Faced with an election that he probably has scant chance of winning fairly, President Donald Trump may use secret powers to overturn the election. The powers are exempt from congressional oversight and provide “extraordinary president authority in response to extraordinary situations.” Since the Eisenhower presidency, administrations have revised the powers while keeping them secret. Former Senator Gary Hart wants to shine a light on these powers called PEADs. “I want them public, because they affect the freedom and liberty and rights of every American citizen,” Hart said. “I can’t say it any better. This is a blueprint for dictatorship. Now, I think the more attention it gets, the less likely those in power are going to use them.” (CBS News, August 16, 2020, by Deirdre Cohen)
Legal scholar Elizabeth Goitein in The Atlantic, January/February 2019 Issue, writes that to have a chance to restrain Trump, the public must realize the enormity of the threat and bring pressure on Congress to repeal outdated laws and pass new laws to limit the emergency powers. Goitein says, “It could issue new criteria for emergency declarations, require a connection between the nature of the emergency and the powers invoked, and prohibit indefinite emergencies. It could limit the powers set forth in PEADs.”