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Executive Order 2859 Constitutional Neutral (+0.02)

Executive Order 2859—National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences

Woodrow Wilson Woodrow Wilson
•
Saturday, May 11, 1918
•
3 min read (534 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 Woodrow Wilson on 1918-05-11, establishes federal administrative policy concerning "National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences." 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

▪ 2859 of May 11, 1918; and WHEREAS the effective prosecution of the Council's work requires the close cooperation of the scientific and technical branches of the Government, both military and civil, and makes representation of the Government on the Council desirable: NOW, THEREFORE, by virtue of the authority vested in me as President of the United States, it is ordered as follows: 1.
▪ The functions of the Council shall be as follows: (a) In general, to stimulate research in the mathematical, physical, and biological sciences, and in the application of these sciences to engineering, agriculture, medicine, and other useful arts, with the object of increasing knowledge, of strengthening the national defense, and of contributing in other ways to the public welfare.
▪ The Government shall be represented on the Council by members who are officers or employees of specified departments and agencies of the executive branch of the Government.
▪ The National Academy of Sciences shall specify, from time to time, the departments and agencies from which Government members shall be designated, and shall determine, from time to time, the number of Government members who shall be designated from each such department and agency.

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Armed Forces & Military Establishments 🏛️ Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants 🏛️ Private Citizens & Property Owners 🏛️ Foreign Nations & International Entities 🏛️ Public Health & Medical Institutions
Total Words
534
3,455 characters
Estimated Read Time
3 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
23.8
Post-Grad reading level
Constitutional Polarity
+0.02
Framers' Alignment index
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Scholarly & Legal Citations 

Exec. Order No. 2859, Woodrow Wilson (May 11, 1918). Available at https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-2859-national-research-council-the-national-academy-sciences.

Official Document Text

Source: The American Presidency Project (UCSB Archive)

Original Source →
WHEREAS the National Research Council (hereinafter referred to as the Council) was organized in 1916 at the request of the President by the National Academy of Sciences, under its congressional charter, as a measure of national preparedness; and WHEREAS in recognition of the work accomplished by the National Academy of Sciences through the Council in organizing research, in furthering science, and in securing cooperation of government and non-government agencies in the solution of their problems, the Council has been perpetuated by the Academy as requested by the President in Executive Order No. 2859 of May 11, 1918; and WHEREAS the effective prosecution of the Council's work requires the close cooperation of the scientific and technical branches of the Government, both military and civil, and makes representation of the Government on the Council desirable: NOW, THEREFORE, by virtue of the authority vested in me as President of the United States, it is ordered as follows: 1. The functions of the Council shall be as follows: (a) In general, to stimulate research in the mathematical, physical, and biological sciences, and in the application of these sciences to engineering, agriculture, medicine, and other useful arts, with the object of increasing knowledge, of strengthening the national defense, and of contributing in other ways to the public welfare. (b) To survey the broad possibilities of science, to formulate comprehensive projects of research, and to develop effective means of utilizing the scientific and technical resources of the country for dealing with such projects. (c) To promote cooperation in research, at home and abroad, in order to secure concentration of effort, minimize duplication, and stimulate progress; but in all cooperative undertakings to give encouragement to individual initiative, as fundamentally important to the advancement of science. (d) To serve as a means of bringing American and foreign investigators into active cooperation with the scientific and technical services of the Department of Defense and of the civil branches of the Government. (e) To direct the attention of scientific and technical investigators to the importance of military and industrial problems in connection with national defense, and to aid in the solution of these problems by organizing specific researches. (f) To gather and collate scientific and technical information, at home and abroad, in cooperation with governmental and other agencies, and to render such information available to duly accredited persons. 2. The Government shall be represented on the Council by members who are officers or employees of specified departments and agencies of the executive branch of the Government. The National Academy of Sciences shall specify, from time to time, the departments and agencies from which Government members shall be designated, and shall determine, from time to time, the number of Government members who shall be designated from each such department and agency. The head of each such specified department or agency shall designate the officers and employees from his department or agency, in such numbers as the National Academy of Sciences shall determine, who shall be members of the Council, but shall designate only those persons who are acceptable to the Academy. This order shall not be construed as terminating the tenure of any person who has heretofore been designated as a member of the Council.