Emergencies are all too easy for a lawless President to declare, and laws too frequently either aren’t there or have unforeseen loopholes. To strengthen those guardrails:

The National Emergencies Amendment

While the President may declare an Emergency, evidence and arguments in support of the Emergency must be presented to a Federal Appellate Court of reasonably pertinent jurisdiction within one week. Failure to do so or denial by the Court shall terminate the Emergency and any events or powers thereby triggered. The Court must rule on the validity of the Emergency within one week after the presentation of the Emergency. The Court may terminate any state of Emergency at any time. An Emergency must consist of something that cannot be handled by normal governmental or civic authorities and processes.

The regular military may not be deployed off-base within the States and Territories of the United States except in case of an Emergency as allowed by law and this Amendment.

The National Guards may not be deployed within the United States by the Federal government without the consent of the chief executive of the State or Territory involved, except in case of an Emergency as allowed by law and this Amendment.

The goal here is to make it clear that the Courts can halt a runaway President. Without “troops with guns”, it makes it more difficult for a President to break our rules-based system.

-Everett