WISCONSIN Whereas certain lands within the hereinafter-described areas have been acquired, or are in process of acquisition, under the authority of the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act of 1935, approved April 8, 1935 (49 Stat. 115), in connection with the Camp McCoy, LO-WI 16, Land-Utilization and Land-Conservation Project of the Department of Agriculture, in Wisconsin; and Whereas by Executive Order No. 7908, dated June 9, 1938, all the right, title, and interest of the United States in such lands, acquired or in process of acquisition, was transferred to the Secretary of Agriculture for use, administration, and disposition in accordance with the provisions of Title III of the Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act, approved July 22, 1937 (50 Stat. 522, 525), and the related provisions of Title IV thereof; and immediately upon the acquisition of legal title to those lands now in process of acquisition the said order, by the terms thereof, will become applicable to all the additional right, title, and interest thereby acquired by the United States; and Whereas it appears that the use of such lands as a military reservation would be in the public interest: Now, Therefore , by virtue of and pursuant to the authority vested in me by section 32 of Title III of the said Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act, and upon recommendation of the Secretary of Agriculture, it is ordered that all lands within the hereinafter-described areas acquired or in process of acquisition by the United States, together with the improvements thereon, be, and they are hereby, transferred from the Secretary of Agriculture to the Secretary of War for use as a military reservation: Provided, however , that the Secretary of Agriculture shall retain such jurisdiction over the lands now in process of acquisition by the United States as may be necessary to enable him to complete their acquisition. MONROE COUNTY, WISCONSIN FOURTH PRINCIPAL MERIDIAN T. 17 N., R. 2 W., sec. 16, S½, and S½NW¼; sec. 17, S½S½. S½SE¼NE¼, and N½NE¼SE¼; sec. 18, S½S½; sec. 19, NE¼, N½NW¼, and NW¼SE¼; secs. 20 and 21, all; sec. 28, NW¼NW¼; sec. 29, N½NE¼, and NE¼NW¼. T. 17 N., R. 3 W., sec. 3, NW¼; sec. 8, SE¼; sec. 9, all; sec. 10, SW¼SW¼; sec. 13, S½SE¼, SW¼, and W½NW¼; secs. 14 to 16, inclusive; sec. 17, SE¼; sec. 20, E½, and E½W½; sec. 21, all; sec. 22, N½ and NW¼SW¼; sec. 23, N½, and N½S½; sec. 24, NW¼, NE¼SW¼, and N½NE¼; sec. 28, all; sec. 29, E½, and E½W½: sec. 32, N½NE¼; sec. 33, N½, and N½SE¼; sec. 34, NW¼, N½SW¼, SE¼, SE¼NE¼, and W½NE¼. T. 18 N., R. 3 W., sec. 26, N½SE¼, and SW¼; sec. 27, SE¼; sec. 34, NE¼NW¼, S½SW¼, and E½; sec. 35, W½. FRANKLIN D ROOSEVELT The White House, July 13, 1939.
Executive Order 8203 ⚖️✨ Zone 2: Zone of Twilight Constitutional Neutral (+0.02)
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
Executive Order 8203—Transfer of Jurisdiction Over Certain Lands From the Secretary of Agriculture to the Secretary of War
Executive Brief • At a Glance
⏱️ 2 min read (460 words) •
● In Effect
🎯 Primary Mandate
All lands within the hereinafter-described areas acquired or in process of acquisition by the United States, together with the improvements thereon, be, and they are hereby, transferred from the Secretary of Agriculture to the Secretary of War for use as a military reservation: Provided, however , that the Secretary of Agriculture shall retain such jurisdiction over the lands now in process of acquisition by the United States as may be necessary to enable him to complete their acquisition.
⚖️ Constitutional Footing
⚖️✨ Zone 2: Zone of Twilight
Concurrent Authority / Congressional Silence
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
🏛️ Scope & Affected Sectors
Armed Forces & Military Establishments Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants Private Citizens & Property Owners Public Health & Medical Institutions
Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis
Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.
Signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on July 13, 1939, this order concerns Transfer of Jurisdiction Over Certain Lands From the Secretary of Agriculture to the Secretary of War. All lands within the hereinafter-described areas acquired or in process of acquisition by the United States, together with the improvements thereon, be, and they are hereby, transferred from the Secretary of Agriculture to the Secretary of War for use as a military reservation: Provided, however , that the Secretary of Agriculture shall retain such jurisdiction over the lands now in process of acquisition by the…
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
▪
All lands within the hereinafter-described areas acquired or in process of acquisition by the United States, together with the improvements thereon, be, and they are hereby, transferred from the Secretary of Agriculture to the Secretary of War for use as a military reservation: Provided, however , that the Secretary of Agriculture shall retain such jurisdiction over the lands now in process of acquisition by the United States as may be necessary to enable him to complete their acquisition.
Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted
🏛️ Armed Forces & Military Establishments
🏛️ Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants
🏛️ Private Citizens & Property Owners
🏛️ Public Health & Medical Institutions
Policy Areas & Topics
🏛️
The Framers' Constitutional Council
1787 PrismEvaluating this order against the constitutional debates of 1787 and the limits of Article II executive power.
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight)
§
"When the President acts in absence of either a congressional grant or denial of authority, he can only rely upon his own independent powers, but there is a zone of twilight in which he and Congress may have concurrent authority."
