“Essential” Businesses Are Adjusting Quite Well To the Pandemic. Why Not Let Others Do So Too?

Roger PilonI ’ve gota piece up today at Real Clear Markets that responds to RCM editor John Tamny ’sWednesday piece at the site, which used my earlier writings to go after Wally Olson ’sop ‐​ed in Tuesday ’sWall Street Journal. Wally had argued there, correctly, that President Trump had no power to “order the nation back to work.” Granting that he was not arguing on the basis of any constitutional expertise, John thought Wally’s argument seemed to imply that state governors had something akin to absolute power to order the lockdowns and economic closures that so many have recently ordere d. Since John had cited my work toward that end, I thought it useful to sort the issues out a little more fully.In essence, as Wally had argued, the governors are acting under their general police power, their power to protect the rights, health, and safety of their citizens. That enables them, in extraordinary circumstances like a pandemic, to issue orders that otherwise would be unconstitutional; and judges, lacking expertise, are generally reluctant to second ‐​guess such actions. Presidents, by contrast, have no such power; in domestic affairs, their power comes mainly from statutes Congress has enacted pursuant to its enumerated powers.In the present context, have governors over ‐​reacted, as John’s piece more than suggests? As I wrote toward the end:… the tendency of government officials is to err on the side of safety, as we’re s...
Source: Cato-at-liberty - Category: American Health Authors: Source Type: blogs