Total Words
389
2,432 characters
Estimated Read Time
2 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
16.4
Post-Graduate Legal
Language Tone Score
+0.29
Constitutional Fidelity
How is this scored?
Text size:

Official Archival Text

View Source Document

By virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution of the United States of America, and as President of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered as follows: SECTION 1. Section 9 of Executive Order No. 11803 of September 16, 1974, as amended, is amended to read: "The Board shall submit its final recommendations to the President not later than September 15, 1975, at which time it shall cease to exist." SEC. 2. Any applications for Executive clemency, as to which the Presidential Clemency Board (established by Executive Order No. 11803) has not taken final action shall be transferred, together with the files related thereto, to the Attorney General. SEC. 3. The Attorney General, with respect to the applications and related files transferred to him by Section 2 of this Order, shall take all actions appropriate or necessary to complete the clemency process and shall expeditiously report to the President his findings and recommendations as to whether Executive clemency should be granted or denied in any case. In performing his responsibilities under this Order, the Attorney General shall apply the relevant criteria and comply with the appropriate and applicable instructions and procedures established by Executive Order No. 11803 of September 16, 1974, as amended, Proclamation No. 4313 of September 16, 1974, as amended, Executive Order No. 11804 of September 16, 1974, and, to the extent that he deems appropriate, the regulations of the Presidential Clemency Board and the Selective Service System issued pursuant to the foregoing Executive orders. SEC. 4. The Director of the Office of Management and Budget is hereby designated and empowered to take such action as he deems necessary to ensure the orderly and prompt termination of the activities of the Presidential Clemency Board and the assignment of responsibilities directed by this Order. SEC:. 5. Departments and agencies in the Executive branch shall, to the extent permitted by law, cooperate with and assist the Attorney General, the Director of the Selective Service and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget in the performance of their responsibilities under this Order. SEC. 6. The responsibilities assigned under this Order are to be completed no later than March 31, 1976, at which time the Attorney General shall submit his final recommendations to the President. GERALD R. FORD The White House, September 10, 1975.

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Scholarly & Legal Citations 

Exec. Order No. 11,878 (Sept. 10, 1975), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-11878-assigning-responsibilities-relating-activities-the-presidential.