Posted on 03/27/2020 9:00:37 PM PDT by ransomnote
MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
SUBJECT: Order Under the Defense Production Act Regarding
General Motors Company
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the Defense Production Act of 1950, as amended (50 U.S.C. 4501 et seq.) (the “Act”), it is hereby ordered as follows:
Section 1. Policy. On March 13, 2020, I declared a national emergency recognizing the threat that the novel (new) coronavirus known as SARS-CoV-2 poses to our national security. In recognizing the public health risk, I noted that on March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization announced that the outbreak of COVID-19 (the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2) can be characterized as a pandemic. I also noted that while the Federal Government, along with State and local governments, have taken preventive and proactive measures to slow the spread of the virus and to treat those affected, the spread of COVID-19 within our Nation’s communities threatens to strain our Nation’s healthcare system. I further noted that, to ensure that our healthcare system is able to surge capacity and capability to respond to the spread of COVID-19, it is critical that all health and medical resources needed to respond to the spread of COVID-19 are properly distributed to the Nation’s healthcare system and others that need them most at this time. Accordingly, I found that that health and medical resources needed to respond to the spread of COVID-19, including personal protective equipment and ventilators, meet the criteria specified in section 101(b) of the Act (50 U.S.C. 4511(b)).
Sec. 2. Presidential Direction to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (Secretary). The Secretary shall use any and all authority available under the Act to require General Motors Company to accept, perform, and prioritize contracts or orders for the number of ventilators that the Secretary determines to be appropriate.
Sec. 3. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this memorandum shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:
(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or
(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.
(b) This memorandum shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.
(c) This memorandum is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
DONALD J. TRUMP
Trump should extend the DPA to cover Congress to get quality legislation out in a timely fashion.
Today, I signed a Presidential Memorandum directing the Secretary of Health and Human Services to use any and all authority available under the Defense Production Act to require General Motors to accept, perform, and prioritize Federal contracts for ventilators. Our negotiations with GM regarding its ability to supply ventilators have been productive, but our fight against the virus is too urgent to allow the give-and-take of the contracting process to continue to run its normal course. GM was wasting time. Today’s action will help ensure the quick production of ventilators that will save American lives.
What America did for WWII was staggering. America now can’t wipe its azz.
America can’t even figure out how many genders there are.
Can someone make me feel better about this? Does gm get some sort of tax breaks for this?
This is so icky.
The government didn’t have to do this between Dec. 1941 & August 1945.
That doesn’t make me feel better.
Im talking about constitutionality.
It’s called existential crisis. Trump has about 2 months to crest the peak on this virus and get on the downhill side, or this nation will not survive. No, not from the virus itself - it’s true power and potency is likely not that significant - but the public panic from it caused the world’s pre-eminent economy to shut down overnight. It’s a heart attack and we are waiting to de-fib. How long we can wait is the question. The nation, the society, does not survive a long shutdown.
The law didn’t exist until 1950.
CC
Which GM plants are are tooled up, equipped, and trained to produce ventilators? And I am SOOOO sure the friendly members of the UAW will be so happy to comply...
GM instantly fell right in line the moment this EO was issued and begged for mercy and promised to quit screwing around and never let it happen again ...
LOL..so, there’s that ;-)
Likely this just gets the accountants and lawyers out of the way of the engineers and production folks.
This is an Oprah panic. Not that Oprah has promoted it, but the Oprah audience swallowed it.
Just how is GM going to build ventilators? What similarity do they have to cars? How are the assembly lines going to be set up to do this?
“Pipes is pipes!”
I read an article about Dyson vacuum cleaners. He was asked by the UK to develop and build ventilators. He had his design team work around the clock - came up with a design in ten days.
The first ones will be built and sent out by early April. Dyson is donating the first 5,000 units.
If the law was ruled unconstitutional in 1952 now is Trump using it today
Ventec is using GM as a sub-contractor...assuming Ventec will be providing parts and GM will be assembling ventilators at a former GM engine plant in Kokomo, IN:
Next, he should order the WaPo and NYT to make [softer] toilet paper.
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