Executive Order 12170 Constitutional Friction / Overreach (-0.19)

Executive Order 12170—Blocking Iranian Government Property

•

Wednesday, November 14, 1979

•

1 min read (204 words)

Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis

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

This executive order, signed by President Jimmy Carter on 1979-11-14, establishes federal administrative policy concerning "Blocking Iranian Government Property." It is a direct, concise executive instruction delivering focused administrative or military commands to department leadership.

Constitutional Assessment: An early statesman would subject this decree to rigorous scrutiny under Article I, Section 8. The Framers deliberately committed commerce, taxation, tariffs, and revenue to Congress alone. To the extent this order imposes duties or financial burdens without explicit statutory pre-authorization, it creates friction with the separation of powers.

Key Directives & Operative Actions

▪ 301, I, JIMMY CARTER, President of the United States, find that the situation in Iran constitutes an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy and economy of the United States and hereby declare a national emergency to deal with that threat.

▪ I hereby order blocked all property and interests in property of the Government of Iran, its instrumentalities and controlled entities and the Central Bank of Iran which are or become subject to the jurisdiction of the United States or which are in or come within the possession or control of persons subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.

▪ This order is effective immediately and shall be transmitted to the Congress and published in the FEDERAL REGISTER.

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Foreign Nations & International Entities 🏛️ Financial Institutions & Monetary Authorities

Total Words

204

1,235 characters

Estimated Read Time

1 min

@ 200 words / min

Flesch-Kincaid

Post-Grad reading level

Constitutional Polarity

-0.19

Framers' Alignment index

📜

Scholarly & Legal Citations

Exec. Order No. 12170, Jimmy Carter (Nov 14, 1979). Available at https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-12170-blocking-iranian-government-property.

Official Document Text

Source: The American Presidency Project (UCSB Archive)

Original Source →

Pursuant to the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, 50 U.S.C.A. sec. 1701 et seq., the National Emergencies Act, 50 U.S.C. sec. 1601 et seq., and 3 U.S.C. sec. 301, I, JIMMY CARTER, President of the United States, find that the situation in Iran constitutes an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy and economy of the United States and hereby declare a national emergency to deal with that threat. I hereby order blocked all property and interests in property of the Government of Iran, its instrumentalities and controlled entities and the Central Bank of Iran which are or become subject to the jurisdiction of the United States or which are in or come within the possession or control of persons subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to employ all powers granted to me by the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to carry out the provisions of this order. This order is effective immediately and shall be transmitted to the Congress and published in the FEDERAL REGISTER. JIMMY CARTER The White House, November 14, 1979.