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It was, but the South had seceded, so they considered themselves a separate country with a separate (albeit hastily constructed) government, so executive orders
by Clubber 9y ago
It was, but the South had seceded, so they considered themselves a separate country with a separate (albeit hastily constructed) government, so executive orders don't apply to other countries. The legality of secession wasn't even decided until after the war, so it was a bunch of murky legal territory.
- seanmcdirmid 9y agoExecutive orders as military directives definitely applied to the south specifically because it was a different country. The president is command and chief after all. If we considered the south a part of the USA, it would have been much murkier.
- brightball 9y agoWas it ever decided?
- Clubber 9y agoYes, sort of. After the end of the war, it was ruled unconstitutional (by SCOTUS), but only applied to 1869 onward. (perhaps meaning it was legal in 1861). The actual ruling is still being debated. https://history.stackexchange.com/questions/2056/was-the-secession-of-the-confederate-states-illegal https://history.stackexchange.com/questions/2056/was-the-sec...
- brightball 9y agoThat is a very interesting read