Executive Order 8400 Constitutional Fidelity (+0.38)

Executive Order 8400—Amending the Foreign Service Regulations of the United States

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Monday, April 29, 1940

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2 min read (354 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 Franklin D. Roosevelt on 1940-04-29, establishes federal administrative policy concerning "Amending the Foreign Service Regulations of the United States." It outlines operative directives for executive department officers, delegating enforcement responsibilities and establishing official governance guidelines.

Constitutional Assessment: Reviewed under the Tenth Amendment and the principle of dual federalism, this order touches upon domains traditionally reserved to the sovereign States. The Framers would caution against any attempt to commandeer state officers or displace local police powers through federal executive fiat.

Key Directives & Operative Actions

▪ S 227), it is ordered that the Foreign Service Regulations of the United States be, and they are hereby, amended by prescribing the following as Chapter XXII thereof: CHAPTER XXII VISAS FOR ALIENS XXII-1.

▪ Officers of the Foreign Service shall familiarize themselves with the existing laws on the subject of immigration and visas and with the rules and regulations established thereunder by the Secretary of Labor, the Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization, or other officials acting in the name of the President and they shall perform the duties prescribed therein for them.

▪ They shall submit reports to the Department of State on any actual, attempted, or suspected violation of the immigration rules and laws and in an emergency may suitably inform the appropriate immigration officials.

▪ Officers of the Foreign Service, except consular agents, shall visa for and issue to admissible Chinese such documents as are prescribed by Executive order, and the laws, rules, and regulations governing the admission of Chinese persons into the United States or territory under its jurisdiction.

Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted

🏛️ Merchants, Importers & Commercial Enterprises 🏛️ Sovereign State Governments & Localities 🏛️ Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants 🏛️ Foreign Nations & International Entities

Total Words

354

2,225 characters

Estimated Read Time

2 min

@ 200 words / min

Flesch-Kincaid

11.3

Post-Grad reading level

Constitutional Polarity

+0.38

Framers' Alignment index

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Scholarly & Legal Citations

Exec. Order No. 8400, Franklin D. Roosevelt (Apr 29, 1940). Available at https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-8400-amending-the-foreign-service-regulations-the-united-states.

Official Document Text

Source: The American Presidency Project (UCSB Archive)

Original Source →

By virtue of and pursuant to the authority vested in me by section 1752 of the Revised Statutes of the United States (22 U.S.C. S 132), and the act of May 22, 1918, 40 Stat. 559 (22 U.S.C. SS 223-226) as extended by the act of March 2, 1921, 41 Stat. 1217 (22 U.S.C. S 227), it is ordered that the Foreign Service Regulations of the United States be, and they are hereby, amended by prescribing the following as Chapter XXII thereof: CHAPTER XXII VISAS FOR ALIENS XXII-1. Duties of officers of the Foreign Service in connection with the enforcement of immigration laws. Officers of the Foreign Service shall familiarize themselves with the existing laws on the subject of immigration and visas and with the rules and regulations established thereunder by the Secretary of Labor, the Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization, or other officials acting in the name of the President and they shall perform the duties prescribed therein for them. They shall submit reports to the Department of State on any actual, attempted, or suspected violation of the immigration rules and laws and in an emergency may suitably inform the appropriate immigration officials. XXII-2. Duties of officers of the Foreign Service in connection with the admission of Chinese. Officers of the Foreign Service, except consular agents, shall visa for and issue to admissible Chinese such documents as are prescribed by Executive order, and the laws, rules, and regulations governing the admission of Chinese persons into the United States or territory under its jurisdiction. XXII-3. Granting of diplomatic visas. Diplomatic visas may be granted abroad under such rules and regulations as the Secretary of State may prescribe. CANCELATION OF REGULATIONS The following provisions of the Foreign Service Regulations of the United States are hereby canceled: PART I Sections XII-5 and XII-6. PART II Sections XXII-361, XXII-362, XXII-364, XXII-366, and XXII-368. REVOCATION OF EXECUTIVE ORDERS The following Executive orders are hereby revoked: Executive Order No. 4690, dated July 11, 1927. Executive Order No. 5226, dated November 18, 1929. Executive Order No. 7449, dated September 16, 1936. FRANKLIN D ROOSEVELT The White House, April 29, 1940.