Executive Order 2868 Constitutional Neutral (+0.02)

Executive Order 2868—Establishment of War Industries Board

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Tuesday, May 28, 1918

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1 min read (112 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 1918-05-28, establishes federal administrative policy concerning "Establishment of War Industries Board." It is a direct, concise executive instruction delivering focused administrative or military commands to department leadership.

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

▪ I hereby establish the War Industries Board as a separate administrative agency to act for me and under my direction.

▪ Baruch, Esquire, its Chairman, shall be and hereby are continued in full force and effect.

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Armed Forces & Military Establishments 🏛️ Merchants, Importers & Commercial Enterprises

Total Words

112

650 characters

Estimated Read Time

1 min

@ 200 words / min

Flesch-Kincaid

11.5

Post-Grad reading level

Constitutional Polarity

+0.02

Framers' Alignment index

📜

Scholarly & Legal Citations

Exec. Order No. 2868, Woodrow Wilson (May 28, 1918). Available at https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-2868-establishment-war-industries-board.

Official Document Text

Source: The American Presidency Project (UCSB Archive)

Original Source →

THE WHITE HOUSE, May 28, 1918. I hereby establish the War Industries Board as a separate administrative agency to act for me and under my direction. This is the Board which was originally formed by, and subsidiary to, the Council of National Defense under the provisions of "An Act Making Appropriations for the Support of the Army for the Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 1917, and for other purposes," approved August 29, 1916. The functions, duties and powers of the War Industries Board, as outlined in my letter of March 4, 1918, to Bernard M. Baruch, Esquire, its Chairman, shall be and hereby are continued in full force and effect. WOODROW WILSON.