NORTH DAKOTA By virtue of the authority vested in me as President of the United States, and in order to effectuate further the purposes of the Migratory Bird Conservation Act (45 Stat. 1222), it is ordered as follows: SECTION 1. The name of the Kellys Slough Migratory Waterfowl Refuge, in Grand Forks County, North Dakota, established by Executive Order No. 7320 of March 19, 1936, is hereby changed to Kellys Slough National Wildlife Refuge. SECTION 2. Subject to valid existing rights, all lands owned or controlled by the United States within the following-described area, comprising 960 acres, more or less, in Grand Forks County, North Dakota, are hereby included in and reserved as a part of the said Kellys Slough National Wildlife Refuge: FIFTH PRINCIPAL MERIDIAN T. 152 N., R. 52 W., sec. 14, S 1/2 NE 1/4, NW 1/4, N 1/2 SW 1/4, and S 1/2 SE 1/4; sec. 15, E 1/2 NE 1/4; sec. 22, W 1/2 NE 1/4; sec. 23, N 1/2 and N 1/2 SE 1/4. The Kellys Slough National Wildlife Refuge, as enlarged by this order, consists of all lands owned or controlled by the United States in the following-described area, comprising 1,640 acres, more or less: FIFTH PRINCIPAL MERIDIAN T. 152 N., R. 52 W., sec. 14, S 1/2 NE 1/4, NW 1/4, and S 1/2; sec. 15, E 1/2 E 1/2; sec. 22, E 1/2; sec. 23, N 1/2 and N 1/2 S 1/2; sec. 27, W 1/2 NE 1/4 and NE 1/4 NW 1/4. FRANKLIN D ROOSEVELT The White House, January 23, 1941.
Executive Order 8650 ⚖️✨ Zone 2: Zone of Twilight Constitutional Neutral (+0.02)
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
Executive Order 8650—Changing the Name of the Kellys Slough Migratory Waterfowl Refuge to Kellys Slough National Wildlife Refuge and Adding Certain Lands Thereto
Executive Brief • At a Glance
⏱️ 1 min read (261 words) •
● In Effect
🎯 Primary Mandate
The name of the Kellys Slough Migratory Waterfowl Refuge, in Grand Forks County, North Dakota, established by Executive Order No. 7320 of March 19, 1936, is hereby changed to Kellys Slough National Wildlife Refuge.
⚖️ Constitutional Footing
⚖️✨ Zone 2: Zone of Twilight
Concurrent Authority / Congressional Silence
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
🏛️ Scope & Affected Sectors
Executive Branch Departments General Body of the People
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 January 23, 1941, this order concerns Changing the Name of the Kellys Slough Migratory Waterfowl Refuge to Kellys Slough National Wildlife Refuge and Adding Certain Lands Thereto. The name of the Kellys Slough Migratory Waterfowl Refuge, in Grand Forks County, North Dakota, established by Executive Order No. 7320 of March 19, 1936, is hereby changed to Kellys Slough National Wildlife Refuge. SECTION 2.
Constitutional Assessment: This action represents an orderly exercise of Article II administrative discretion, managing the internal machinery and personnel of the executive branch without abridging the ancient liberties of the people.
Key Directives & Operative Actions
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The name of the Kellys Slough Migratory Waterfowl Refuge, in Grand Forks County, North Dakota, established by Executive Order No. 7320 of March 19, 1936, is hereby changed to Kellys Slough National Wildlife Refuge.
▪
Subject to valid existing rights, all lands owned or controlled by the United States within the following-described area, comprising 960 acres, more or less, in Grand Forks County, North Dakota, are hereby included in and reserved as a part of the said Kellys Slough National Wildlife Refuge: FIFTH PRINCIPAL MERIDIAN T. 152 N., R. 52 W., sec. 14, S 1/2 NE 1/4, NW 1/4, N 1/2 SW 1/4, and S 1/2 SE 1/4; sec. 15, E 1/2 NE 1/4; sec. 22, W 1/2 NE 1/4; sec. 23, N 1/2 and N 1/2 SE 1/4.
Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted
🏛️ Executive Branch Departments
🏛️ General Body of the People
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
"A feeble Executive implies a feeble execution of the government; and a government ill executed, whatever it may be in theory, must be, in practice, a bad government." — Federalist No. 70 (1788)
Hamilton would view this directive as the natural and indispensable functioning of administrative leadership. Without the power to coordinate agencies, manage personnel, and resolve operational ambiguities, the modern presidency would be reduced to an impotent figurehead.
Hamiltonian Stance: Defends Vigor & Dispatch
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
📐
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
261
1,395 characters
Estimated Read Time
1 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 7320 Mar 19, 1936
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 7320—Establishing Kellys Slough Migratory Waterfowl Refuge in North Dakota
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
Subject to valid existing rights, the above-described lands be, and they are hereby, withdrawn from settlement, location, sale, entry, or other form of appropriation under the public-land laws and reserved and set apart for the use of the Department of Agriculture as a refuge…
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EO 8651 Jan 23, 1941
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 8651—Withdrawal of Public Lands for the Use of the War Department
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
Subject to valid existing rights, the public lands in the following-described areas be, and they are hereby, withdrawn from all forms of appropriation under the public-land laws, including the mining laws, and reserved for the use of the War Department as an aerial bombing and…
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EO 8649 Jan 23, 1941
🏛️✅ Zone 1 (Maximum Authority) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 8649—Withdrawing Public Land for the Use of the Department of State
📜 10th Amend: Intergovernmental Federalism Cooperation
Subject to valid existing rights, the following-described lands be, and they are hereby, withdrawn from all forms of appropriation under the public-land laws, including the mining laws, and reserved for the use of the Department of State in connection with the Rio Grande…
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EO 8648 Jan 23, 1941
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 8648—Changing the Name of the Killcohook Migratory Bird Refuge to Killcohook National Wildlife Refuge and Adding Certain Lands Thereto
📜 5th Amend: Regulatory Execution with Due Process
The name of the Killcohook Migratory Bird Refuge, in Newcastle County, Delaware, and Salem County, New Jersey, established by Executive Order No. 6582 of February 3, 1934, and enlarged by Executive Order No. 6960 of February 4, 1935, is hereby changed to Killcohook National…
Franklin D. Roosevelt High School • 2m
EO 8647 Jan 22, 1941
🏛️✅ Zone 1 (Maximum Authority) Fidelity (+0.33)
Executive Order 8647—Establishing the Havasu Lake National Wildlife Refuge
📜 Art. II §3: Faithful Execution of Statutory Law
All lands owned by the United States within the following-described areas, comprising approximately 37,370 acres, in Mohave and Yuma Counties, Arizona, and San Bernardino County, California, be, and they are hereby, reserved and set apart, subject to valid existing rights, for…
Franklin D. Roosevelt College Level • 1m
EO 8646 Jan 22, 1941
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 8646—Establishing the San Andres National Wildlife Refuge
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
Subject to valid existing rights, the following-described public lands, comprising 57,215.48 acres, more or less, in Dona Ana County, New Mexico, are hereby withdrawn from settlement, location, sale, or entry, and reserved and set apart for the use of the Department of the…
Franklin D. Roosevelt Grade 4 • 4m
📜
Scholarly & Legal Citations
Exec. Order No. 8650 (Jan. 23, 1941), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-8650-changing-the-name-the-kellys-slough-migratory-waterfowl-refuge-kellys.
