Why did Truman proceed on such flimsy legal grounds? The composition of the Supreme Court might have encouraged such confidence. Four of the six majority votes came from Roosevelt appointees; two of the three dissents came from Truman appointees. Only two justices Black and Douglas explicitly rejected the claim of inherent presidential power to seize the industry in the absence of congressional authorization.
Marcus, p. See also pp. By Robert Higgs. Also published in The Freeman « Show Fewer. Notes 1. On the political maneuvering, see Marcus, pp. My count from the compilation in Youngstown , pp. It is within the president's power to put people back to work through strikes, but there are different ways to go about it. For instance, in President Wilson nationalized the railroad industry to keep workers from striking during WWI.
Truman could do something similar via Executive Order , but he had other options as well. In Congress passed the Taft-Hartley Act , which banned strategies to help workers organize unions and limited the president's power to seize industries during times of labor unrest. Instead, it offered the president the power to force workers back to work for 80 days while negotiations continued between labor and management. This option would keep wartime industries running uninterrupted.
In , an amendment was added to the Selective Service Act , allowing the president to seize industry facilities that were unable to fill their government orders for wartime products. The steel industry was not defaulting on its order obligations; however, as commander-in-chief, the president can make all military decisions for the United States, including mobilization efforts.
In the end, Truman issued Executive Order to seize control of the steel industries on April 8, The companies sued, resulting in a Supreme Court case to determine whether or not Truman overstepped his Constitutional powers in the steel seizures. Steel Strike of Did Truman overstep his Constitutional powers in seizing the steel industries in ? Book Pages: Illustrations: Published: March First published in Columbia University Press , and reissued here in paperback with a new foreword by Louis Fisher, this book remains the definitive account of the Steel Seizure incident and its political and legal ramifications.
Praise "A model study among those which use a single incident to illumine larger issues. Campbell , TLS "Rarely, perhaps never, has a judicial proceeding been the subject of such thorough and perceptive exposition as Marcus has given the Steel Seizure case.
Westwood , University of Chicago Law Review "The richness of the research, the sophistication of the analysis, and the great editorial skill and care that went into the book will make this a standard work for all students of the Truman era.
McClure , American Historical Review "Although there have been some other articles and books on the Youngstown case, this book remains definitive. Availability: In stock. Add to cart. Open Access. Request a desk or exam copy. Table of Contents Back to Top. Rights Back to Top. Awards Back to Top. Additional Information Back to Top. Paper ISBN: Publicity material Bk Cover Image Full.
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