Tuesday, January 21, 2025

The $64,000 Question

The question is can a presidential executive order override a state law?

That is the question for the next four years... Trump has a slew of EO that he is itching to get out, will they over ride state laws? Since I am not a lawyer I asked Perplexity AI, which is also not a lawyer but it may have more smarts then a lawyer.
Can a presidential executive order override a state law?

Answer:
Executive orders cannot directly override state laws. The U.S. Constitution establishes a system of federalism, where federal and state governments have separate spheres of authority (1, 5). However, there are situations where executive orders can indirectly impact state laws:
  •     Federal Preemption: If an executive order is based on a federal law that preempts state law, it may effectively override conflicting state legislation (5).
  •    Constitutional Authority: If an executive order is grounded in the president's constitutional powers, it may supersede state laws in specific areas where the federal government has exclusive jurisdiction (5) .
  •     Funding Leverage: Executive orders can affect federal funding to states, potentially influencing state policies indirectly (3).
It's important to note that executive orders are subject to judicial review. If a state believes an executive order unconstitutionally infringes on its authority, it can challenge the order in court (1,5). The Supreme Court has the power to invalidate executive orders that exceed the president's constitutional authority or conflict with existing laws (2).
 
Ultimately, the relationship between executive orders and state laws is complex and often depends on the specific content of the order, the area of law it addresses, and the constitutional balance of power between federal and state governments.
So what it seems to say is that Trump cannot override state laws on non-discrimination however they can deny changing gender markers on passports. They can do away with "Non-binary" on federal forms including passports.
Trump to sign executive orders proclaiming there are only two biological sexes, halting diversity programs
The White House officials grouped both orders under the Trump administration’s wider “restoring sanity” agenda. 
NBC News
By Daniel Arkin, Yamiche Alcindor and Matt Lavietes
January 20, 2024


President Donald Trump on Monday plans to sign executive orders proclaiming that the U.S. government will recognize only two sexes, male and female, and ending “radical and wasteful” diversity, equity and inclusion programs inside federal agencies, according to senior White House officials.

The officials grouped both orders under the Trump administration’s wider “restoring sanity” agenda. The orders were detailed by an incoming official on a phone call Monday ahead of Trump’s swearing-in.

The official presented the gender order as part of a policy “defending women from gender ideology extremism and restoring biological truth to the federal government.”

The order aims to require that the federal government use the term “sex” instead of “gender,” and directs the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security to “ensure that official government documents, including passports and visas, reflect sex accurately.”
That will deny all intersex people of their true gender! Many intersex people do not identify as the arbitrary gender assigned at birth. The Intersex People Oppose Trump Administration's interACT: Advocates for Intersex Youth writes,
“Intersex people have historically been erased by unnecessary shame, stigma and non-consensual medical intervention. Increasingly we’re speaking out and fighting back, and today louder than ever and in solidarity with our trans and gender non-conforming peers.”
—Kimberly Zieselman (she/her), Executive Director, interACT: Advocates for Intersex Youth

“Any quest to define a bodily ‘marker’ to categorize and control marginalized sex, gender, and sexuality identities is not only false science, but fundamentally dangerous. The Administration’s proposed sex and gender definitions erase intersex people, too. We are here to resist alongside our trans and gender non-conforming family.”
—Hans Lindahl (she/they), Communications Director, interACT: Advocates for Intersex Youth

“This administration’s stance regarding discontinuation of gender marker changes is violence against transgender and intersex communities. The administration's inflexibility could create a situation in which intersex and trans people that have been wrongfully assigned to a gender due to false perceptions of science cannot access passports, state IDs, and travel, in addition to the various forms of violence already existing against these groups.”
—Robyn Foley (they/them), interACT Youth member, intersex and transgender advocate
They go on to support us...
Intersex people are here to show solidarity with our trans and gender non-conforming family. This is an attack on all of us, a continuation of centuries of violence against difference, and we will not rest until we have won.
I cannot speak for the community but I stand in solidarity with our intersex family.


2 comments:

  1. Richard Nelson1/22/25, 10:00 AM

    Considering the $64,000 question. Fine and dandy as long as we still have a U.S constitution. I put nothing past these stuck in the mud republicans.

    I recall over the years my radical community support for Intersex people and remember some others saying to me, why do you always include "I" along with LGBTQI and now +. My umbrella is big enough to include anyone who knocks from within to be heard. With out fear of those within or those without our movement who may disagree. I really hope that the next big fight will not be the demand to drop the T and the mainstream folks fall in line with the fascists now in control of the government. People sure can get strange when under attack.

    Again Thank you Diana for this site. It is a valuable source of information for all of us in these times.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you!
      And my umbrella is big enough for anyone who wants to get under it.

      Delete