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Executive Order 12738 Constitutional Fidelity (+0.23)

Executive Order 12738—Administration of Foreign Assistance and Related Functions and Arms Export Controls

George Bush George Bush
•
Friday, December 14, 1990
•
6 min read (1,105 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 George Bush on 1990-12-14, establishes federal administrative policy concerning "Administration of Foreign Assistance and Related Functions and Arms Export Controls." It outlines operative directives for executive department officers, delegating enforcement responsibilities and establishing official governance guidelines.

Constitutional Assessment: Scrutinized through Article II, Section 2, this action exercises the President's constitutional role as Commander in Chief. Early Framers recognized broad executive discretion in commanding military forces during conflict, provided it remains bounded by congressional declarations and respects civilian domestic courts.

Key Directives & Operative Actions

▪ 12163, as amended, is further amended by: (1) amending paragraph (1) to read as follows: "(1) the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 et seq.
▪ 12163, as amended, is further amended by striking out subsections (b) and (c) and redesignating subsections "(d)", "(e)", "(f)", and "(g)" as "(b)", "(c)", "(d)", and "(e)", respectively.
▪ 11958, as amended, is further amended by striking out "and section 580 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1989 (Public Law 100-461)", and inserting in lieu thereof "and section 571 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1990 (Public Law 101-167)".

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Armed Forces & Military Establishments 🏛️ Sovereign State Governments & Localities 🏛️ Private Citizens & Property Owners 🏛️ Foreign Nations & International Entities 🏛️ Financial Institutions & Monetary Authorities
Total Words
1,105
7,217 characters
Estimated Read Time
6 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
27.7
Post-Grad reading level
Constitutional Polarity
+0.23
Framers' Alignment index
📜

Scholarly & Legal Citations 

Exec. Order No. 12738, George Bush (Dec 14, 1990). Available at https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-12738-administration-foreign-assistance-and-related-functions-and-arms.

Official Document Text

Source: The American Presidency Project (UCSB Archive)

Original Source →
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including section 621 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended and section 301 of title 3 of the United States Code, and in order to delegate certain functions to the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, and the Administrator of the Agency for International Development, it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1. Section 1-102(a) of Executive Order No. 12163, as amended, is further amended by: (1) amending paragraph (1) to read as follows: "(1) the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 et seq. ) (hereinafter referred to as the "Act"), except that the delegated functions under sections 116(e), 491(b), 491(c), 607, 627, 628, 630(3), and 666 of the Act shall be exercised in consultation with the Secretary of State;" (2) striking out paragraphs (5), (6), and (7) and redesignating paragraphs "(8)", "(9)", "(10)", and "(11)" as paragraphs "(5)", "(6)", "(7)", and "(8)", respectively; (3) amending paragraph (5), as redesignated by this Executive order, to read as follows: "(5) section 1205(b) of the International Security and Development Coopration Act of 1985 (hereinafer refered to as the "ISDCA of 1985");" (4) amending paragraph (6), as redesignated by this Executive order, to read as follows: "(6) section 535 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1990 (Public Law 101-167), to be exercised by the Administrator of the Agency for International Development within IDCA;" (5) amending paragraph (7), as redesignated by this Executive order, to read as follows: "(7) the first proviso under the heading "Population Development Assistance" contained in title II of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1990 (Public Law 101-167), to be exercised by the Administrator of the Agency for International Development within IDCA;" and (6) inserting the following new paragraph: "(9) section 514 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1990 (Public Law 101-167), insofar as they relate to the authority contained in section 109 of the Act, to be exercised by the Administrator of the Agency for International Development within IDCA." Sec. 2.1 Section 1-102 of Executive Order No. 12163, as amended, is further amended by striking out subsections (b) and (c) and redesignating subsections "(d)", "(e)", "(f)", and "(g)" as "(b)", "(c)", "(d)", and "(e)", respectively. Sec. 3. Section 1-102(a) of Executive Order No. 12163 , as amended, is further amended by: (1) redesignating paragraphs (2) through (8) as paragraphs (3) through (9), respectively; (2) redesignating paragraphs (9) through (31) as paragraphs (11) through (33), respectively; (3) inserting, in the appropriate place, the following new paragraphs: "(2) section 451 of the Act;" and "(10) section 604(a) of the Act, insofar as they related to procurement under chapter 1 of part I and chapter 4 of part II of the Act;". Sec. 4. Section 1-201(a) of Executive Order No. 12163, as amended, is further amended by: (1) amending paragraphs (28), (29), (30), (31), and (32), as redesignated by this Executive order, to read as follows: "(28) sections 513, 538, 554, 559, 560, 561, 562, 564(a), 599C, and 599G(a)(3) of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1990 (Public Law 101-167); "(29) the second and third provisos under the subheading "Contribution to the International Development Association" under the heading "Annual Contributions to International Financial Institutions" contained in title I of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1990 (Public Law 101-167), and section 548 of such Act, each of which shall be exercised in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury; "(30) the proviso relating to certain expropriation claims of U.S. citizens in El Salvador under the heading "Economic Support Fund" contained in title II of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1990 (Public Law 101-167); "(31) the proviso relating to tied aid credits under the heading "Economic Support Fund" contained in title II of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1990 (Public Law 101-167), which shall be exercised in consultation with the Administrator of the Agency for International Development within IDCA; "(32) subsection (c)(2) under the heading "Foreign Military Sales Debt Reforms" contained in title III of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1988 (Public Law 100-202), which shall be exercised in consultation with the Secretary of Defense;" (2) striking out the period at the end of paragraph (33), as redesignated by this Executive order, and inserting in lieu thereof a semicolon; and (3) adding the following new paragraphs: "(34) section 512 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1990 (Public Law 101-167), which shall be exercised in consultation with the President of the Export-Import Bank of the United States; "(35) section 581(a) and 581(c) of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1990 (Public Law 101-167), which shall be exercised in consultation with the Secretary of Defense; and "(36) section 12 of the International Narcotics Control Act of 1989 (Public Law 101-231)." Sec. 5. Section 1-301 of Executive Order No. 12163, as amended, is further amended by: (1) amending subsection (f) to read as follows: "(f) The functions conferred upon the President under section 573 and section 581(b)(2) of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1990 (Public Law 101-167)."; and (2) adding the following new subsection: "(g) The functions conferred upon the President under section 3 of the International Narcotics Control Act of 1989 (Public Law 101-231), which shall be exercised in consultation with the Secretary of State." Sec. 6. Section 1-701 of Executive Order No. 12163, as amended, is further amended -- (1) in subsection (a), by striking out "451,"; and (2) by amending subsection (d) to read as follows: "(d) The functions conferred upon the President with respect to determinations, certifications, directives, or transfers of funds, as the case may be, by sections 303, 465(b), 481(h), 505(d)(2)(A), 505(d)(3), 506(a), 552(c), 552(e), 610, 614(c), 620E, 632(b), 633A, 663(a), 669(b)(1), 670(a), 670(b)(2), and 670(b)(3) of the Act; those under section 604(a) of the Act except insofar as they relate to procurement under chapter 1 of part I and chapter 4 of part II." Sec. 7. Section 1(e) of Executive Order No. 11958, as amended, is further amended by striking out "and section 580 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1989 (Public Law 100-461)", and inserting in lieu thereof "and section 571 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1990 (Public Law 101-167)". George Bush The White House, December 14, 1990.