— Justice Robert H. Jackson, Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952) Concurrent Authority / Congressional Silence
JM
James Madison
Separation of Powers & Legislative Primacy
"Power is of an encroaching nature, and it ought to be effectually restrained from passing the limits assigned to it." — Federalist No. 48 (1788)
Madison would view this order with watchful scrutiny. Operating in the 'Zone of Twilight' where Congress is silent, each such directive establishes an administrative precedent that steadily expands the executive perimeter at the expense of legislative primacy.
Madisonian Stance: Vigilant / Cautionary
AH
Alexander Hamilton
The Energetic Executive & Unified Command
"The direction of war implies the direction of the common strength; and the power of directing and employing the common strength must be under the direction of the single hand of the Executive." — Federalist No. 74 (1788)
Hamilton would forcefully champion executive discretion here. For foreign entanglements, commerce defense, and national security, deliberative assemblies are too slow and faction-ridden. A unified, energetic Executive exercising swift command is precisely what the Philadelphia Convention intended for national preservation.
Hamiltonian Stance: Strong Prerogative Support
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
30 / 100 friction index
Dimension 1 • Art. I, §1 & §8
Low Friction
Legislative Encroachment & Purse
Operates within delegated statutory execution without modifying legislative appropriations or taxing powers.
Benchmark: Power of the purse, taxes/tariffs, and rule of law reserved to Congress.
Dimension 2 • Art. II, §1 & §3
Low Friction
Executive Scope & Faithfulness
Exercises standard supervisory executive authority to faithfully execute existing statutes.
Benchmark: Faithfully execute laws enacted by Congress vs. unilateral decree.
Dimension 3 • 10th Amendment
Moderate Friction
Federalism & State Sovereignty
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
Low Friction
Due Process & Individual Rights
Focuses on internal governmental operations with no direct impairment of private rights or property.
Benchmark: Protection of private property, contracts, liberty, and procedural justice.
Dimension 5 • Separation of Powers
Moderate Friction
Youngstown Jacksonian Tier
The order relies on inherent Article II executive discretion, civil service management, or foreign diplomacy where Congress has neither expressly approved nor prohibited action.
Benchmark: Concurrent Authority / Congressional Silence
⚖️
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%).
ℹ️
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
460
2,673 characters
Estimated Read Time
2 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
8.1
Grade 8
Text size:
Related Executive Orders
1 order cited directly in this text, plus related actions from this administration.
EO 7908 Jun 9, 1938
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 7908—Transferring Certain Lands to the Secretary of Agriculture for Use, Administration, and Disposition Under Title III of the Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
All the right, title, and interest of the United States in the lands so acquired or in process of acquisition, be, and they are hereby, transferred to the Secretary of Agriculture for use, administration, and disposition in accordance with the provisions of Title III of the…
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EO 8202 Jul 13, 1939
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 8202—Authorizing and Requesting the Federal Power Commission to Perform Certain Functions Relating to the Transmission of Electric Energy Between the United States and Foreign Countries and to the Exportation and Importation of Natural Gas From and Into the United States
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
I hereby authorize and request the Federal Power Commission (1) to receive all applications for permits for the construction, operation, maintenance, or connection, at the borders of the United States, of facilities for the transmission of electric energy between the United…
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EO 8206 Jul 14, 1939
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 8206—Revocation of Executive Order No. 6432 of November 16, 1933, Withdrawing Public Lands
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
WYOMING By virtue of and pursuant to the authority vested in me by the act of June 25, 1910, c. 421, 36 Stat. 847, Executive Order No. 6432 of November 16, 1933, withdrawing public lands in Wyoming pending a resurvey, is hereby revoked.
Franklin D. Roosevelt Grade 7 • 1m
EO 8205 Jul 14, 1939
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 8205—Authorizing the Initial Appointment of the Assistant Administrator of the Federal Security Agency and One Private Secretary to the Assistant Administrator Without Compliance With the Civil Service Rules, and Amending Schedule A of the Civil Service Rules
📜 Art. II §3: Administrative Management & Civil Service
Subject to the establishment before the Civil Service Commission of the requisite qualifications in each case, the initial appointment of the Assistant Administrator of the Federal Security Agency, and one private secretary or confidential assistant to the said Assistant…
Franklin D. Roosevelt College Level • 1m
EO 8204 Jul 14, 1939
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 8204—Exemption of Michael E. Gorman From Compulsory Retirement for Age
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
I hereby exempt the said Michael E. Gorman from compulsory retirement for age for a period of six months ending February 29, 1940.
Franklin D. Roosevelt High School • 1m
EO 8201 Jul 11, 1939
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 8201—Amendment of Executive Order No. 7302 of February 21, 1936, Transferring Certain Lands to the Control and Jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Navy
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
By virtue of the authority vested in me by the act of March 3, 1917, c. 171, 39 Stat. 1132, and the Second Deficiency Act, Fiscal Year 1931 (46 Stat. 1552, 1570), and as President of the United States, Executive Order No. 7302 of February 21, 1936, transferring certain lands in…
Franklin D. Roosevelt High School • 1m
📜
Scholarly & Legal Citations
Exec. Order No. 8203 (July 13, 1939), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-8203-transfer-jurisdiction-over-certain-lands-from-the-secretary.
